Funding Amounts:

• $10,000 per LTC home for enrollments between April 1, 2026 – September 30, 2026.
• $5,000 per LTC home for enrollments between October 1, 2026 – January 27, 2027.

How to Use the Coordination Funding: 

Coordination funding is intended to cover the time spent designing, implementing and managing your LTC home’s mentorship program. This could include time spent on:

• Designing or enhancing your mentorship program.
• Identifying and recruiting mentors and mentees.
• Preparing and conducting mentorship orientation sessions.
• Scheduling mentorship sessions and coordinating backfill.
• Developing internal processes and evaluating program outcomes.
• Facilitating regular check-ins with participants to support their progress.

How to Apply for Coordination Funding: 

Simply indicate your interest in Coordination Funding on your enrollment form when signing up for Nursing PLEDGE. Applications are typically processed within 90 days, with funds distributed to homes within 60 days following approval. 

Coordination Reporting: 

Your LTC home confirms that the Coordination Funding will be used for its intended purpose during the initial enrollment process and that it is required to complete program evaluation surveys. No additional reporting is required.

Funding Amount & Conditions:

• $39,000 per LTC home for enrollments between April 1, 2026 – September 30, 2026.
• $19,500 per LTC home for enrollments between October 1, 2026 – January 27, 2027.

To receive Backfill Funding, LTC homes must meet the “Good Standing Conditions” outlined below. Specific deadlines for these requirements are determined by your home’s exact enrollment date, and you will receive your home’s milestone deadlines upon enrollment.

Enrollment Window	Total Funding	Payment Schedule	Good Standing Conditions to Release Payment
April 1, 2026 – September 30, 2026	$39,000	Installment #1: $19,500	Register at least 1 active mentor/mentee pair Complete baseline surveys Attend at least one Community of Practice (CoP) session
		Installment #2: $19,500	Maintain at least 1 active pair as of March 31, 2027 Regularly attend monthly CoPs Ensure mentor and mentees complete the three short Nursing PLEDGE eLearning courses. Complete evaluation surveys
October 1, 2026 – Jan 27, 2027	$19,500	Single Payment: $19,500	Register at least 1 active mentor/mentee pair Complete baseline surveys Attend at least one CoP session

How to Use the Backfill Funding: 

Backfill funding covers the cost of bringing in additional nursing team members to cover regular shift duties while your mentors and mentees are “off the floor” for dedicated mentorship activities. This ensures continuity of resident care and allows participants to focus entirely on the program. All funds must be fully utilized by March 31, 2027.

Key Funding Details:

• Fixed Amount: The backfill funding is a fixed amount estimated to cover approximately 15 hours of total mentorship time per week at your LTC home. The amount of backfill funding you receive remains the same regardless of how many mentors and mentees are registered in your home. 
• Flexible Allocation: You can allocate these 15 hours to a single mentor/mentee pair or split them across multiple participants.

How to Apply for Backfill Funding: 

Indicate your interest in Backfill Funding on your enrollment form when signing up for Nursing PLEDGE. Following your home’s specific deadline to meet the Good Standing Conditions, the Nursing PLEDGE team will review your account and process your installment for disbursement if all conditions are met. 

Backfill Reporting: 

Your LTC home confirms that the funds will be used for backfilling during the enrollment process, and that program evaluation surveys will be completed. Because funding is milestone-based and released only when conditions are met, no additional reporting on mentorship hours is required for backfill funding.

Funding Amounts & Conditions:

• Funding is available for nurse mentors as a top-up stipend or a dedicated wage, up to $39,000 per year per LTC home. This stream is administered exclusively by Ontario Health (OH).
• This stream is calculated based on hours worked and is reimbursed monthly. If hours are not reported to Ontario Health for a given month, funding for that month will not be issued. 
• The stipend amount per hour for each nurse is determined by the LTC home. Each home has the ability to determine the amount that will be offered to the nurse mentors. 

How to Use the Nurse Wage Top-Up Stipend:

Unlike backfill funding, this stipend funding is issued to the LTC home so that you can provide a direct financial top-up to your nurse mentors on top of their existing wages. This ensures they are compensated for taking on additional mentorship leadership duties.

Key Funding Details:

• Capacity: Covers an average of 15 mentorship hours per week per home, which can be split across a maximum of 3 nurse mentors (RN, RPN, or NP).
  
• Consult Labour Relations: We recommend engaging with your local union to determine the amount of top-up stipend that would work within the bounds of your specific collective agreements.

How to Apply & Report (Administered by Ontario Health)

Because this stipend stream is delivered entirely by Ontario Health, the Ontario CLRI does not manage, process or track this funding.  To access this portion of the funding, your LTC home must submit a separate online application directly through the Ontario Health Nursing PLEDGE website.

To receive your mentor stipend reimbursements, your home must submit monthly reports directly to Ontario Health via their Health Workforce Programs portal, tracking completed mentorship hours and the required stipend funding for each mentor.

Please visit the Ontario Health website for details about the funding, and contact them with any questions related to the stipend at info-hfo@ontariohealth.ca.