GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A partnership between Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services and Calvin University is looking to put in place a longterm plan for hiring and retaining quality nurses at the facility.
While industries throughout the country have faced unprecedented staffing shortages since the pandemic started, the demand for mental health services have skyrocketed.
Pine Rest, which has operated in Grand Rapids since 1910, currently has about 40 open nursing positions.
"We had a choice to make... we could invest dollars in bonusing nurses to move from other healthcare institutions to Pine Rest, that doesn't solve the problem," said Bob Nykamp, VP & COO for Pine Rest.
"So our executive team, our nursing leadership and our nurses who helped inform this plan, decided to invest in growing the nursing workforce."
The partnership with Calvin was accelerated by Dean of their School of Health, Adejoke B. Ayoola, Ph.D., RN, FAAN.
“I believe that academia needs practice, and practice need academia,” Ayoola told FOX 17 Wednesday.
"It's a win-win situation, and it's quite exciting to think of the next five years, the next 10 years... we can actually strengthen each other."
Each semester, Pine Rest will give $10,000 in tuition assistance to six different undergrad nursing students at Calvin. That number is expected to grow in the coming years.
The students are asked to work at Pine Rest during their time at Calvin, and will agree to work at Pine Rest for two years after they are issued their nursing license.
Pine Rest is also in the beginning stages of similar partnerships with Cornerstone, Grand Valley and Montcalm Community College.
For Dean Ayoola, she is excited to form partnerships with the other world-class healthcare systems here in West Michigan.
"It's quite exciting... not only for the students, for the hospitals, for the whole community, because the focus is also to prepare very strong health professionals that when they go out, they will be able to give quality care."
