The Rutgers School of Nursing has been awarded nearly $1 million by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to help address a statewide nursing shortage that was exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Part of the appropriations bill funding the federal government for 2023, the $950,650 grant will be used to provide high-quality, simulated clinical learning exercises, enabling the school to increase the number of admitted students by at least 25 percent.

“This money is earmarked for expansion of our simulation programs and will mean more high-fidelity mannequins for student clinical training,” said Linda Flynn (PhD, RN, FAAN), dean of the Rutgers School of Nursing.

Flynn thanked New Jersey Congressman Donald Payne, Jr. for his efforts in securing the HRSA funding and noted that “we cannot continue to overload hospitals and outpatient clinics with students, and this money will help reduce that burden.”

To graduate, registered nursing (RN) students need to complete a clinical residency. But every year, the Rutgers School of Nursing – the largest nursing school in New Jersey – turns away hundreds of qualified candidates because of a lack of clinical rotation slots.

In the current class of about 300 first-year students, 1,040 candidates weren’t admitted because of this training bottleneck, Flynn said.

One way to expand training opportunities is by using high-fidelity clinical simulation – namely mannequins and other technologies that simulate in-hospital patient care. One way to expand training opportunities is by using high-fidelity clinical simulation – namely mannequins and other technologies that simulate in-hospital patient care. With the HRSA grant, Rutgers will be able to purchase enough simulators to admit between 75 and 90 additional registered nursing students annually. The grant will also allow the school to admit and train more certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNA) in its Doctor of Nursing Practice program.

Additional News Coverage

• Nursing shortage and training shortfalls are linked in N.J. Can Rutgers be part of the solution?, NJ.com, 2-10-23
• High-Tech Talking Mannikins Coming to the Rutgers NJ School of Nursing: NJ 101.5.com, 2-8-23
• Listen: Dean Linda Flynn interview, NJ 101.5, 2-8-23