Something to ponder: Students flood nursing programs | pnj.com | Pensacola News Journal

Marissa Perry was only 16 when she discovered her purpose in life.

It's unfortunate, she says, that a drunken driver had to crash head-on into her car for that purpose to be made clear. But the months of therapy that followed instilled in her a calling.

Now 19, the 2007 Tate High School graduate is in her first semester at Pensacola Junior College earning a degree to be a registered nurse.

"I had to spend a lot of time in rehab," said Perry, who was injured while heading home from a baby-sitting job. "Being around nurses during that time made me respect what they do. I wanted to be able to give people the same care I was given."

Perry is just one of more than 500 nursing students who move about campus, work in simulation areas and study in classrooms at PJC's Warrington Campus, the home of the school's nursing program.

The University of West Florida offers a bachelor's degree in nursing, which is also gaining momentum.

Programs at both the UWF and PJC remain immensely popular with students.

Judy Bense, interim UWF president, said during a recent presidential address that the school turned has away about 360 nursing applicants over the past two years.

PJC turns away even more students annually.

"We have 1,273 applicants for 110 slots in January," said Marcia Williams, provost of PJC's Warrington campus. "We could take all 1,200 of them, but we don't have enough spaces in clinic for them to go to the hospitals and practice."

With the promise of a starting salary upwards of $35,000, area college students are packing school nursing programs in the hopes of filling the national nursing shortage gap.

The American Association of Colleges of Nursing says the nation is in the midst of a nursing shortage that is expected to intensify as baby boomers age and health-care needs grow.

But some local health-care officials say the number of nursing jobs awaiting area students may be decreasing. Some, in part, cite the slowing economy as a factor in more closely matching supply and demand.

Daphne Scordato, vice president of patient care services at Baptist Health Care, said the recent influx of new graduates found a little bit tighter job market than they found in the past.

"We were able to be a little more selective for the first time in years," she said.

But that doesn't deter students like Brandy Hines, 30, from signing up. Hines, a UWF nursing student, will finish her degree next spring.

"The program has prepared me as far as introducing me to all aspects of nursing, wherever I go from here," she said.

And though the need for additional faculty remains high, local nursing programs are filled to the brim with students — and they could take more, but area hospitals cap the number of students receiving clinical training at a given time.

PJC offers seven nursing programs, including a two-year registered nursing Associate of Science degree. The school also offers several advanced certificates for students who want to specialize in operating room or critical care nursing.

UWF alone graduates between 50 and 60 students with bachelor's degrees in nursing each year. PJC's numbers are even higher.

"On any given day we have somewhere between 450 and 500 nursing students in the pipeline somewhere," Williams said.

Scordato said market projections show that hospitals nationwide should experience a nursing shortage through 2010.

"We're pretty much on target with that except those projections may have not factored in the downturn in the economy," Scordato said. "Due to the economy the demand is catching up with the supply."

Nursing officials at area hospitals say they are well staffed at the moment.

"Right now we're in a very good situation, better than we've been in the past three years," said Gail Ewing, director of associate health and employment at Sacred Heart.

"This past year we've probably had an excess of 500 applicants a week," she said. "Probably 50 to 100 are nursing applicants.

"Our current needs are our critical-care areas," Ewing said. "Those positions require experienced nurses."

Heather Phillips, 21, a senior UWF nursing student, is optimistic about her job prospects after graduation.

"I've been really impressed with our cultural competency training," said Phillips who plans to serve on a mission trip after completing school. "Every course we've taken has introduced different cultures and what our response should be as nurses."

Perry feels confident that in two years when she completes her degree she won't have a problem finding a job.

"I feel pretty confident in being able to get a job pretty much right when I get my licence," she said. "It probably won't be where I want to build my career. But you have to work your way up to where you want to be."