Sacred Heart University and Hartford HealthCare have signed an agreement to expand instructional and placement opportunities for the Fairfield-based school”™s students.
The agreement includes a one-time $100,000 donation by Hartford HealthCare to create a named scholarship aimed at underserved students interested in nursing, allied health or behavioral health. Also included in the agreement is a new fellowship program for two critical care nursing fellows beginning summer 2023, along with opportunities by SHU students for clinical rotations and placements at Hartford HealthCare facilities.
Furthermore, the agreement will feature an expanded certified nursing assistant program that incorporates a shared faculty model, an evidence-based practice mentoring program for clinical nurses, opportunities for Hartford HealthCare colleagues to enroll in accelerated BSN and RN degree programs at SHU, clinical placements and rotations for SHU students studying to become physicians’ assistants and additional support for SHU”™s existing global nursing program in the Philippines.
Hartford HealthCare will also donate $125,000 per year over the coming four years to help provide and expand advanced simulation technology and techniques across all health professions ”“ this will finance educational curricula and learning modules that will be used by students studying women”™s health, emergency department care, surgery, pediatrics and other procedural areas.
“This expanded relationship could not happen at a better time, especially with the shortage of health professionals, qualified educators and clinical training opportunities here in Connecticut and around the country,” said SHU President John J. Petillo.
“Connecticut faces a profound nursing shortage and programs like this will help alleviate that, while planning for the future,” said Dr. Rocco Orlando, senior vice president and chief academic officer at Hartford HealthCare. “Today”™s students will become the nurses, physicians, researchers, technicians and clinicians that we need. Through our work with SHU and other health-care educational institutions, we are committed to further developing the health-care workforce and ensuring that our resources, skilled practitioners and expertise choose to live and work in Connecticut after graduation.”
