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Take a hike, help a nurse

Student nurses Chelsea Leeds, right, and Amy Howell, second from right, received the last two scholarships awarded to North Idaho College nursing students with money raised by the annual NIC Nurses' Walk. At left, are three members of the scholarship selection committee, from left, Anita Voz, Pat Ellefson and Alison Hammond. (Jesse Tinsley / The Spokesman-Review)
Robin Heflin Correspondent
Student nurses Chelsea Leeds, right, and Amy Howell, second from right, received the last two scholarships awarded to North Idaho College nursing students with money raised by the annual NIC Nurses' Walk. At left, are three members of the scholarship selection committee, from left, Anita Voz, Pat Ellefson and Alison Hammond. (Jesse Tinsley / The Spokesman-Review)

Calling all nurses, student nurses, retired nurses, family and friends of nurses and anyone concerned about the nursing shortage. The Idaho Nurses Association wants you to take a hike

The goal of the third annual Nurses’ Walk on May 21 is to raise money for student nursing scholarships. The first year, two $500 scholarships were awarded and last year two $700 scholarships were awarded.

The walk’s sponsors are hoping to do even better this year, but need the walkers, because the money raised comes from the $20 entry fee.

“We had 60 to 70 participants last year. We’d like to up it to 100 to 200,” said Sharon Tomlinson, an NIC nursing instructor and president of INA, District 11. Besides INA, the other sponsors are NIC, Lewis-Clark State College and Kootenai Medical Center. KMC is providing T-shirts for the walk, which helps to cut expenses.

“Nurses have a chance to get together and socialize, to participate in heart-healthy exercise. We feel it’s a good way to raise money and to put ourselves out in the community where we’re visible,” said Pat Ellefson, RN, of KMC.

“By the year 2020 we’re supposed to be 1 million nurses short,” Tomlinson said. “We’re not feeling it in this area because of the three nursing schools (NIC, LCSC and one in Spokane), but there’s a real severe shortage throughout the nation.”

“The whole community benefits from the fact that KMC doesn’t have a nursing shortage. We feel fortunate, but we don’t take it for granted,” Ellefson said.

There’s a lot of competition to get into nursing school, she added. “Nurses don’t just find a place to go to school and graduate.”

“There’s a humongous amount of prenursing students who want to get in,” Tomlinson said, estimating NIC has 500 to 600 enrolled in prenursing. There are 110 NIC registered nursing students and another 30 students in the licensed vocational nursing program.

This year 45 will graduate from NIC’s RN program. LCSC offers a bachelor’s in nursing and has about 100 enrolled in its program.

The course work is rigorous, Tomlinson said, and tuition and books are expensive. Books can cost as much as $1,000 a semester and tuition at NIC, for instance, is currently $916 a semester for 18 units. A $700 scholarship is significant, she said.

Last year’s scholarship winners, Chelsea Leeds and Amy Howell, were LCSC students. This year’s recipients will be NIC students.

The May 21 walk is about five miles and will leave from the gazebo at City Park. Walkers can participate anytime between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. T-shirts will be provided to the walkers who register by Friday. Those who register later must pick up their shirts at LCSC. The cost is $20, $10 for students. Registration forms are available at NIC, LCSC and KMC.