South Shore Regional Hospital in Bridgewater, NS. Photo: Evan Taylor

Health and Wellness Minister Michelle Thompson says South Shore Regional Hospital (SSRH) is looking to hire four physician assistants (PA) to support its ER.

While speaking to reporters on Thursday, Thompson explained that they are in the process of hiring four PAs at Dartmouth General which she said was set to be completed imminently.

Following that process, they will prioritize the hiring at SSRH, although no time frame on when the hires are expected to be complete was provided.

PA roles are relatively new to Nova Scotia having started on a limited basis in 2019 as part of a pilot program that saw three PAs introduced to Orthopedic Departments in Halifax.

Other medical providers have used PAs for years including other provinces like New Brunswick, Ontario and Manitoba as well as the Canadian Military. Most commonly PAs are assigned to work in ERs where their qualifications allow them to handle the most common things seen in ERs.

PAs are able to take on simple medical cases, as well as provide prescriptions for some drugs if needed under doctor supervision, which is intended to allow doctors to focus on more complex issues.