Private University Opens New Lab For Accelerated Nursing In OKC

A private Catholic University is launching a new program Tuesday in Oklahoma City to get nursing students into hospitals faster amid the statewide nursing shortage.

The program is designed to put nurses on the frontlines of care in as little as 16 months.

Hospitals across the state said nurses are in high demand.

"As far as opportunities for nurses, it is like the wild, wild west. Seeing nurses leave for heavy incentives, sometimes, it is hard to blame them with that much money going around," said James Brigida, a RN and supervisor of OU Health's emergency department.

Officials with Marian University said there is a desperate need for more facilities to train nurses.

In 2019, more than 80,000 qualified applicants for nursing were turned away from college and university nursing programs nationwide, they said.

The reasons for that were a lack of faculty, clinical placements, and space, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

Students at Marian will have both rigorous coursework and interactive learning simulations.

Students who qualify must have a bachelor's degree in a non-nursing field.

Click here to learn more about the program.