March 3, 2020
Soundbites & B-roll: UW rural nursing program
For journalists
On March 3, Premera Blue Cross announced a $4.7 million grant to the University of Washington to establish the Rural Nursing Health Initiative to place current students in rural practices in Washington state.
According to a 2017 study from the National Rural Health Association, people living in rural areas suffer worse health outcomes than their urban counterparts. They have less access to primary care, less access to preventive care, less longevity and less chance of surviving a major heart attack, stroke or other health event. In Washington state, more than a million people, or 14% of the state’s population, live in rural communities.
The UW School of Nursing will spearhead the effort and will build the Rural Nursing Health Initiative over a four-year period, supporting 20 students each year. The program will create enhanced clinical placements for advanced practice registered nurse students, or APRNs, in rural areas throughout Washington, as well as build a pipeline for student placements and provider support, especially critical for rural communities without robust networks.
For more information, contact Jackson Holtz at jjholtz@uw.edu or 206-543-2580 or Kiyomi Taguchi at ktaguchi@uw.edu or 206-685-2716.
Tag(s): School of Nursing
