MHA providing $1 million for new nursing scholarships

The Missouri Hospital Association has established a $1 million scholarship program for students pursuing careers in nursing and the allied health care professions, according to MHA President Marc D. Smith.

The new program, which starts in 2002, is designed to attract new recruits to health care and assist current students in registered and licensed health care programs throughout Missouri, according to an MHA news release.

"Hospitals are currently facing shortages of qualified health care professionals," Smith said. "These shortages are soon projected to reach critical levels throughout the next 20 years. MHA's scholarship program is a significant, proactive step we can take to help Missouri hospitals continue to provide quality care."

The scholarship program will be funded by the Educational and Research Trust of the MHA. During its three-year pilot phase, the initiative will provide 166 scholarships of $3,000 to $6,000 per student.

To accelerate student entry into the work force, the scholarships will be limited to students who are within two years of completing their professional education.

One year of work repayment in an MHA-member hospital in one of six geographic regions of the state will be required in return for each year of tuition support.

Students who are studying for associate's and bachelor's degrees in nursing will be eligible, as will students who plan to be licensed practical nurses. Also eligible will be students in pharmacy, medical technology, radiologic technology and surgical technology.

Scholarship recipients will be selected by a statewide committee comprising representatives of MHA-member hospitals, members of MHA's Task Force on Workforce Development and faculty members of health professional schools.

MHA's scholarship program was proposed after MHA's Task Force on Workforce Development began to study the problem of worker shortages. In March, MHA surveyed member hospitals and found vacancy rates of 6.8 percent to 14.3 percent in full-time, registered-nurse positions.

The average vacancy rate for pharmacists in Missouri is 11.6 percent, with a 14.1 percent average vacancy rate for registered radiological technologists.

In addition, the committee found that nursing school enrollments and numbers of graduates have declined for the past five years, with an average enrollment of 76 percent of capacity in 2000.

"We believe that the lack of scholarship incentives may be a contributing factor in declining nursing school enrollments," Smith said.

"Only one student in 10 pursuing a bachelor's degree in nursing will receive a scholarship. In contrast, many other programs, such as business and education, offer a greater number of scholarships," he added.

"Hospitals are facing an aging population that will place more demands on the health care system in the future, an aging workforce and a reduced pool of young people entering the work force," Smith noted.

"It will require all of us working together, as we've done with the MHA scholarship program, to address these critical issues," he added.

More information on the scholarships may be found on MHA's Web site at www.mhanet.com.