Hospital program seeking RNs

GLENDALE— A registered nurse training partnership between San Diego State University and Glendale Adventist Hospital is accepting applicants, providing area residents with another entry point into the health-care field, officials said.

The 2-year-old program, which launches locally this summer, begins with online instruction and ends with students working with patients at Glendale Adventist. The 12-month program culminates with a bachelor’s degree in science, giving students an advantage in the job market, officials said.

Students who enroll at San Diego State already have a bachelor’s degree and have satisfied many of the prerequisite classes like anatomy or physiology. Graduates of the nursing program at Glendale Community College take similar courses, but graduate with an associate’s degree, the minimum required to enter the field.

“The baccalaureate degree in nursing is coming to be regarded as the entry level for professional nursing,” said Gwen Matthews, a senior vice president and chief nursing officer at Glendale Adventist. “When they’ve done all the clinical work here, our staff and people know them, and they know us.”

The intensive and rapid curriculum won’t be a direct competitor to the popular nursing program at Glendale Community College because they attract different candidates, officials said.

San Diego State’s program may be best suited for prospective students exiting another career, while Glendale Community College admits students who need clinical hours and instruction to pass the profession’s licensing exam, Matthews said.

State officials have provided multiple means to enter the nursing field, in part to address a severe shortage of nurses, said Catherine Todero, director of the School of Nursing at San Diego State.

“Hospitals are saying they don’t want us to back off of producing new graduates because the long-term projections are so dire,” she said. “As a lot of things happen with health-care reform, with more people trying to access health care, most experts are predicting that the nursing shortage is still there.”

The programs both address what officials say is a dearth of nurses in California. “Nationally, these types of programs are the fastest growing element in nursing education,” Todero said. “It’s a way to focus nursing education starting with a different raw material, essentially — proven learners.”

The two-year program at Glendale Community College is without online instruction, and there is not enough space to fill the demand, said Cynthia Dorroh, the associate dean of health and sciences.

More than 90% of students were awarded their nursing license last quarter, Dorroh said.

“There’s so much competition that I’d rather have them apply to multiple programs rather than apply to ours and not get in,” she said.

Get in touch MAX ZIMBERT covers education. He may be reached at (818) 637-3215 or by e-mail at max.zimbert@latimes.com.