Nursing Shortage Felt During Pandemic Addressed With Accelerated NDMU Program In HoCo

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — As the coronavirus pandemic gripped the world and filled hospitals will deathly ill people, medical professionals struggled with keeping themselves and their loved ones safe while saving others' lives. Some opted to live in campers in their driveways and wave to their children through the front door so as not to expose them to COVID-19. Others followed a methodical routine of changing clothes and shoes in their garage so they didn't inadvertently transport germs into their homes. No matter how careful they were, many medical professionals fell ill, too, leaving hospitals and medical facilities short-staffed.

These heroes, these angels on earth, work an incredible amount of hours caring for others. The pandemic revealed that there aren't enough nurses out there. Recognizing that the world needs more medical providers, Notre Dame of Maryland University has launched an accelerated bachelor of science in nursing learning center in Elkridge, which offers Notre Dame’s 15-month, second-degree ABSN program in a hybrid format to address the "historic demand for nurses in Maryland."

Kathleen Wisser, Ph.D., RN, CNE, and dean of the school of nursing at Notre Dame of Maryland University, told Patch that interest in the accelerated program has grown exponentially.

"When we launched the program in August 2020, we had about 25 students. Now, we have approximately 65 students in the fourth cohort at Elkridge. For our fifth cohort that will begin in January, we already have about 50 potential students who have expressed interest or who have already applied," Wisser said.

The ABSN learning site in Elkridge offers a convenient option for students who need flexibility in pursuing their degree in the form of both online nursing curriculum and in-person instruction for clinical experiences. The Elkridge learning site also offers state-of-the-art nursing simulations with life-like mannikins that give students practical clinical experience before they are placed in local healthcare centers. NDMU also offers the 15-month ASBN with an in-person format at its main campus in Baltimore.

More than 150 students are enrolled in NDMU's accelerated BSN program between its two locations.

Elkridge was chosen as the site of this advanced learning module because of the students that could be reached within a 50-mile radius. The accelerated bachelor of science in nursing degree program started with in-person instruction at the school's Baltimore campus, then followed one year later with the Howard County location, perfect timing during a global pandemic.

"Students usually graduate from the traditional BSN degree program in four years. The accelerated BSN program is a second-degree program that enables career-changers to complete the nursing coursework and clinical-related requirements in just 15 months. The nursing curriculum and requirements for the accelerated BSN program are the same as the traditional four-year BSN program," Wisser said. "Just like our traditional BSN students, the accelerated BSN students also get their clinical experience in clinical placements in healthcare settings with our practice partners, such as Luminus Health System, which is Anne Arundel Medical Center; LifeBridge Health; Johns Hopkins; and MedStar, to name a few."

Accelerated program students do not take the summer off and have already completed their prerequisite general education and science courses with their first bachelor's degree.

"If an individual needs any of the prerequisite science courses, NDMU offers all science courses and other general education courses in an online format. These courses must be completed prior to entering the ABSN program," Wisser said.