‘Adopt-a-Nurse’ program helping solve shortage

Friday, Nov. 23, 2001 | 9:58 a.m.

For 11 years, the closest Joely Austin could get to her dream of becoming a nurse was working as a secretary in a hospital's radiology department.

With two young children and a husband completing an electrician's apprenticeship, there was little time or money remaining to allow Austin to return to school.

Austin made it through two years of college night classes by putting the tuition bill on her credit cards. The registered nursing program, however, meant full-time attendance, expensive textbooks and equipment.

When Austin heard about the Valley Health Care System's "Adopt-a-Nurse" program, which gives qualified students in the registered nursing program at the community college up to $2,000 a semester, it seemed like a way to advance her dream.

"The scholarship has played a major role in my being able to be in school," Austin said. "I seriously doubt I could have managed without it."

With a nationwide shortage of nurses, which is only expected to worsen in the coming years, Valley Health System is trying something new -- hiring nurses before they can enter the job market.

In exchange for the scholarship, Austin must maintain a 2.0 grade point average and agree to spend two years working for the Valley Health System after she graduates, which she expects to do in May 2003. Austin attends classes Monday through Thursday, and she works on the weekend.

The students are matched with mentors and are also given the opportunity for paid positions as nurse apprentices, said Judy Laister, human resources administrator at Desert Springs Hospital.

"This program is about developing relationships," said Laister, who came up with the idea for the program with Desert Springs chief executive Karla Perez. "This isn't about giving a gift or creating a financial obligation."

The Valley Health Care scholarship is unique because the students are given the money for tuition and expenses up front. Many financial aid programs require students to pay at least a portion of the costs themselves, then submit a bill for reimbursement.

"For some students, if you don't have the money up front, going to school simply isn't an option," said Fran Brown, a registered nurse and dean of the division of health sciences at the community college.

Nevada has the nation's worst nurse-to-population ratio, with just 520 nurses for 100,000 people. The national average is 782 nurses for every 100,000 people, and it's estimated that 662 new nursing jobs will be created each year in Nevada through 2008, Brown said.

The community college admitted 56 students to the nursing program this fall, up from the 48 who began classes in the spring. The dropout rate is "extremely low," Brown said, with usually just two or three students failing to complete the two-year practical nursing program.

When students are forced to drop out, it's usually because of a family illness or finances, Brown said. It's frustrating to lose superior students who would likely become outstanding nurses because they can't afford to stay in school, Brown said.

"To educate nurses takes money, to increase enrollment at the nursing schools takes money and employing nurses takes money," said Doreen Begley, a registered nurse and executive with the Nevada Hospital Association. "The nursing shortage isn't something that can be solved by the legislators or the colleges or the hospitals. It requires a strong financial commitment from the entire community."

Begley called the Adopt-a-Nurse program a creative solution to a pressing problem.

"Kudos to Valley Health System," Begley said. "This is an excellent example of not only what can be done, but what should be done."

The Valley Health System includes Desert Springs, Summerlin and Valley hospitals. For more information about the Adopt-a-Nurse program, call 369-7737 or (800) 872-9500.