With the recent Royal Assent of Bill 2, Protect Ontario Through Free Trade Within Canada Act, 2025, a streamlined “as of right” certification process will take effect on January 1, 2026. Under this framework, certified professionals from other Canadian provinces and territories will be able to begin working in Ontario within 10 business days of their credentials being reviewed. This change is expected to significantly reduce the time and administrative hurdles that previously delayed registration, making it faster for qualified professionals to join Ontario’s workforce.  

While this announcement highlights non-health professions, SAC is closely monitoring developments for regulated health professions, including S–LPs and audiologists. Currently, registration for health professionals trained in other jurisdictions can take several months. Any future labour mobility initiatives are expected to streamline entry, support workforce flexibility, and improve access to essential services.  

SAC supports measures that improve labour mobility and address health human resource shortages, particularly in underserved communities. Greater mobility will also help support timely access to essential speech, language, and hearing health services.  

We have previously submitted recommendations to the Ontario Ministry of Health as part of its consultation on Reducing Barriers to Practice and Enhancing Labour Mobility for Regulated Health Professionals Registered in other Jurisdictions. We also provided feedback to the federal government on proposed legislation to address interprovincial trade of goods and services, with specific input on health workforce implications.   

SAC will continue to monitor developments and keep members informed as policies and regulations are introduced to support the implementation of health professionals in this framework.  

SAC submitted proposals to the Ontario Ministry of Health recommending important updates to the scope of practice for S-LPs and audiologists. These recommendations build on previous work by OSLA and reflect priorities identified by Ontario members.

To ensure members are fully informed, we are sharing letters with Ontario S-LPs and audiologists outlining the proposed changes and their potential impact.

• Read our letter to S-LP members here.
• Read our letter to audiologist members here.

Alberta has launched a new $3.3 million bursary program to help grow the province’s early childhood education workforce. This new program will provide up to 300 one-time bursaries of $10,000 to eligible students over the next three years. The bursary is intended to help cover the costs of tuition, books, and living expenses for students enrolled in an approved early learning and childcare certificate program at one of 20 participating post-secondary institutions in the province.

In the provincial announcement, Hon. Demetrios Nicolaides, Alberta’s Minister of Education and Childcare, said the investment directly addresses the need for a skilled workforce to provide high-quality care for families. The program follows five years of targeted support for the childcare workforce, which has seen the number of ECEs in Alberta increase by more than 13,000 to a total of 31,200 since 2021.

Federal Secretary of State for Children and Youth, Anna Gainey, was quoted in the announcement as saying ECEs are the “cornerstone” of Canada’s early learning and childhood system, and the bursary will help open doors for new educators and strengthen the workforce.

This investment is a part of the Canada-Alberta Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, which includes a commitment to expand Alberta’s ECE workforce. All childcare staff in Alberta are required to be certified within six months of employment.

As Alberta expands its early childhood education workforce through the new bursary program, SAC is encouraging its members to engage with this initiative by exploring opportunities for collaboration with educators, advocating for communication health training in ECE programs, and monitoring workforce developments that may impact service delivery. SAC sees this investment as a strategic opening to strengthen early identification and support for children with speech, language, and hearing needs across the province.

On August 15^th, SAC met with Primary Care Alberta to discuss integrating speech-language pathologists (S-LPs), audiologists, and communication health assistants (CHAs) into primary care teams. The discussion focused on scope of practice recognition and the critical role our professions play in primary care teams. SAC emphasized how the expertise of S-LPs, audiologists, and CHAs can significantly improve health outcomes by addressing communication and hearing needs at the foundational level of primary care, while also underscoring the importance of swallowing and vestibular care. Instead of being seen as siloed specialists, the conversation emphasized their role as collaborative partners working alongside family doctors, nurses, and other health professionals to deliver comprehensive, patient-centered care.

During this meeting, we also explored the possibility of developing a policy submission to the government. This submission would outline concrete strategies and recommendations for formally including S-LPs, audiologists, and CHAs into primary care teams to help address service gaps and improve access for Albertans.

A significant part of the conversation focused on expanding the roles for S-LPs, audiologists, and CHAs, particularly within public health teams. This could involve shifting beyond traditional one-on-one therapy toward population-level initiatives and community-based outreach. This approach could proactively identify and address communication and hearing health issues before they become more complex, helping build a more efficient and effective healthcare system.

To build on the momentum from this meeting, SAC is asking its members to contribute to this important advocacy work. Your experience is invaluable in shaping practical and effective policy recommendations. We are now accepting submissions from members for policy suggestions on how to best integrate S-LPs, audiologists, and CHAs into primary care teams in Alberta.

Please submit your ideas, including specific examples or case studies, to our dedicated advocacy team. Your input will help us develop a comprehensive, evidence-informed policy submission to the government. To share your suggestions, email us directly at advocacy@sac-oac.ca. Your voice is critical in advancing our professions and ensuring all Albertans have access to the care they need.

This fall, communities across Canada are coming together to celebrate the power of research and innovation during “Celebrate Research Week 2025”, from November 17–21. Led by the Osler Research Institute for Health Innovation (ORIHI), the campaign highlights the vital role research plays in improving health outcomes, strengthening the economy, and protecting the environment 

To support local engagement, the ORIHI has developed a toolkit with practical resources for communities, organizations, and individuals who want to get involved. The toolkit includes: 

• Tools to foster research visibility locally and nationally 
• Template letters and guidelines for connecting with elected officials  
• Tips for advocating for sustained funding and supportive policies 
• Resources to unite researchers across Canada through coordinated messaging, events, and advocacy 

 As SAC  continues to shape policy, practice, and public understanding of communication,  swallowing, and balance disorders, we encourage members to take part in initiatives and projects that spotlight emerging research and innovation to drive the future of speech-language pathology and audiology services. 

