Building a Diverse Nurse Practitioner Workforce and Advancing Health Equity in Underserved Communities in Oregon

In July 2023, the Health Resources and Services Administration awarded OHSU School of Nursing competing continuation funding with a grant for Building a Diverse Nurse Practitioner Workforce and Advancing Health Equity in Underserved Communities in Oregon (Health Equity Oregon) to ensure that all Oregonians have access to high-quality healthcare and the distribution of the primary care workforce meets the needs of all Oregonians. This grant will substantially benefit rural, urban, and tribal underserved populations and meet public health nursing needs in local health departments. 

The purpose of Health Equity Oregon: To increase the number and diversity of family nurse practitioners (FNP), psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners (PMHNP), nurse midwives (CNM) and pediatric nurse practitioners (PNP), and maintain and expand academic-clinical partnerships that graduate academically and clinically prepared clinicians to improve access and meet the primary health care needs of rural, urban and tribal underserved populations.

The goals of this grant are to:

• Increase the total number of students in FNP, PMHNP, CNM and PNP from 41 to 58 (2% each year) who are trained, competent and committed to practicing with rural, urban and tribal underserved populations and in areas of workforce need in Oregon following graduation by June 2027. Health Equity Oregon will increase FNP, PMHNP, CNM and PNP student cohorts; provide 21 traineeships per year for eligible students; provide 3-6 month clinical training in rural, urban and tribal underserved communities; expand the FNP and PMHNP distance option to Western Oregon and develop a rural immersion clinical training for CNM students. The team will ensure the curriculum includes content and clinical training with social determinants of health (SDOH) and health equity to enhance graduates' competencies. Career planning for trainees will connect them to employers in rural, urban and tribal underserved communities; post-graduate evaluation will document employment retention.
   
• Increase the diversity of the FNP, PMHNP, CNM and PNP workforce in Oregon by recruiting and supporting students and faculty from disadvantaged and underrepresented populations in nursing to better serve the needs of underserved and minority populations in Oregon by June 2027. Health Equity Oregon will implement a marketing plan to recruit underrepresented and disadvantaged populations. The team will strengthen student support services and foster a sense of belonging and safety for underrepresented students by creating safe spaces for dialogue, opportunities for social engagement, and mentoring to maximize success. The team partners with the Center for Diversity and Inclusion to recruit and retain underrepresented faculty.
   
• Maintain and expand to an additional ten academic-clinical partnerships and experiential learning opportunities for Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.) students in FNP, PMHNP, CNM and PNP programs that prepare them to address health equity and social determinants of health in rural, urban and tribal underserved populations. The team will strengthen academic-clinical partnerships developed during the currently funded ANEW project and build new partnerships in Oregon's Western region, with urban and rural local health departments and with three tribal health centers. Students will gain proficiency in addressing and completing D.N.P. projects in health equity and SDOH at rural, urban, and tribal underserved clinical training sites. The team will provide preceptor training and mentorship to sustain preceptor engagement in clinical education.

Learn more about our distance programs

Learn more about our Family Nurse Practitioner Distance Program and Psych Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Distance Program.