The U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration awarded Illinois State University's Mennonite College of Nursing in Normal a $2.8 million grant, which will allow nurse practitioner students to gain clinical experience in rural and underserved areas, according to NPR affiliate WGLT.
The future NPs will spend three to six months in their assigned clinics, said Jessica Sullivan, the grant's project director and leader of MCN's Family Nurse Practitioner program.
"The idea … is that they have more exposure to vulnerable populations, so that they feel more prepared to care for those populations when they graduate," Ms. Sullivan said.
The grant will also fund patient simulation scenarios to train nurses in treating mental health issues and opioid use disorders, among other things.