Jackson State Community College looking to fill the need for nurses

JACKSON, TN (WNBJ)-

The healthcare system has been hit hard by the pandemic and it has been difficult for hospitals to be fully staffed. 39 new’s alexander bitterling has the story of what a west Tennessee college is doing to meet this need.

Jackson State Community College, they are doing what they can to get nurses into the field during a trying time for the healthcare profession.

“We’ve all been living through a pandemic and never have nurses been more needed,” said Dr. Kyle Barron the vice president for student services

In an attempt to fill this need Jackson State Community College has made a change to their application process

You now can apply for the nursing program online, previously you had to go in person.

Dr.Barron said, “We recognize its 2022 and so we are trying to do everything we can to provide an online application for students so they can complete that anywhere, anytime.”

The 2-year program has state of the art simulators to get students as much experience as possible before they treat patients. The simulators are exact replicas of the rooms in Jackson Madison County General hospital, where they are currently looking to hire nurses. Dr. Barron hopes that their program can help meet this need, “Possibly graduate 80 students every year that can help our community and our work force stay health and stay employed and help get up through this pandemic.”

Dr Barron said that the pandemic has made people think more about entering the nursing field, "The pandemic has been both good and bad. There’s a few people who now have an increased interest in being a nurse because they see how vital that role is to the society as a whole, but it has also scared away some because they see that in a pandemic situation it can completely change not only your life but your families as well.”

'

The application deadline for the nursing program is March 1st

If you need any help with the application faculty at Jackson State are available to help Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday afternoon.