UMaine, health centers partner to address nursing shortage with NPs
Courtesy / University of Maine
The University of Maine, with Penobscot Community Health Care and other partners, is establishing a residency training program for nurse practitioners.
As the University of Maine System responds to a looming statewide shortage of nurses, the system’s flagship campus, the University of Maine in Orono, is partnering to establish a training program for nurse practitioners.
A $1.7 million federal grant will support a year-long residency program run by UMaine, Penobscot Community Health Care, Harrington Family Health Center and Hometown Health Center in Newport, according to a news release last week.
The 12-month program will provide intensive training in primary care for up to four future nurse practitioners. NPs are experienced registered nurses who receive intensive graduate education and clinical training, and generally practice with less direct supervision than nurses.
Penobscot Community Health Care, a federally qualified health center with 16 service sites in the Bangor area, Belfast and Jackman, has not had an NP resident since 2014.
Historically, the UMaine Nursing School has graduated between three and five NPs per year. Since 2017, in an effort to meet the state’s health needs, the school increased enrollment with a goal to graduate 10 NPs annually.
PCHC will hire a residency director, who also will teach a graduate course in the UMaine School of Nursing NP program, according to the release. The residency program will begin accepting applicants in December and is expected to be fully underway by July 2020.
The creation of the residency comes as the University of New England announced last week that it is expanding its nursing program into a school.
Nursing professionals are already in short supply in Maine. It’s projected that the shortfall will grow to 2,700 vacancies by 2025.
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