Despite dire staffing shortages, it has never been more difficult to become a nurse. In 2021, while patients languished in emergency room hallways—awaiting beds that sat unused—nearly 92,000 qualified applicants were turned away from nursing programs due to insufficient instructional capacity. With funding from a four-year, $1 million Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grant, Rutgers School of Nursing–Camden will respond to this crisis by launching the first-in-the-nation Clinical Instructor and Preceptor Preparation (CLIPP) Academy this spring.
“Without sufficient clinical instructors and nurse preceptors, nursing schools cannot educate enough students to meet the ever-growing needs of healthcare systems,” said Marie O’Toole, interim dean of the School of Nursing–Camden. “Students who do enroll often face challenges related to the availability of these professionals. This initiative represents a profound turning point in the nurse staffing crisis. We are immensely proud to be a part of it.” To read the full story.