MARTINEZ, Calif. (KCBS) -- Nursing programs throughout the state have seen a huge jump in enrollment. Despite a documented need for more nurses, some training programs cannot keep pace with the flood of new applicants.
Some on the long waiting list for the nursing program at Solano Community College have been biding their time for as long as two years.
KCBS' Dave Padilla reports
College president Jowel LaGuerre said the college will not accept any new students during the spring semester because grant money had dried up.
“It is unfortunate that we cannot receive as many students as we would like,” he told KCBS reporter Dave Padilla.
Students already accepted will be allowed to enroll in courses this spring. But with only 130 slots, the program cannot accommodate its waiting list, now 400 deep.
No new students will be accepted until the fall of 2010.
Several studies have projected California will face a nursing shortage in the coming decades, and LaGuerre said programs like the one at Solano need to expand.
“We are concerned about the need for workers, the need for nurses,” he said.
The slow economy has made new nursing positions scarce, although the health care industry is one of the few industries economists say is growing.
Right now, many nurses are postponing retirement to build up their 401K’s.
(jro)
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