Massachusetts Board of Higher Education

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Board of Higher Education Nursing Initiative

New Request for Proposals: Human Simulation Grant

The Human Simulation Grant Request for Response is now available. The request requires demonstration of partnerships between healthcare facilities and schools of nursing with the collaborative process for usage of the mannequins being defined. The request also includes a required match from the receiving school or healthcare facility for the purchase of an extended warranty (approximately $5,500). The schedule for the Human Simulation grant process is:

RFP responses due by:	Monday, March 24, 2008
Awards announced by:	Monday, April 14, 2008*
Awardees accept delivery prior to:	Monday, June 30, 2008

*Due to the volume of responses to the Human Simulation Grant Request for Response, the Department of Higher Education must postpone the notice of awards by one week. Awards will be announced by Monday, April 14, 2008.

About the Nursing Initiative

Since 2003, the Board of Higher Education, with funding from the Legislature, has worked with the Massachusetts Hospital Association and other health care stakeholders to develop the Massachusetts Public Higher Education Initiative in Nursing Education. The Initiative seeks to address a two-fold problem: an acute shortage of nurses and a shortage of nursing educators.

In 2003, there were 7,000 unfilled nursing positions in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Hospital Association projects the shortage to reach nearly 10,000 nurses by 2010 and to surpass 25,000 by the year 2020. There is no shortage, however, of nursing students; qualified students currently are required to wait for nursing program openings. The shortage of faculty, clinical sites, and laboratory facilities compound this problem.

Through partnerships, the Board of Higher Education seeks to increase the number of nursing faculty, improve the capacity in public higher education nursing programs, and meet the future demands for health care personnel. The Nursing Initative Advisory Committee assists with the strategic goals of the program.