Partnership between an educational institution and a healthcare agency--lessons learned: part I.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this paper is to provide a model of a partnership program between a major educational institution and a large community medical center that has become a win-win situation for both, which enabled the former to double its undergraduate nursing (BSN) program when it was on the verge of reducing enrollments by 33% because of repeated financial cuts, and a healthcare agency (HCA) to find a creative way of hiring BSN-educated registered nurses in perpetuity, thus reducing their $2 million a month recruitment expenses.


METHODS
This was a 5-year, $15 million partnership between California State University, Long Beach, School of Nursing and Long Beach Memorial Medical Center/Miller Children's Hospital. The HCA contributed the $10 million in funds and in in-kind contributions in the form of facilities and adjunct clinical professors, and the university contributed the $5 million, all in in-kind contribution by doubling the lecture classes without additional cost. The project started in the spring of 2004.


CONCLUSIONS
To date, eight groups have graduated from this program for a total of 288 additional BSN graduates. Retention rate has been a minimum of 95%. Over 95% of the graduates have been hired by the participating HCA. Indeed, it has been a win-win situation for both.
Huckabay
Loucine M
LM
School of Nursing, California State University, Long Beach, CA, USA. Huckabay@csulb.edu
D002140:California; D017046:Cost Savings; D004508:Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006776:Hospitals, Pediatric / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D007373:Interinstitutional Relations; D017146:Models, Organizational; D009734:Nursing Faculty Practice / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D010560:Personnel Selection / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration; D016730:Program Development; D000078329:Workforce