Schools across New York City working to enroll, train nursing students amid nationwide shortage
NEW YORK - A nationwide nursing shortage intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic is hitting close to home.
Nursing schools across our area are working to enroll and train diverse new students to the health care field.
At Plaza College's accelerated nursing program in Forest Hills, students are building their future while supporting ours.
"We prepare them on campus in our Center for Healthcare Simulation with high-fidelity mannequins," director of clinical coordination Danielle Atkinson said.
The humanlike simulators come to symbolize real patients. They breathe, speak, shed tears and even give birth.
"What we do in simulation is we have scenarios that mimic what students would see from day one," Dean of Nursing Dr. Abdur Raheem Nizar-Moses said.
Instructors watch the scenes through two-way mirrors and record them for later review.
The training comes amid a nationwide nursing shortage supercharged by the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a 2023 study from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, roughly 100,000 nurses left the workforce in two years during the pandemic due to stress, burnout and retirement. Nearly 1/5 of all nurses intend to leave by 2027.
That's why schools are recruiting future nurses of all backgrounds, many in career transition. At Plaza College, the average age for nursing students is 30.
Dr. Beverly Malone is president of the National League for Nursing. She says a shortage of both nursing educators and clinical placement demands priority and investment.
"We are the ones who accompany people on their life journey," she said. "It's such a privilege to be a nurse."
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