Cape Breton Medical Campus Welcomes Future Doctors

History was made in Nova Scotia today as the new Cape Breton Medical Campus (CBMC) welcomed its first cohort of students. The CBMC was envisioned by Cape Breton University and founded through a partnership with Dalhousie Medical School. While classes don’t officially begin until September 3, students are taking part in registration and orientation activities over the next week, including time in Halifax to connect with students from Dalhousie Medicine Halifax and Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick. Dalhousie Medical School, founded in 1868, has played an integral role in educating future doctors in Nova Scotia. The CBMC is the newest campus to join this esteemed network.

“This is a proud day for Cape Breton and for all of Nova Scotia. The opening of a second medical school campus is transformational for healthcare in our province,” says Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston. “These students are answering the call to serve their communities and by training more doctors right here at home, we are investing in better access to care for families for generations to come.”

CBU President and Vice-Chancellor, David C. Dingwall says the university community is celebrating this historical moment. “Cape Breton University is proud to be part of a larger movement to enhance healthcare delivery across Nova Scotia. We are thrilled to welcome these exceptional students who have embraced the opportunity to study at the Cape Breton Medical Campus and to serve family medicine.”

The inaugural CBMC class is comprised of 30 Nova Scotians who will apply their academic excellence, leadership skills and passion for healthy people and communities to the study of medicine. The first students will be eligible to graduate with their medical degrees in 2029 and will dedicate five years to family medicine in rural Nova Scotia as part of a return of service agreement. This is unique to the CBMC, where admission is described as a rural pathway that requires a commitment to rural family medicine from its graduates. The CBMC students hail from communities across the province, including Sydney, Glace Bay, Kentville, Timberlea and Guysborough, with one-third from Cape Breton.

Dr. Jennifer Hall is the Senior Associate Dean of the CBMC and will provide leadership to students navigating medical studies. “The CBMC is poised to become a cornerstone of healthcare transformation in Nova Scotia,” says Dr. Hall. “The rural pathway is designed to educate physicians who are not only clinically excellent but deeply committed to supporting rural healthcare in this province. A warm welcome to Nova Scotia’s future doctors.”

The CBMC is operating in a temporary space in the former Nova Scotia Community College, which is adjacent to a new medical science building currently under construction on CBU’s campus. The state-of-the-art medical sciences building will be completed later this year and will feature cutting-edge simulation labs, collaborative learning spaces and integrated clinical training with local hospitals and community clinics. The CBMC follows a curriculum that emphasizes early patient interaction, cultural safety and interdisciplinary teamwork.

Dr. David Anderson, Dean of Medicine at Dalhousie University, commends the collaboration that fostered this achievement. “We are extremely pleased to partner with Cape Breton University to launch the Cape Breton Medical Campus and to welcome the inaugural class of medical students to CBMC. This campus represents an important step forward in strengthening healthcare across Nova Scotia, particularly in rural communities,” says Dr. Anderson.

Cape Breton University and the Dalhousie School of Medicine signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 2022, outlining the framework under which the two universities will operate with respect to the CBMC. The vision became a reality when it was endorsed by the Province of Nova Scotia during Premier Tim Houston’s State of the Province address in Cape Breton in January 2023, followed by related funding commitments to support construction, operations and related healthcare services.