OMPW

June

Main Content

HHS Provides Grants to Build Rural Dental and Nursing Workforce

Published on Tuesday, June 23, 2020

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded more than $1.27 million to the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) and the University of Southern Mississippi (USM) to support the training of health workers to serve in rural and underserved communities.

UMMC and USM can use the grants to provide financial and professional support to students, nurses, and dentists as they pursue careers in health care settings, particularly in disadvantaged and high-needs communities.

Health Resources and Services Administration grants going to Mississippi include:

  • UMMC – $492,497 Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention (NEPQR) Inter-professional Collaborative Practice Program (IPCP): Behavioral Health Integration (BHI) grant to train and education a nursing workforce to provide behavioral health services in rural communities.
  • UMMC – $450,000 Postdoctoral Training in General, Pediatric, and Public Health Dentistry grant to enhance postdoctoral dental residency training programs in rural communities.
  • USM – $307,480 Nurse Faculty Loan Program grant to provide loans to nursing students, who receive up to 85 percent loan cancellation in exchange for full-time post-graduate employment as nurse faculty.
  • USM – $28,323 Nurse Anesthetist Traineeships grant help cover the costs of traineeships for individuals in nurse anesthesia programs.