Access the ORIHI’s toolkit to participate and learn more. 

SAC recently received a letter from the Honourable Demetrios Nicolaides, Minister of Education and Childcare, in response to our recent position paper, ‘The Role of Speech-Language Pathologists in School-Based Literacy.’ We had sent the paper to the Minister’s office aiming to highlight the vital contribution of speech-language pathologists (S-LPs) to Alberta’s education system and to advocate for a collaborative, interdisciplinary approach to school-based literacy. 

Our position paper was sent to the Minister to support ongoing discussions around literacy programming and promote stronger collaboration between educators and S-LPs. We outlined the critical role that S-LPs play in literacy development, including their expertise in reading and writing skills, knowledge of language development, and ability to deliver evidence-based support to students. The paper concluded with a call to action: invest in S-LP services in schools, strengthen collaboration between S-LPs and educators, and leverage S-LPs’ expertise to advance inclusive literacy practices.  

The Minister’s letter expressed his appreciation for SAC’s position paper and the opportunity to respond. He highlighted the government’s belief that “giving every student the right start is essential” and emphasized the importance of supporting foundational reading, writing, and math skills. The Minister also detailed recent government initiatives, including engaging with school boards and stakeholders to gather feedback on the current approach to early literacy. He noted that this engagement led to enhancements for the 2024/25 school year, such as more frequent screenings for students in Grades 1 to 3 and the introduction of kindergarten screening. 

The Minister’s letter concludes by encouraging SAC to share the position paper directly with Alberta school boards. Under Alberta’s Education Act, school boards are responsible for delivering appropriate education programming and ensuring students have access to specialized supports when needed. The letter further notes that school boards receive additional funding to address diverse learning needs, enabling them to provide a continuum of services within inclusive learning environments. 

Read his letter now. 

In July, the Government of Alberta announced that healthcare aides will now be a regulated profession, being governed and regulated by the College of Licensed Practical Nurses and Health Care Aides of Alberta, previously  the College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Alberta. 

This change will officially take effect on February 2, 2026, at which point the newly reorganized college will oversee the professional standards, training, and accountability of health care aides, particularly those working in rural and underserved communities.  

The announcement has sparked discussion about the broader implications for other support roles in health care, including communication health assistants. 

This decision sets a precedent for formal regulation of support roles in health care.  

For SAC members, it signals a potential pathway toward the regulation of communication health assistants, especially those who work under the supervision of speech-language pathologists, supporting individuals with communication and swallowing needs. Regulation could enhance the quality of care, ensure consistent training standards, and improve public trust in these roles, but could also introduce barriers to practice that could interfere with our members’ employment. 

SAC encourages members in Alberta to stay informed and engaged. We urge you to share your perspective on the regulation of communication health assistants by emailing us at: advocacy@sac-oac.ca 

This development aligns with SAC’s ongoing efforts to ensure our members are informed about any potential developments that could lead to a change in their profession or practice. It reinforces our commitment to ensuring safe, effective, and equitable communication health services across Canada. 

Latest Update

As a result of the meeting on August 12, SAC-Saskatchewan was able to clarify directly with UBC that the WBC issue preventing UBC students from taking placements in Saskatchewan has been resolved. This resolution is especially important for Saskatchewan audiologists, given the limited number of training programs available in Canada.

To address the insurance requirement, UBC has partnered with Saskatchewan Polytechnic. Through this agreement, UBC students can enroll in a micro-credential course aligned with their clinical externship in Saskatchewan, which provides them with the necessary WCB insurance.

If you are an audiologist and would like to host a UBC student for a clinical placement, please email UBC Audiology Clinical Coordinator Sasha Brown at sasha.brown@audiospeech.ubc.ca.

If you are an S-LP and would like to take a UBC student on a clinical placement, please reach out to Marcia Choi at marciac@audiospeech.ubc.ca. Many thanks to SAC member and audiologist Charlotte Douglas for working with UBC and Saskatchewan Polytechnic to resolve this issue.

Previous Update

According to recent Canadian Institute of Health Information (CIHI) data, Saskatchewan has the lowest number of audiologists per capita among all Canadian provinces at 3.7 per 100,000. Many public health audiology positions are vacant, with some having gone unfilled for several years. Additionally, there are many audiologists at or near retirement age, indicating that the time to address this issue is now. The shortage of audiology positions not only affects patient care but also acts as a bottleneck, preventing the advancement of public health programs, such as the creation and administration of a comprehensive Early Hearing Detection and Intervention program and the expansion of hearing aid coverage for children and adults over the age of 65.  

On August 12, Jennifer Cameron-Turley, Provincial Advocacy Manager for Saskatchewan, Bonnie Cooke, Director of Audiology at SAC, and Halen Panchyk, audiologist at the Wascana Rehabilitation Centre in Regina, virtually met with Deborah Moynes-Keshen, Executive Director of the Healthcare Human Resources Branch at the Ministry of Health and Shelley Lofstrom, Executive Director Workforce Planning and Employment Strategies at the Saskatchewan Health Authority. Together, they strategized on how to boost engagement with audiology graduate programs across provinces, with a focus on supporting students completing placements in Saskatchewan. Recruitment and retention strategies that would benefit audiologists across the province were also discussed. This meeting furthers two of SAC-Saskatchewan’s provincial advocacy goals: recruitment and retention, and enhanced access and funding.  

Do you have lived experience of how the lack of audiologists directly affects the hearing health of Saskatchewan residents? Email SAC Advocacy at advocacy@sac-oac.ca.