Current News Releases
June 27, 2007
University, Piedmont Medical Center announce $1 million gift, nursing program expansion
The University of South Carolina and Piedmont Medical Center in Rock Hill announced an innovative expansion of the university’s nursing program Wednesday (June 27) that will help address the state’s growing nursing shortage and ensure that fewer qualified students who wish to enter the field are turned away.
Piedmont will provide the university with a total of $1 million over four years to fund faculty positions. It is the largest single gift in Piedmont’s history.
Working together, the university’s College of Nursing in Columbia, USC-Lancaster and Piedmont will serve students living in Upstate South Carolina. The Lancaster campus will provide some of the necessary faculty and administration, as well as classroom space, while the College of Nursing will provide nursing classes. Students will receive their clinical experience at Piedmont, where nine already are on site.
Within two years, the number of students will increase to 16, accelerating the total number graduating from the University of South Carolina with a bachelor of science degree in nursing.
At a news conference at the medical center, Piedmont President and CEO Charlie Miller presented university President Andrew Sorensen with a check for $250,000, the first payment toward Piedmont’s $1 million commitment.
“We aggressively recruit nurses every day, but we recognize the existing pool of nurses will not meet the growing demand we face,” Miller said. “It is our responsibility, therefore, to approach this challenge in a creative fashion and to find avenues through which more students can receive a quality nursing education in our area and enter the field well prepared.”
“Once these university students join us here, it’s our hope that they will decide to remain in our Upstate communities after graduation and help us deliver quality, compassionate care to future generations.”
Sorensen said the agreement represents the very best of public and private partnerships because it will have a direct impact on the healthcare and education of South Carolinians.
“Finding real solutions to today’s problems can be accomplished only through imagination and teamwork,” he said. “This gift reflects that in the very best sense and addresses two problems in our state that are priorities for our university: (1) increasing access to education and (2) improving healthcare. This gift will allow nursing students to obtain outstanding clinical training at Piedmont Medical Center and prepare for their last two years at the University of South Carolina, both while remaining in this area. Best of all, it is designed to help alleviate this state’s acute shortage of nurses.”
Added South Carolina’s Dean of Nursing Peggy Hewlett: “We are experiencing an unprecedented shortage of registered nurses, with the situation predicted to worsen over the next 15 years. Unless we address this head-on, the public’s health will become at risk. This generous gift will serve to promote a new model of nursing education that does not create the need for a new college or system, but one in which current public and private funds can be shared with optimum results to improve healthcare for South Carolinians.”
The expansion is designed to help increase the number of nurses in York, Chester, Lancaster, Chesterfield, Kershaw and Fairfield counties, all of which are designated as medically underserved by the federal government.
Video
University President Andrew Sorensen (Flash, 1:29)
About Piedmont Medical Center
Piedmont Medical Center is a 288-bed hospital located in Rock Hill, S.C. The hospital has been serving the healthcare needs of York, Chester and Lancaster counties for a quarter of a century.
Devoted to providing quality health care, Piedmont offers a broad range of medical and surgical services including its Heart & Vascular Center, Women’s Center, Emergency Department, cancer services, intensive care units, imaging and laboratory, endoscopy, Wound Care Center and Pain Care Center.
The hospital’s medical staff numbers more than 350 physicians representing more than 30 specialties. Piedmont Medical Center is accredited by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the nation’s oldest and largest hospital accreditation agency.
Piedmont is a recipient of the 2007 HealthGrades Pulmonary Care Excellence Award, 2007 Quality Respiratory Care Recognition from the American Association for Respiratory Care, and Three-Year Approval with Commendation from the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons.
