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Nursing Internship Pool Expands

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By ADAM EMERSON

aemerson@tampatrib.com

Published: December 9, 2008

TAMPA - Now that they've expanded into nursing education, two for-profit colleges will be sending interns to shadow school nurses in Hillsborough County.

About 30 to 50 students from Everest University and South University will do their community health work in Hillsborough schools just as students from the University of South Florida and the University of Tampa do, pending school board approval.

Each college found a niche among the hundreds of students turned away annually by traditional nursing colleges, particularly from USF. Like most traditional schools, USF lacks enough doctorate-trained nurses for the influx of students eager to fill Florida's nursing shortage.

USF and UT have long been the major source of nursing interns for the school district, sending about 200 students annually to train alongside school nurses.

Expanding its reach to Everest and South helps "grow our replacements for the future," said Maria Russ, health services coordinator for Hillsborough County schools.

Everest, formerly known as Florida Metropolitan University, is owned by California-based Corinthian Colleges Inc. South University is based in Savannah, Ga.

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