NURSES AWARDED SCHOLARSHIPS FOR COMMITMENT TO TEACH IN MASSACHUSETTS

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	Contact:	Clare Densmore, MHA
January 27, 2010		(781) 262-6031
		Patti Embry-Tautenhan, THP (617) 972-1090

Nursing Initiative Improves Faculty Shortage

The Massachusetts Hospital Research and Education Association (MHREA) in conjunction with the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education (MDHE), today announced the recipients of the Tufts Health Plan Foundation Nurse Scholarships for the spring 2010 semester.

Scholarships were awarded to the following four nurses, who each committed to teaching nursing in Massachusetts. The awardees, their hometowns, and the degree track and school of nursing in which they are currently enrolled are:

• Traci Alberti, Wilmington, MA, PhD, Nursing, UMASS Lowell;
• Clare Lamontagne, Chicopee, MA, PhD, Nursing, UMASS Amherst;
• Paula Bylaska-Davies, Holden, MA, PhD, Nursing, UMASS Worcester;
• Sheila Pennell, Northampton, MA, PhD, Nursing, UMASS Amherst.

To meet the urgent need for nurse educators, Tufts Health Plan Foundation (THPF) developed the Nurse Scholars Program in collaboration with MDHE and MHREA, a subsidiary of the Massachusetts Hospital Association. $250,000 was granted to MHREA to administer scholarships of up to $10,000 each to clinical nurses in master’s and doctoral nursing programs in Massachusetts to address the nursing shortage by ensuring the ability to educate new nurses.

The combination of an aging workforce, a generation of nursing faculty approaching retirement, and the increasing healthcare demands of baby boomers is expected to soon place burdens on the healthcare delivery system that far exceed the supply of available nurses. According to an MDHE survey, the most effective strategy for addressing the nursing shortage is to expand the number of nursing faculty available to teach.

The Massachusetts Hospital Association’s Senior Vice President of Clinical Affairs, Karen Nelson, R.N., co-chaired the award selection committee with Anne Marie Boursiquot King, director of grants of the THPF, Marie Tobin, President of the Massachusetts Center for Nursing, and Erin Mawn of MDHE.

Mawn said, “The workforce pipeline is jammed at the education level with nursing schools flooded by applications, but not enough nursing faculty to meet the demand.”

“This program will help put both nursing educators and students into classrooms, increase the workforce, and ensure enough nurses are at the bedside,” Nelson added.

David Abelman, executive director of THPF, believes that investing in nursing education is one way that the Foundation demonstrates its commitment to promote quality healthcare. “It is well-documented that the shortage of qualified nurses has been an issue in recent years. All of us are patients at one time or another and will be affected by this problem, so Tufts Health Plan is glad to partner with like-minded organizations that are seeking solutions. We believe that providing scholarships to nurse educators is one solution, and we are pleased to congratulate the scholarship awardees,” he said.

The Nursing Initiative is ongoing and another round of the Tufts Health Plan Foundation Nurse Scholarships will be awarded in June 2010 with applications taken in the spring. THPF’s $250,000 also served as a match for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Partners Investing in Nursing’s Future (PIN) grant. The PIN grant provides additional scholarship opportunities and advances the current collaborative efforts of the Nursing Initiative to New Hampshire and Rhode Island through 2011.

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About MHA: The Massachusetts Hospital Association is a voluntary, not-for-profit organization comprised of hospitals and health systems, related organizations, and other members with a common interest in promoting the health of the people of the Commonwealth. Through leadership in public advocacy, education, and information, MHA represents and advocates for the collective interests of its member hospitals and health systems, and supports their efforts to provide high quality, cost effective, and accessible care.  

About the Tufts Health Plan Foundation: Tufts Health Plan launched the Tufts Health Plan Foundation in 2008. The Foundation’s mission is to promote healthy lifestyles and the delivery of quality care in our communities. In its first year, the Foundation focused on Disparities, Nursing Faculty Education and Health Consumer Education and awarded $2.5 million to more than 60 non-profit organizations throughout Massachusetts. The Tufts Health Plan Foundation is currently focusing on Healthy Aging to help meet the challenges of an aging society. Through grants in the three areas of Vibrant Lifestyles, Intergenerational Collaboration and Keeping Our Seniors Safe, the Foundation seeks to fund programs that will  elevate the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of older adults; enable them to contribute their experiences and knowledge to their communities; and ultimately help older adults live longer, healthier lives. See www.tuftshealthplanfoundation.org.

Tufts Health Plan Foundation, THPF, Nurse Scholarships, Massachusetts Hospital Research and Education Association, MHREA, Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, MDHE

NURSES AWARDED SCHOLARSHIPS FOR COMMITMENT TO TEACH IN MASSACHUSETTS (Microsoft Word Document)