![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Katherine-Del-Salto-Head-shot.jpg\")
<\/p>\nNew Brunswick is expanding access to pulmonary rehabilitation services in partnership with the New Brunswick Community College and College Communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick.<\/p>\n
In a press release on Monday, the Department of Health announced its investing $1.47 million over the next three fiscal years to support a free pulmonary rehabilitation program.<\/p>\n
The program will be run in clinics managed by NBCC and CCNB, and will offer disease-management education, personalized exercise plans, and ongoing support to patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other lung conditions<\/p>\n
Health Minister John Dornan said in the press release the partnership will make pulmonary rehabilitation more accessible for New Brunswickers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese clinics will give people important tools and support to stay active and improve their health, while also providing student with valuable hands-on the experience that prepares them for careers in health care,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n
According to the press release, these services will help reduce symptoms, improve physical function and support overall well-being.<\/p>\n
Care will be delivered by respiratory therapy students and other healthcare learners under the supervision of registered technicians.<\/p>\n
In a separate press release, NBCC said the program began as a small\u2011scale conceptual pilot in 2018 and has since provided free pulmonary rehabilitation to residents with COPD.<\/p>\n
NBCC currently operates clinics at its Saint John campus, as well as in Sussex and St. Stephen. Since April 2025, the school has delivered six nine-week clinics, serving nearly 90 patients with 92 students involved.<\/p>\n
Building on the research led by NBCC\u2019s College Office of Research Entreprises and early program results, the college has also developed a bilingual guide to help other institutions establish student-led pulmonary rehabilitation clinics across the province and beyond.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are incredibly grateful to the Government of New Brunswick for their investment in this program,\u201d wrote Ann Drennan, NBCC\u2019s vice-president, academic, innovation and student affairs.<\/p>\n
As part of this initiative, CCNB will begin offering pulmonary rehabilitation clinics at its Dieppe campus starting this Monday, based on the NBCC model.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Katherine Del Salto is a multimedia journalist originally from Guayaquil, Ecuador. She came to Canada in 2021 to pursue a journalism degree at St. Thomas University. If you have any story tips, you can reach Katherine at delsaltok@radioabl.ca<\/a>.<\/p>\n