TAMPA, Fla. — The University of South Florida College of Nursing is looking to increase its number of graduates by 200% in 2028 — all thanks to nearly $40 million allocated for the school in the state budget.
What You Need To Know
USF says nearly $40 million in the recently approved state budget will be used to help its college of nursing work toward curbing nationwide health care worker shortage
A $33 million renovation will include enhancements to its simulation training space
Nearly $7 million will be used to hire up to 40 new staff members
The college of nursing’s dean says the aim is to increase its number of graduates by 200% in 2028
USF says nearly $40 million in the recently approved state budget will be used to help its college of nursing work toward curbing nationwide health care worker shortage
A $33 million renovation will include enhancements to its simulation training space
Nearly $7 million will be used to hire up to 40 new staff members
The college of nursing’s dean says the aim is to increase its number of graduates by 200% in 2028
“It’s an incredible increase, but what has made us so excited about this is the fact that we feel like we can really have an impact in the Tampa Bay community,” said Usha Menon, Dean of the nursing college and Senior Associate Vice President at USF Health.
Menon said a $33 million renovation will expand the nursing school’s footprint, including enhancements to the simulation training space. This is where students practice skills in realistic settings.
“I’m excited to see what else they’ll be able to do — if they’re going to expand and have more rooms or if we’re going to have more equipment or both,” said Level 1 nursing student Mikayla Leeds. “I think they can do a lot with that.”
According to Menon, the renovations will create a space that more closely mirrors an actual hospital and easier access to classroom and debriefing space. She said training areas will also be bigger to accommodate additional students. Menon told Spectrum News the goal is to help ease the nursing shortage being seen nationwide, including Tampa Bay.
“I think that’s what everybody wants to know: as we are supposedly, perhaps, moving COVID into the rearview mirror, is anything changing?” Menon said of the local shortage. “What we’re hearing, really, from our area partners, is that shortage really hasn’t been impacted. You know, some of them may be hiring less travel nurses, perhaps. They are seeing a shift, but it’s certainly not enough of a shift to impact that 11% shortage that we know is coming for us in the next ten years or so.”
A report prepared for the Florida Hospital Association and the Safety Net Hospital Alliance of Florida, by IHS Markit, projects the state will be short 37,400 registered nurses and 21,700 licensed practical nurses by 2035 if current trends continue. The report said that means projected supply of nurses will be enough to meet 88% of expected demand for RNs and 70% of expected demand for LPNs.
“I sometimes think about that,” said Leeds. “You hear about it a lot with people having that sort of burnout and, you know, with the pandemic, I know that kind of made things worse for some nurses. But I think, honestly, the passion for it is really going to help people through it.”
Menon said another $6.9 million included in the budget will go toward hiring 30-40 new staff members to meet the needs of the larger student population.