Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/991733
www.HartfordBusiness.com • June 11, 2018 • Hartford Business Journal 13 to have bachelor's degrees, with nurs- ing schools like CCSU preparing their graduates to take the nursing exam to become RNs. CHA's Beaudin said hospitals will employ someone with an associ- ate's degree, but typically require the nurse to get a bachelor's within a certain time frame, say five years, offering as- sistance that can include flexible work schedules and tuition reim- bursement. The Connecticut League for Nurs- ing site reported 55 percent of the state's nurses had a bachelor's degree or higher. Quality training is key New nurses entering the field, particularly in hospital ICUs and ORs, face the added challenge of encountering sicker patient populations, as less urgent care moves out of the hospital setting, Beaudin said. "You have to be pretty sick to be ad- mitted to a hospital," she said, reflect- ing on the change from her days as an ICU nurse in the 1970s and '80s. "A lot of those patients that I probably took care of then are now out on medical surgical floors and the patients that are in the ICU are even sicker." With that, hospitals understand new grads may need some internal residency time to get up to speed in some cases, Beaudin said. Ficara said people are liv- ing longer and healthcare needs among patients have become more complex, requiring educa- tion and train- ing to advance nurses' skills. Nursing de- partments like CCSU's are doing their part to help prepare the next generation of nurses, including examining new programs. CCSU's new training center will ac- cept 60 new nursing students this fall, up from 50, thanks to the spacious new facility that provides a sense of entering a hospital wing, with various rooms and mannequins including for pediatrics, maternity, ICU and the ER, with patient monitors tracking vitals bedside just as nurses would see in a hospital. The facility doubled to eight the number of mannequins capable of pre- senting myriad symptoms and conditions to test students' acu- men in lifelike scenarios. Ceiling video cameras can record results for future critiques. The facility also includes comput- erized medication- dispensing ma- chines mimicking what nurses will operate on the job, and a "debriefing room" where stu- dents can review care scenarios or study. The new facility is located in the engineering, sci- ence and tech- nology building, Nicolaus Coper- nicus Hall, which is convenient for nursing students taking myriad science classes, Thomas said. The nursing train- ing facility had been in a smaller space across campus in Henry Barnard Hall. With the engineering department even- tually getting a new building, nursing is expected to get even more room to grow. For now, though, the new, larger facility helps satisfy demand for the program, which, like other nursing schools in the state, gets more appli- cants each year than space available. "Probably nursing has been one of the only programs in our school that we've actually had to turn away students," said Kimberly T. Kostelis, interim dean of the school of education and professional studies at CCSU, which includes the department of nursing. "We did not have the capabilities of accommodating a larger cohort size, but now our goal is to slowly increase to at least a cohort of 75 each year, so that will definite- ly help retain the students at CCSU as well," including pre-nursing students who may have been previously unable to get into the program due to space constraints, forcing them to transfer to other nursing programs. The Hartford Foundation has awarded a $287,000 grant to the overseer of a revitalization project on Albany Avenue in the Capital City's north end. The grant, distributed over three years, will allow Upper Albany Main St. Inc. (UAMS), which supports and promotes 125 businesses, to expand its staff overseeing the improvement project in the area's commercial district of more than 100 small businesses. The Foundation said Albany Avenue has needed infrastructure improvements for decades as the area has suffered from high rates of blight and crime. "It is our hope that this collaboration will create a 'complete street' that will improve the quality of life for all those who live, work, and visit this historic and diverse community," said Herman Todd, chairman of the UAMS board of directors. The funds will also increase Upper Albany's collaboration under the Micro Business Incubator (MBI) program, a joint partnership between the nonprofit and the University of Hartford's Barney School of Business. MBI provides UHart students an opportunity to pitch new strategies in business planning, marketing and technology to local businesses. As part of Subaru's Share the Love Campaign, Schaller Subaru donated $18,457 to Klingberg Family Centers. Klingberg Family Centers is a New Britain-based nonprofit multi-service agency providing help to thousands of individuals across Connecticut each year through 20 distinct programs. Its services aim to help children and families who have dealt with abuse and/or neglect, or who have mental health issues. Nonprofit Notebook NONPROFIT PROFILE New England Air Museum 36 Perimeter Road, Windsor Locks | NEAM.org Mission: To present the story of aviation and the human genius that made it possible. Top Executive: Jerry Roberts, Executive Director Services: Aerospace museum. FY 2016 SUMMARY 2015 2016 Total Employees 30 33 Total Assets $5,050,293 $5,328,620 Total Liabilities $40,867 $57,619 REVENUES Contributions & Grants $512,861 $784,810 Program Service Revenue $545,911 $509,057 Investment Income $98,884 $87,875 Other $111,132 $85,425 Total $1,268,788 $1,467,167 EXPENSES Grants $0 $0 Member Benefits $0 $0 Salaries/Employee Benefits $688,727 $687,550 Fundraising Fees $0 $0 Other $708,433 $644,304 Total $1,397,160 $1,331,854 Margin $(128,372) $135,313 TOP PAID EXECUTIVES (FY 2016) Base salary Comp. & Benef. Jerry Roberts, Executive Director $118,378 $153,832 Source: Guidestar IRS 990 Tax Form Schaller Subaru and Klingberg Family Centers staff at a check presentation. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED BY THE NUMBERS Nursing in Connecticut 3,120 The total CT nursing-student graduates across all educational levels in 2016. 10,962 The number of nursing students in CT nursing programs across all levels in 2016. 55% The percentage of CT nurses who hold a bachelor's degree or higher. $72,700 The mean annual salary for a CT registered nurse. 57% The percentage of CT registered nurses ages 50-plus. Source: Connecticut Nursing Collaborative-Action Coalition Shortage or Oversupply? There is disagreement in the state about whether or not Connecticut has an adequate supply of nurses. Most admit some nursing jobs, like those in hospital operating rooms or ICUs, are in more demand than others. Interestingly, a federal report projected the num- ber of RNs in Connecticut in 2030 at 43,500, with projected demand of 40,000, a surplus of 3,500, ranking the state about in the middle of the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, National Center for Health Work- force Analysis published in 2017.