School to address current needs in nursing, community health and health care administration
La Jolla, Calif. – Dr. Jerry C. Lee, Chancellor of the National University System, today announced the establishment of the School of Health and Human Services to address current needs in the health care industry.
The new School will draw on existing educational assets and incorporate innovative new programs tailored to meet specific industry shortages. One major initiative to address the serious shortage of nurses is the inclusion of an expanded nursing department, which will offer associates, bachelors and masters degrees.
The School will also include departments of community health and health care administration. Eventually, National University intends to extend the programs offered by the School of Health and Human Services to all its campuses in California, Nevada and Hawaii.
“We are aware of the significant health care needs in our state and our nation that need to be addressed through high-quality, accessible education programs, and we have been anxious to respond,” said National University System Chancellor and Dr. Jerry C. Lee. “The School of Health and Human Services will be instrumental in educating and preparing innovative, caring and qualified practitioners who can meet this growing demand.”
The state of California has a particular shortage of health care professionals to serve the growing, and aging, population. In fact, according to NurseWeek (August 2004), California actually ranks 49th in the nation in the number of nurses per capita. Unfortunately, though people would like to be educated as nurses, not enough programs are currently available to train them.
NurseWeek also noted that nearly all of California’s nursing education programs have substantial waiting lists of qualified candidates seeking admission. The California Board of Registered Nursing approved National University’s pre-licensure nursing programs in September 2004. The Bachelor of Science of Nursing program is additionally accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. With the opening of the School of Health and Human Services, National University is both re-focusing some of its current educational resources and expanding its reach.
The two additional components of the School of Health and Human Services are the department of community health and the department of health care administration, each of which are implementing new programs to meet the changing demands of today’s health care industry. For example, degree programs to be offered through the department of community health include bioterrorism, health education, biomedical technology, environmental health, gerontology, kinesiology, sports health care and crisis management counseling, among others. Through the department of health care administration, students can receive a bachelor’s degree in health information management or a master’s degree in long-term care administration or health care administration.
For more information regarding National University’s School of Health and Human Services, please contact David Neville, director of information and community relations, at (858) 642-8163.
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