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College of Nursing awarded SUNY grant to hire faculty to help meet critical healthcare need

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The College of Nursing at SUNY Upstate Medical University has received an award of $132,000 from the State University of New York (SUNY) through its High Needs Nursing Initiative.

The award will be used to fund two faculty positions—a psychiatric nurse practitioner for the college’s newly established nursing practitioner program in family psychiatric mental health and an advanced practice nurse practitioner for its family nurse practitioner program.

“The addition of faculty who are supported by this grant will allow us to admit approximately 10 additional graduate-level nursing students in each of the programs for a total of 20 additional students,” said Elvira Szigeti, Ph.D., R.N., dean of the College of Nursing.

While the grant results in increased student enrollment, Szigeti also says that it ultimately will help to address provider shortages and unmet healthcare needs of rural communities.

“There is a critical shortage of mental healthcare professionals and a limited number of advanced practice nurse practitioners in rural New York counties,” said Szigeti.

“Our ability to train more nurse practitioners will help meet this need.” Szigeti says that the college will recruit students particularly from rural communities with the hope that they will practice in those communities.

Two years ago, SUNY awarded the College of Nursing with $60,000 in high needs funding that was used to support an additional faculty line, resulting in an increase of 20 nursing students in the undergraduate program.