Gov. Nixon Highlights Caring for Missourians as Program Begins Training Hundreds of New Medical Professionals

Press Release

Partnership with institutions of higher education will reduce unmet statewide demand for skilled workers in health care positions

Gov. Jay Nixon today met with university leaders and students at the University of Missouri - St. Louis College of Optometry to announce that 47 new medical professionals, including 16 optometrists, will be trained at the university through the implementation of the Caring for Missourians initiative. At least 471 future medical professionals will begin receiving training at four-year institutions across the state as a result of Gov. Nixon's Caring for Missourians program. Hundreds more will receive training at two-year institutions.

"At a time when we are facing record unemployment, Missouri doesn't have enough medical professionals to meet our health care needs," Gov. Nixon said. "Through Caring for Missourians, we are training individuals to fill high-demand positions, while also giving them a leg up on building a career and helping to turn our economy around. This program will give hundreds of Missourians the training they need to meet critical needs in our health care industry."

Gov. Nixon spoke at the College of Optometry at the University of Missouri - St. Louis (UMSL), which will train an additional 16 students in the field - four extra students per class over the next four classes - as a result of the Caring for Missourians funding. Additionally, UMSL will open slots for 31 individuals to earn beginning or advanced degrees in nursing through Caring for Missourians. The UMSL College of Optometry is the only professional training program for optometrists in Missouri.

In addition to the nursing degrees offered through UMSL, the Caring for Missourians program will also open 253 other nursing degree opportunities at the University of Missouri - Columbia, Lincoln University, Missouri State University, Missouri Western State University, Southeast Missouri State University, Northwest Missouri State University, University of Central Missouri, Truman State University and the University of Missouri - Kansas City.

Those institutions, along with Harris-Stowe State University, Missouri Southern State University, and the Missouri University of Science & Technology, will also expand the number of trainees in their programs in a variety of other health care fields. The Caring for Missourians initiative will allow the state's four-year institutions to train 31 individuals as medical doctors, 17 in dentistry, 14 in occupational or physical therapy, 30 in pharmacy, 13 in cardiology and diagnostic science, 26 in communication science and disorders, and 14 as medical technicians. Some of these seats will be one-time increases, but 118 seats will be permanent expansions of these programs.

Through Caring for Missourians, each of Missouri's two- and four-year public colleges and universities received a specific grant as part of their appropriation for the current fiscal year, which began July 1, 2009. In total, the institutions received a combined $40 million to implement Caring for Missourians. Each institution was responsible for developing a specific plan to maximize the benefit of its share of those funds for expanding the capacity of its health care programs.

In future legislative sessions, Gov. Nixon is committed to working with the General Assembly to sustain funding for this program.

"Caring for Missourians invests heavily in our state's workforce while also solving a pressing need for more health care professionals," Gov. Nixon said. "As this program puts more workers in the medical field, it will help keep Missourians healthy while making our economy healthier, too."

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