NWSCC launches first nursing apprenticeship

PHIL CAMPBELL — Northwest Shoals Community College has launched a paid nursing apprenticeship program with Decatur Morgan Hospital.

The partnership comes as hospitals across the region and the state continue to face nursing shortages.

The program allows nursing students to complete required clinical training while working in a health care setting and earning hourly pay. Those hours count toward degree requirements, giving students the chance to apply classroom instruction directly to patient care while they remain enrolled in the nursing program.

Brittney Humphres, assistant dean of Health Sciences at NWSCC, said the college built the apprenticeship to close the gap between education and employment for nursing students.

“We wanted to help our students transition to the workforce easier, so the apprenticeship allows that to happen,” Humphres said. “They work at their place of employment, and then they get paid for that, and it also counts for their clinical time.”

The college will base participation on employer demand rather than a fixed number of slots. Humphres said NWSCC does not plan to set a cap for the first year.

“If we have an employer who calls us and has spots for five students, then we will send five students through an application process,” Humphres said.

The college designed the selection process to mirror real-world hiring. Interested employers speak with students, the college distributes applications, and the employers conduct their own interviews.

If an employer chooses a student, the college completes approval steps for the student, the employer and the assigned preceptor, whom the program calls a journey worker.

Humphres said the program also includes a direct-entry option for students who already work for a participating facility and receive an invitation from their employer.

“This is the beginning of a permanent option based on employer need,” Humphres said.

Students do not need to meet a separate GPA requirement beyond acceptance into the nursing program, but they must maintain a good standing.

The apprenticeship does not replace or reduce clinical requirements. Apprentices complete the same rotations and hours as other nursing students. If a facility does not offer a specific rotation, such as pediatrics, the college places the student with a traditional clinical group for that portion while the employer continues to pay the student.

Humphres said participating facilities cover tuition and fees not paid by financial aid or scholarships. They also pay students hourly for clinical time.. Apprentices can also work additional shifts beyond required clinical time.

Brittney Humphres, assistant dean of Health Sciences at NWSCC, watches as Bralan Etheridge takes the temperature of a newborn hi-fidelity simulator.

Shea Thomas, director of Nursing Education at NWSCC, said the program changes how students experience clinical training by placing them one on one with a mentor. She said the program still requires apprentices to validate the same skills as other nursing students, but the setting allows for more consistent hands-on experience.

Instructors evaluate student performance using the same clinical tools and guidelines used in the traditional program. Thomas said the program addresses patient safety through supervision and training.

“All skills performed, the journey worker has to be present with the nurse apprentice,” she said. “There’s training for the journey worker and also orientation for both the student apprentice and the journey worker.”

At Decatur Morgan Hospital, the apprenticeship serves both as training and as a long-term workforce strategy.

Alex Presnell, nursing education and professional development manager at Decatur Morgan Hospital, said the partnership grew out of the college’s reputation and interest from a current employee.

“For one thing, Northwest Shoals has a good reputation for producing highly qualified nursing students,” Presnell said. “We also had an employee that was interested in the apprentice program that kind of actually put things into motion.”

The hospital pairs apprentices one on one with a mentor and places them alongside nurses during daily work.

“They can start learning their basics of headto- toe assessment, medication administration,” Presnell said. “They’re just like a little shadow that goes along with the nurse.”

Presnell said apprentices work two days a week, which count as clinical hours, and graduate with far more time in a hospital setting than traditional students.

“Their skill level and confidence level becoming a new grad or a new RN is higher,” she said.

Decatur Morgan also uses the apprenticeship as part of its staffing pipeline. Participants commit to work for the hospital after they complete their nursing program.

For NWSCC, the first student from the college’s nursing program to enter the apprenticeship is Bralan Etheridge, a second-semester student from the Lexington area who attends classes at the Phil Campbell campus.

Etheridge said she chose nursing because she wanted a career focused on helping others and because a family member works in health care.

“I’ve always had a passion for helping people, and my cousin is a nurse practitioner,” she said. “Growing up and watching her has really struck me to follow in her footsteps.

“If I had one-on-one training with a journey worker, I could practice my skills way more and be more confident,” Etheridge said of the opportunity. “I feel like I’d have a better knowledge and understanding having a mentor with me through my nursing school.”

The paid clinical structure, she said, removes a major source of stress for students.

“I wouldn’t have to balance having a job and going to clinicals and then on top of studying and my classes,” she said. “So, it’s very beneficial to people who have to have a job too.”

Looking ahead, Etheridge said she plans to become a nurse practitioner, so she sees the apprenticeship as an important step toward that goal.

Humphres said the college plans to expand the program by forming additional partnerships with health care providers across the region, allowing more students to participate as employer demand grows.