Health Sciences North (HSN), located in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, has received the green light from the Ontario government to build a Learners’ Centre. The new 28,000-square-foot facility will be built at the Ramsey Lake Health Centre and will include classrooms, lecture space, work stations and on-call rooms.

The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care notified HSN that the Learners’ Centre has met the Ministry’s requirements and could now proceed to tender for construction. HSN expects to have a contractor selected by the fall. Construction is slated to begin later this fall and be completed by December 2018.

The new Learners’ Centre will accommodate 2,000 students each year. It will be used by medical students and nursing students, and it will also allow existing staff and physicians to advance their skills.

The focal point of the Learners’ Centre will be the Simulation Lab which is now temporarily housed at the Sudbury Outpatient Centre. The Simulation Lab, designed to replicate medical settings, provides training for procedures such as intubation, suturing and medical scoping.