Suburban schools expand to fill need

[cougarnurse]

From the Daily Herald: Daily Herald | Suburban nursing schools expand to fill need

Ask any of the area community colleges and four-year universities, and the answer is the same: the degree programs drawing the most interest right now are in health care, and more specifically, nursing.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of jobs for registered nurses is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations, through 2016.

In March, the bureau reported that the health care sector continues to grow, despite steep job losses in nearly all major industries.

Specifically, hospitals, long-term care facilities, and other ambulatory care settings added 27,000 new jobs in February, the same month when 681,000 jobs were eliminated nationwide, according to labor statistics.

As the largest segment of the health care work force, nurses will likely be recruited to fill a large portion of these new positions.

Their income ranges between $47,710 and $69,850 for the middle half of all registered nurses, with the lowest 10 percent making less than $40,250 and the highest 10 percent making more than $83,440.

Nonetheless, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing expects the nursing shortage only to intensify as baby boomers age and the need for health care grows.

Compounding the problem, they say, is the fact that nursing colleges and universities across the country are struggling to expand enrollment levels.

However suburban colleges are coming up with ways to open more seats.

Just last month, the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn dedicated its 180,000-square-foot Health and Science Center, which houses a combination of laboratory, classroom, office and instruction space.

Likewise, a new player on the scene, Chamberlain College of Nursing, opened its new building in Addison last year. Formerly called the Deaconess College of Nursing and based in St. Louis, it is now owned by DeVry.

Chamberlain offers a baccalaureate program in nursing, so as not to conflict with the associate programs offered at community colleges, says Jan Snow, campus dean. It admits new classes three times a year.

Starting in July, Chamberlain will launch an online master's program, offering courses aimed at producing nurse educators and nurse executives.

"DeVry was looking to expand educational opportunities and meet the demand for careers in health care," Snow says. "The demand for nursing programs is absolutely out there."

In fact, she describes many of Chamberlain's students as those who were on the waiting list at other colleges.

"The average age is 24, but they are highly, highly motivated," Snow says. "These are adults who have made a choice to pursue nursing as a career."

At Lewis University in Romeoville - which produces the greatest number of nursing bachelor degrees for private institutions in the state - officials see an increasing trend in college graduates returning for their pre-licensing, accelerated program to earn a nursing degree.

"We like to work with these students," says Peggy Rice, nursing school dean of the 17-month program. "They are dedicated and work hard because they know what they want."

Officials at Harper College in Palatine say demand is so great for their nursing degree that they have spun off a separate practical nursing certificate program.

Formerly, the practical nurse program was embedded in the registered nursing course of study, but this August, Harper will offer it separately.
"For the last five years or so we have been experiencing a rise in interest in our nursing program, as the public becomes aware of the nursing shortage," says Cindy Luxton, dean of Health Sciences.

At the same time, Harper has tightened its application criteria by requiring students to have taken anatomy and physiology before applying, and their science credits must be current within the last five years.

Luxton adds that because of that, they have fewer applicants this year than normal, and they will open a second admission in June.

Still, with two programs in place, Harper will be able to admit 120 in its two-year registered nursing program, while taking another 30 in its one-year practical nursing program.

College of DuPage officials began offering a separate practical nursing certificate two years ago, and they have seen their numbers grow, Solt says. They can seat 117 nursing students, and typically draw around 450 applicants.

Their separate practical nursing program allows them to seat another 40 students, which draws 150 applicants.

What's more, their certified nurse's assistant program, which is a prerequisite for both nursing degrees, fills its 100 spots on the first day of registration.

Starting this fall, they also will be able to offer their nursing students who have completed their associate degree at COD the chance to complete their bachelor of science degree at Northern Illinois University.

Similar degree-completion partnerships with NIU exist at Harper, Elgin Community College and the College of Lake County.

Already, COD nursing students can enroll in a fast track course through Benedictine University in Lisle that allows them to complete their bachelor's degree in one calendar year.

"We're seeing a lot of the acute care hospitals encouraging their nurses to get their bachelor's degree," says Karen Solt, associate dean of health science at the College of DuPage. "An increased educational level leads to an increase in the quality of patient care that is delivered."

[cali510]

Wish they would expand nursing programs in other areas. All we hear around my neck of the woods is how the waiting lists are getting longer or someone missed the lottery again for the fourth time in a row.