Document text
Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 22, 2005 Hospitals inject life into RCC nursing By BILL KETTLER Mail Tribune Nursing education at Rogue Community College got a boost Tuesday from Jackson County’s three hospitals. The RCC board accepted a $285,000 grant that will pay instructor salaries, purchase supplies and develop training sites for RCC’s nursing program. Providence Medford Medical Center and Rogue Valley Medical Center have each agreed to give the college $135,000 and Ashland Community Hospital will pay $15,000. The grant, which will be spread over two years in equal payments of $142,500, continues an arrangement that began in 2001. The RCC program had 59 students in the two-year degree program in the fall quarter of 2004, and 65 during the just-ended fall quarter of 2005. RCC’s practical nursing classes, which are offered only during the winter term, had 16 students in 2005, and 15 have registered so far for the winter term that will begin in January 2006. Advertisement The grant is the hospitals’ way of recognizing their role in ensuring that Southern Oregon has an adequate supply of nurses, said Scott Kelly, vice president for marketing, planning and business development for Asante Health System. Asante is RVMC’s parent company. "Much of our service area is rural," Kelly said. "Rural areas often struggle to attract and retain college graduates. This is a great program to keep nurses here." "If a nurse has ties to the community, our hospitals are more likely to retain them," said Kathy Skipper, assistant administrator for patient care services at Providence Medford Medical Center. Nurses have been in short supply for years in Southern Oregon and across the United States. Population growth in the Rogue Valley and the region’s disproportionately large senior population are two of the main factors driving the local shortage, said Heather Young, a nurse educator and researcher at Oregon Health & Science University School of Nursing at Southern Oregon University. Researchers fear the problem may worsen as the current generation of nurses retires. The average age of practicing nurses is about 46, and nurses rarely work until age 65. "There’s a tremendous amount of physical work," Young said, noting that nurses often suffer from chronic back pain. Researchers have predicted Southern Oregon’s need for nurses will grow 17.2 percent in the decade between 2000 and 2010. Health care jobs overall were expected to grow 30 percent during the same period. Young said 20 percent of all job openings in Southern Oregon right now are in nursing or other health-care fields. Nursing schools across the United States have more applicants than they can admit. In a recent study the National League for Nursing reported that 147,000 qualified applicants were rejected by schools that had already filled their classes. Those figures included 33,000 applicants for four-year nursing schools and 110,000 who sought admission to two-year programs like RCC’s. Reach reporter Bill Kettler at 776-4492, or e-mail Hospitals inject life into RCC nursing ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker dvd-r Distance Education Computer Security Ztech Media Hosting Sports Equipment Student Loans Online Pharmacy tcg student loan consolidation Online Casino Reviews Myspace Home Equity Loans Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Discount Hotel Reservations Southern Oregon Loans Online Casino News Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Salvia Divinorum Online Casino Fundraisers Advertisement s