Iowa

A report on The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health released by the Institute of Medicine's recommends the doubling of the number of nurses in the U.S. with doctoral degrees.

The report shows the detrimental effect of a limited supply of nurses with doctoral degrees on the ability of nursing schools across the U.S. to train sufficient numbers of professionals needed to engage in the highest level of practice and research. The report points out that less than one percent of U.S. nurses hold a doctoral degree less than half of which are in the nursing field. In response to this issue, The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) in collaboration with Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence announced a partnership designed to address the shortage of doctorally prepared faculty available to teach in nursing schools nationwide.

AACN and the Jonas Center will expand the Scholars Program to prepare nurse researchers and faculty across the country and provide financial and mentoring support to 115 Jonas Scholars through 2016. The Jonas Center will offer $10,000 in financial support, which will be matched by the school in which the student is enrolled, to students in research-focused or practice-focused doctoral nursing programs.