Baltimore County leaders address shortage with assistant-to-nurse program

Education, health care and government leaders in Baltimore County plan to partner on a program that aims to produce a new crop of sorely needed nurses in area hospitals. In an event Monday, they plan to announce Public Health Pathways, a program to address long-standing shortages that were exacerbated locally and nationally by the coronavirus pandemic. Those shortages are being further highlighted now by the flood of patients with flu and RSV to emergency rooms. The program is designed to get professionals to the bedside faster by certifying students to be nursing assistants in four months and then to become licensed practical nurses over 20 more months. This would give a guaranteed career path to students from disadvantaged county neighborhoods.