CHA Report Finds Increased Demand for Nursing School Enrollment

        CLEVELAND – A report by The Center for Health Affairs, a regional hospital advocacy group, indicates a significant increase has occurred in demand for enrollment in area schools of nursing. The report collected information from 15 schools of nursing across seven counties in Northeast Ohio to quantify the demand for enrollment in schools of nursing, assess the capacity of the schools to accommodate an increase in demand, and identify the factors that may hinder the ability of schools to expand their programs and enroll greater numbers of students.

        According to the report, area schools of nursing have experienced a significant increase in nursing school applications, and this increase has created an overflow for the schools. Highlights of the report include:

• The number of applicants to these schools has more than doubled from the 2000-2001 to the 2002-2003 academic years.
• The overall number of students accepted into a nursing education program has increased by 75 percent and overall student demand has increased by 41 percent.
• In the 2002-2003 academic year, 553 qualified nursing school applicants were denied admission due to a lack of available student slots.
• The lack of nursing faculty, classroom space and clinical training sites are the most significant barriers to expanding nursing education programs.

        The Center for Health Affairs, through its Northeast Ohio Nursing Initiative (NEONI), has been active in trying to attract more people to careers in healthcare, especially nursing. Since the program’s inception in 2002, approximately 1,000 students have participated in the NEONI job shadowing program, which allows high school students to spend a day shadowing a nurse or allied health professional in a hospital. Given the success in attracting potential nursing students, CHA and NEONI are now looking for opportunities to expand the capacity of local schools of nursing.

        For additional detail on NEONI programs and a copy of the nursing capacity survey report, visit NEONI's Web site at http://www.neoni.org/.

        The Center for Health Affairs is a hospital trade association representing 35 hospitals in Northeast Ohio and serving those organizations and others through a variety of advocacy and business management services. CHA also works to educate the public on issues that affect the delivery of healthcare. A program of CHA, the Northeast Ohio Nursing Initiative (NEONI) is a growing coalition of more than 70 members from 54 health care organizations dedicated to creating and sustain a strong professional health care workforce in Northeast Ohio.

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