VIDEO: Recruiting for rural practice

President Armacost and Dawn Denny, associate professor of Nursing, talk about new grant at UND addressing primary care provider shortage

President Andrew Armacost and Dawn Denny, associate professor of Nursing, introduce a new workforce development grant for the College of Nursing & Professional Disciplines in this week’s video message.

Titled “Gero-STARR,” this federally funded program from the Health Resources and Services Administration is designed to expand North Dakota’s nursing workforce and improve care for older adults in the state’s rural communities.

The acronym is derived from “gero,” the prefix for “aging,” and STARR for “specialized training to advance recruitment and retention in nursing.”

The program’s goal is to recruit students from rural North Dakota to train as nurses at UND and inspire them return to and practice in rural communities where health care needs are greatest.

Denny shares that 80% of rural counties in the United States experience a shortage of primary care providers, including nurses.

Armacost asks Denny about the program, including its philosophy around training and how students are supported both academically and financially. Denny remarks that Gero-STARR is borrowing its model of support from the College’s Recruitment & Retention of American Indians into Nursing, which has historically seen success in supporting students while they’re away from home.

As Gero-STARR cohorts progress through nursing degrees at UND, they will also take part in intensive summer training exclusively focused on care for older adults both in simulated and real-world clinical settings.

For more information, a story announcing the Gero-STARR program recently appeared in UND Today.