LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A critical shortage on the frontlines of the pandemic is not getting any better.
Healthcare officials say the nursing shortage is a problem across the country and here in Kentuckiana.
That's why a local partnership was designed to address the shortage.
The partnership between Norton Healthcare and Bellarmine University hopes to address the shortage by helping put more nurses in local hospitals.
Right now, nurses and medical treatment are in growing demand.
"I started volunteering and that's how I found my passion," said Crystal Poggio, a Bellarmine University nursing student.
Last year, Poggio moved from Bakersfield, California to Louisville to start her second career.
"I was working in sales right out of college," she said.
Poggio is in the accelerated nursing program at Bellarmine University.
"Being a nontraditional student, I was ready to get out into the world and start working," said Poggio.
After two years of a global pandemic, Poggio and her classmates in the nursing program are desperately needed.
"There's definitely a shortage of nursing, not just in our community but throughout the country," said Russ Cox, president & CEO of Norton Healthcare.
Cox said the nursing shortage started before the pandemic.
"It's been exacerbated, accelerated, and made worse by the pandemic, obviously. Because it's been a two-year slog. It's been a difficult time, said Cox.
"We've had so many people step up and do a great job, but there are people who are deciding to do other things and leave nursing early and, you know, so much of what we need to do is to put together programs that fill the pipeline and get our younger people interested in healthcare careers."
That's why there's a lot of excitement about Monday's announcement about plans to expand the partnership between Norton Healthcare and Bellarmine in sports medicine, campus wellness and nursing.
Even with the expansion, Cox admits, the nursing shortage won't go away overnight.
"There's no one strategy that is going to be the strategy that takes care of it. This is one of many, that us and so many other health care systems are doing right now," said Cox.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of nurses is projected to grow 9% from 2020 to 2030. As many as 500,000 nurses are expected to retire in 2022.
"There's definitely some comfort knowing that I will have a job after graduating," said Poggio.
After moving across the country, Poggio said the partnership is just more affirmation to her.
"What that says to me is that the hospital sees the value in us," explained Poggio. "And that's really important for us knowing also that we have a place to do our clinical rotations is very important. So we get that hands-on experience."
Poggio is scheduled to graduate from the accelerated program in May and is anxious to join the fight against the global pandemic and get to work on the frontlines.
"I want to work with as many patients as possible to get that experience," she said. "I would like to work with underserved communities and eventually be a nurse practitioner.
The accelerated Bachelor of Science in nursing is a 12-month program for students who already hold a bachelor's degree.
To learn more about the accelerated BSN degree program, click here.
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