2024-2026 President of the Nurse Practitioners of New Brunswick

As I begin my final year as President and reflect on all that we have accomplished, I feel immense pride in our executive team and our members. Together, we continue to advance our profession—enhancing access to care, improving patient health outcomes and supporting the dedicated professionals who work tirelessly in this demanding and rewarding field.

This past year has been one of significant growth and achievement. Forty-five students successfully graduated as new Nurse Practitioners (NPs) and all were offered employment opportunities. Within Vitalité, 26 new Family Health Teams were created, integrating many of our existing NPs and welcoming new graduates into the network. Vitalité also created 11 new NP positions this year.

In Horizon, 49 new Family Health Teams were established, with 57 NPs now practising as part of those teams. In addition, 24 new NP positions were approved for the current fiscal year—another clear sign of the growing recognition of the value NPs bring to the healthcare system.

Nurse Practitioners of New Brunswick (NPNB) have been proud to contribute to several major initiatives this year. We have continued to advance revisions to the Nursing Act. We have listened to your voices and have played a key role, alongside many of our dedicated members, in establishing the new professional association—Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of New Brunswick while continuing to advocate strongly for our profession. This work will continue in the months ahead as we strengthen our collective voice.

We are also working with key stakeholders to expand opportunities for NPs in long-term care, as well as exploring transitional care models to support patients who no longer require acute care but are not yet ready to return home.

Throughout the year, NPNB has collaborated with a wide range of stakeholders—provincial partners, government representatives, medical and nursing communities, academia, business leaders, and our national colleagues—to ensure that NPs remain a vital and dynamic presence in the healthcare landscape. We continue to engage with leadership across sectors to address the pressing challenges faced by NPs in New Brunswick and across Canada, while presenting practical, evidence-based solutions.

Looking ahead, our leadership team remains committed to advancing NP-led, publicly funded, team-based practices; to developing residency and fellowship programs that support specialization; and to create more opportunities for NPs to work in areas that align with their expertise and passion.

Together, let’s continue to strengthen and move our profession forward.

Sharon Hamilton NP

President NPNB