Health care
BY BRITTANY ANDERSON
Local groups target nursing shortages
Looking ahead
ABSN graduate Michael Guerrero said exposure to nursing, such as career fairs, at the K-12 level is key. “Letting them get to touch medical equipment that nurses get to use. ... To put it into their hands so they can have something tangible and kind of view themselves doing it, I think that was huge for me,” Guerrero said. Central Texas Healthcare Partnership’s K-12 initiatives include: Its biannual Nursing Academy, where high schoolers participate in interactive nursing labs Observation clinical placements at local hospitals, where high schoolers rotate through several different units Informational sessions for teachers and counselors so they know about in- demand jobs
A handful of Austin-area institutions are working to combat projected nursing shortages with special programs. Texas will experience a shortage of 56,370 registered nurses by 2036, according to the Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies. While there is a “huge interest” in nursing, and students are applying, there are a limited number of spots, said Ashley King, Workforce Solutions Capital Area’s director of healthcare partnerships. “We have 10 different schools of nursing here in Austin. ... All of those programs are looking to expand,” King said. One local program to address that is at Concordia University Texas. In fall 2024, Concordia will provide a $10,000 Workforce Development Scholarship for all eligible students toward its Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program.
Austin nursing school graduates Through WSCA’s partnership with local hospitals, nursing graduates across all ten Austin-area nursing programs have risen.
1,200 1,000
800 600 400 0
*NOTE THAT DATA WAS UNAVAILABLE DURING 2019-20 DUE TO COVID-19.
SOURCE: WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS CAPITAL AREA/COMMUNITY IMPACT
SOURCE: WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS CAPITAL AREA/ COMMUNITY IMPACT
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