Kootenai Health, ISU partner to open doors for nurses

COEUR d’ALENE — Idaho State University and Kootenai Health have teamed up to expand the delivery of the accelerated bachelor of nursing undergraduate program to the Coeur d’Alene area.

The 12-month program is currently offered at ISU-Meridian, with up to 50 seats available each year, and at ISU’s main campus in Pocatello, with up to 40 seats available beginning in 2024.

The new cohort in Coeur d’Alene will offer 10 seats for its first year and can grow from there. Following completion of prerequisite courses, students with a bachelor's degree in another discipline are eligible to enter the program, receiving accelerated education and training to become a nurse.

“We are pleased to welcome ISU’s nursing students to beautiful Northern Idaho, and to our health system,” said Kelly Espinoza, chief nursing officer for Kootenai Health.

The ABSN program expansion to North Idaho addresses growing demand across the state and the nation, said a news release.

Nurses graduating with a baccalaureate degree who are prepared to take the required National Council Licensure Exam can move directly into practice as registered nurses.

More registered nurses are needed and baccalaureate-prepared nurses are in high demand in Idaho, the release said.

"Employers across Idaho’s rural areas have experienced difficulty filling vacant positions because of a nursing shortage in the state, and in the nation," the release said. "Temporary, traveling nurses have been increasingly hired to fill nursing shortages in Idaho."

A report compiled by the Idaho Nursing Workforce Center at the Idaho Center for Nursing projects Idaho’s shortage of RNs ranges between 106-523 annually through 2024.

Idaho’s nursing profession also faces retirements of a large number of the workforce.

Currently, 29% of Idaho’s nurses are 55 years or older and 3% of those are 65 years or older. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than 10,000 people turn 65 every day nationally, "which further increases the demand for compassionate and caring nursing care," the release said.

Increasing enrollment is a key strategy to address this growing issue in the state.

The ABSN program at ISU offers the opportunity for individuals who hold a bachelor’s degree in another discipline to make a career change and enter the nursing profession.

This program is one year.

Courses in Coeur d’Alene will be delivered at the Kootenai Health campus and clinical learning opportunities will be provided to students across the region.

“We are committed to providing a learning environment that leads to the utmost success for these students, which ultimately translates into improved patient care for those we serve," Espinoza said.

The accelerated baccalaureate nursing program started on the Meridian campus in 2002 and expanded to meet demand. Over 550 students have graduated from the program since its inception.

Teresa Conner, dean for the College of Health at ISU, said the partnership with Kootenai Health "truly opens doors for accelerated nursing education and the ability to address the critical nursing shortage in North Idaho.”