The federal government has announced a $1,968,386 investment in the NOSM University to support a significant expansion of medical training infrastructure across Northern Ontario. Announced on April 1, 2026, by Patty Hajdu, the Minister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for FedNor, the funding is designed to address a critical shortage of family physicians in the region.
This investment will allow the medical school to establish and update training facilities across 87 municipalities and Indigenous communities. The expansion includes five sites at larger hospitals in Sudbury, North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie, Thunder Bay, and Timmins, along with 13 clerkship sites and 69 community-based clinical locations. Of those clinical locations, 43 will be situated within Indigenous communities.
The funding aims to support a major increase in student capacity. Over the next four years, the university’s Doctor of Medicine program is expected to nearly double its enrollment, growing from 425 to 852 learners. This growth is a key part of efforts to improve healthcare access in a region where more than 2.5 million Ontarians currently lack a family doctor, and where approximately 52 percent of practicing family physicians are considering retirement within the next five years.
NOSM University has a history of keeping doctors in the north, with over 55 percent of its graduates choosing to practice in rural and Indigenous communities. As of May 2025, the school has graduated 1,041 doctors. The new funding, provided through the Northern Ontario Development Program, is intended to build on that success by deepening regional partnerships and expanding training capacity throughout the north.
