Dyersburg State Community College receives Rural Health Care Pathways Expansion Grant

Dyersburg State Community College has received a $2 million Rural Health Care Pathways Expansion Grant from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. The grant is intended to help combat the current healthcare worker shortage the region is experiencing and to improve access to healthcare for residents of rural areas throughout Tennessee.

According to an article on Dyersburg State Community College’s website, Dr. Amy Johnson, the college’s Vice President of Academic Affairs & Student Success, was quoted as saying of the grant award, “I am so excited for the opportunity to expand and grow our Nursing and EMS programs at the Dyersburg State Community College Henry County Center and grateful for our partnership with TCAT Henry/Carroll, West Tennessee Healthcare, and Baptist Memorial Hospital as we expand healthcare opportunities in rural West Tennessee.”

The Rural Health Care Pathways Expansion Grant will allow the college to begin offering a new program and expanding an existing program that will produce healthcare workers to fill shortages in the area. The first program, an Advanced Standing RN program, will be offered at the Henry Cloud Center. The Emergency Services program, which includes the EMT, AEMT, and Paramedic tracks, will be expanded.

The grant funding will allow for program development, equipment purchases, the hiring of new faculty and staff to accommodate the new programs, and stipends for students in these new programs.

Part of the Rural Health Care Pathways Expansion Grant includes strategies to raise awareness about the types of healthcare careers students, especially those from rural areas, can pursue, and the creation of talent pipelines that will help these students stay in the area for their careers through increased job opportunities throughout the community and region.

For more information about Dyersburg State Community College, visit the school’s website.