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This is a time where there
are children and their
families who need nurses to
take care of them, and we
don't have enough.
Montgomery County is facing
a measurable healthcare
workforce shortage, now more
than ever.
Our healthcare professionals
are getting older. The
population of our health
care professionals, the
average age is much older
than you would think. And I
think that's the big reason
right now for the shortage.
A lot of our healthcare
professionals are choosing
to retire and our population
that we take care of is
getting older. So we have
all these Baby Boomers now,
and they have lots of
comorbidities and they're
actually sicker, and it's a
big strain on our workforce.
That's mostly why we have
this shortage right now.
In Maryland, the vacancy
rate for nurses, physicians,
and other healthcare
providers who delivered
direct patient care doubled
from 7% to 14%, from 2014 to
2018, according to the
Baltimore Post-Examiner. In
Montgomery County, there
have been more than 4,800
healthcare job openings on
average per month this year,
but only 36% of those
positions were filled. In
the DC Metro area, that
number is even lower at 28%.
For those working on the
front lines of healthcare,
the workforce shortage is
palpable.
We have a shortage of nurses
and then the unit is
constantly asking people
like, can you come in? We're
short on nurses. Like we
need help. So now we need
help, and but people are
burned out. So it's really
tiring and it's really
stressful.
So what can be done to close
this healthcare workforce
gap?
So one way is through
enrollment. We've increased
our enrollment. Once we have
the students in our
programs, we are providing
them with quality education.
We have state of the art
labs, state of the art
equipment. We've had outside
visitors come to our College
and they're just in awe of
how phenomenal our labs are
and how well equipped
everything is. We do lots of
simulation and we're a
center for simulation. We
advise our own students. So
we are working with our
students from the day they
come in until the day they
graduate. We offer a really
good education for all of
our programs. In our Health
Science programs, once the
graduate graduates, they are
ready to hit the ground
running for immediate entry
into the workforce.
Advancing student education
is the best way to secure
healthcare jobs available
now and in the future.
The education at Montgomery
College in the Health
Science or Nursing program
is a huge value because it
definitely changes your
life, and it definitely
changes the lives of people
that you take care of. And
then now for me, you know, I
graduated in 1986 and I
would have never thought
that an Associate degree
would impact me so much.
We were sent to clinicals in
the Fall, and of course
we're all nervous. But as
soon as we got there, I
realized that the exact
things that they were
teaching us in class are the
exact things that we were
doing in the hospital. So I
realized that all I had to
do was trust the process and
I was going to get through
it. And sure enough, what
they teach in class is
exactly what we use in the
field. That just really,
really emphasized the value
of this program to me. It's
not theory and fluff. It's
actual practical, hands-on,
real-world application.
It prepares you so much!
Like, I can't speak highly
enough of the program that
I'm in. Uh, the labs that we
do, how hands-on we are with
each other, when practicing
positioning, making sure
that we are positioning
patients right, not touching
them too much, using our
vocal instructions to help
guide patients. So I think
just the resources that
we're given in terms of our
technology at the school
itself has helped us so much
for when we go into our
clinicals, we already feel a
better sense of confidence
while we're learning. And
our clinical sites alone are
just amazing. Like, they all
just want to help us and
teach us every little tip
and trick they know to get
us prepared when we're out
there on our own.
As a nurse, you have to work
together with a lot of
different professions. You
have to work with the
doctors, the physical
therapists, the
nutritionists, like that
kind of thing. So being able
to collaborate with
different people and like
really work together very
effectively without stepping
on each other's toes, but
all with the sense of we're
all working towards one
unified goal. And so at MC,
they've really taught me
that all of those principles
have been able to carry on
to my nursing profession to
really effectively care for
patients. Our goal is to
maintain patient safety and
to get them home. So that's
our unified purpose. And
keeping that in mind has
helped me work as
effectively as possible as a
nurse. And I've learned all
of that from my time at
Montgomery College.
Whether it's a certificate
or a degree, you really are
going to change your life
and you really are going to
have a huge impact
on the community.
Start a career as a
healthcare hero. Visit
montgomerycollege.edu/ healthsciences.
Big issues. Local impact.
Outlook Montgomery.
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