NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Middle Tennessee's rapid population growth is driving an urgent need for compassionate care, with experts warning the state could be short nearly 8,500 nurses by 2035.
To help close the gap, Ascension Saint Thomas is partnering with Marian University’s Leighton School of Nursing to host a "Come Explore Nursing" event on April 21.
The event runs from 4 to 7 p.m. at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital West in Nashville. Attendees can meet nurses, faculty, and healthcare leaders, observe hands-on training, and learn about programs that can launch a nursing career in as little as 16 months.
"We've had a deficit in Nashville as a growing, growing city," Assistant Chief Nursing Officer Amanda Pingston said.
Pingston noted that nurses are essential to carrying out patient care alongside physicians.
"You have to have nursing to carry out the things that are happening at the bedside," Pingston said. "It is their liaison between what's happening with the patient and the physician."
In the Emergency Department at Ascension Saint Thomas West, nurses move quickly between patients to read charts, offer comfort, and make split-second decisions that can mean the difference between life and death.
"They're the ones who are there 24/7, eyes on the patient, delivering more than medicine — they deliver humanity," Pingston said.
Pingston’s own journey began far from hospital halls with dreams of a business career.
"And then in school, I started working for my pediatrician's office and started working with kids, and fell in love with the nursing part, and then worked in the ER at Baptist, now Midtown," Pingston said.
That experience set her on a new path. Now, Pingston leads teams and mentors the next generation of healthcare workers.
In a high-tech simulation lab, future nurses practice emergencies as if they were real, responding to every cry and heartbeat.
Training like this is vital as the need for healthcare workers grows alongside Middle Tennessee’s rising population and the planned addition of a new Ascension Saint Thomas hospital in Clarksville.
"They're there for the families," Pingston said. "They're there for the patient when they need that."
Healthcare leaders are encouraging anyone curious about the field to attend the upcoming event to learn how they can help shape the future of healthcare.
"If anybody's even interested in, you know, I don't know if I exactly know if I want to do nursing, but I'm interested in just talking to someone, like this is great, that's why it's called Come Explore Nursing," Pingston said.
This story was reported on-air by journalist Kelsey Gibbs and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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