A nearly $1.4 million grant will help increase access to healthcare in rural, underserved counties.
The grant will support Saginaw Valley State University’s Nurse Practitioner program placing students in Iosco, Arenac, Gladwin, Ogemaw, and Oscoda counties.
Justin Engel is a communications specialist for Saginaw Valley State University. He said the grant will support the university’s Nurse Practitioner Program.
“We’re going to be empowering our students to go out and visit some rural communities in lower northern Michigan right beneath the Mackinac Bridge where there are not as many resources as there are here in mid and lower Michigan.”
Engel said the five counties are some of the most underserved in the state.
“In a lot of these rural settings nurses are faced with older and outdated equipment. There aren’t a lot of networks available there, not a lot of people they can lean on to help them out in terms of another clinic or another hospital. You’re out there on there on your own.. Isolated.”
Engel said two of the counties have been ranked among the lowest in the state for health care access.
“Iosco was ranked 82 out of 83 counties. 82 being a low number, nut a number you want to be at. Arenac, which is another county that has been designated as this grant helping has been ranked 81.”
From July 2017 to 19 SVSU expects 33 nursing students to be supported across the five counties.