110 HR 2384 IH: Nurse Faculty Higher Education U.S. House of Representatives 2007-05-17 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

I 110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 2384 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 17, 2007 Mrs. McCarthy of New York (for herself and Mr. Boustany) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To create a pilot program to increase the number of graduate educated nurse faculty to meet the future need for qualified nurses, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Nurse Faculty Higher Education Act.

2.

Findings

The Congress finds the following: (1)In their 2006–2007 survey of 722 schools of nursing with baccalaureate and graduate programs, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing found that U.S. nursing schools turned away 42,866 qualified applicants. The National League for Nursing (NLN) released a preliminary report on December 9, 2005 which estimated that schools of nursing with entry-level baccalaureate, associate, and diploma programs were forced to reject more than 147,000 qualified applications for 2005.  This was an 18 percent increase over last year’s figures. (2)In 2006, the mean ages of doctorally prepared nurse faculty holding the ranks of professor, associate professor, and assistant professor are 58.6, 55.8, and 51.6 respectively. For master’s degree-prepared nurse faculty, the average ages for professors, associate professors, and assistant professors were 56.5, 54.8, and 50.1 years, respectively. (3)The average age at retirement of nurse faculty is 62.5 years and it is expected that 200 to 300 doctorally prepared faculty will be eligible for retirement each year from 2007 through 2012 just as more than 1 million replacement nurses will be needed. (4)The current faculty shortage will be greatly compounded in the next few years by the retirement of many of the current nurse faculty in the United States. Without sufficient nurse faculty, schools of nursing cannot expand enrollments, and the nursing shortage will continue to cripple our nation’s health care delivery system. (5)Nursing salaries for faculty are not competitive when compared to similarly educated nurses in clinical or administrative positions, as the average salary of a master’s prepared nurse faculty member in 2005 was $66,925 compared to $84,835 for a master’s prepared nurse practitioner working in an emergency department.

3.

Establishment of program

Title VII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1133 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new part: E

Nurse Faculty Pilot Project

771.

Purposes

The purposes of this part are to create a pilot program— (1)to provide scholarships to qualified nurses in pursuit of an advanced degree with the goal of becoming faculty members in an accredited nursing program; and (2)to provide grants to partnerships between accredited schools of nursing and hospitals or health facilities to fund release time for qualified nurse employees, so that those employees can earn a salary while obtaining an advanced degree in nursing with the goal of becoming nurse faculty.

772.

Assistance authorized

(a)

Competitive grants authorized

The Secretary may, on a competitive basis, award grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with, partnerships composed of an accredited school of nursing at an institution of higher education and a hospital or health facility to establish not more than 5 pilot projects to enable such hospital or health facility to retain its staff of experienced nurses while providing a mechanism to have these individuals become, through an accelerated nursing education program, faculty members of an accredited school of nursing. (b)

Duration; evaluation and dissemination

(1)

Duration

Grants under this part shall be awarded for a period of 3 to 5 years. (2)

Mandatory evaluation and dissemination

Grants under this part shall be primarily used for evaluation, and dissemination to other institutions of higher education, of the information obtained through the activities described in section 771(2). (c)

Considerations in Making Awards

In awarding grants and entering into contracts and cooperative agreements under this section, the Secretary shall consider the following: (1)

Geographic distribution

Providing an equitable geographic distribution of such grants. (2)

Rural and urban areas

Distributing such grants to urban and rural areas. (3)

Range and type of institution

Ensuring that the activities to be assisted are developed for a range of types and sizes of institutions of higher education. (4)

Prior experience or exceptional programs

Institutions of higher education with demonstrated prior experience in providing advanced nursing education programs to prepare nurses interested in pursuing a faculty role. (d)

Uses of funds

Funds made available by grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under this part may be used— (1)to develop a new national demonstration initiative to align nursing education with the emerging challenges of healthcare delivery; and (2)for any one or more of the following innovations in educational programs: (A)to develop a clinical simulation laboratory in a hospital, health facility, or accredited school of nursing; (B)to purchase distance learning technologies; (C)to fund release time for qualified nurses enrolled in the graduate nursing program; (D)to provide for faculty salaries; and (E)to collect and analyze data on educational outcomes.

773.

Applications

Each partnership desiring to receive a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under this part shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the Secretary may require. Each application shall include assurances that— (1)the individuals enrolled in the program will be qualified nurses in pursuit of a master’s or doctoral degree in nursing and have a contractual obligation with the hospital or health facility that is in partnership with the institution of higher education; (2)the hospital or health facility of employment would be the clinical site for the accredited school of nursing program; (3)individuals will also maintain their employment on a part time basis to the hospital or health facility that allowed them to participate in the program, and will receive an income from the hospital or health facility, as a part time employee, and release times or flexible schedules to accommodate their class schedule. (4)upon completion of the program, individuals agree to teach for 2 years in an accredited school of nursing for each year of support the individual received under this program; and

774.

Authorization of appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated for this part not more than $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years.

775.

Definition

For purposes of this part, the term health facility means an Indian Health Service health service center, a Native Hawaiian health center, a hospital, a Federally qualified health center, a rural health clinic, a nursing home, a home health agency, a hospice program, a public health clinic, a State or local department of public health, a skilled nursing facility, or ambulatory surgical center.

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