Heather Darling, Medical Records Clerk, and Rachel Peter, Licensed Practical Nurse, at St. Francis Hospital & Health Services were recently awarded scholarships from the Missouri Hospital Association Center for Education. Darling and Peter will receive 50 percent tuition— up to $4,000 — to pursue education in a high-demand health care profession through the 2011 Missouri Hospital Employee Scholarship program.

The scholarship program was developed to address the growing need for trained professionals in medical and support specialties in Missouri hospitals. Darling and Peter were two of 188 hospital employees awarded scholarships through the program.

The Missouri Hospital Employee Scholarship program was designed to help hospital employees advance within their current field or to enter into a new field. Scholarship recipients were randomly chosen from 1,762 applicants pursuing education in nursing at the bachelor’s degree level or higher; health information technology, including coding; laboratory technology; radiologic technology; occupational, physical or speech therapy; and doctorate level pharmacy. Research indicates that the demand for skilled heath care workers will increase significantly in the coming decades. The health care specialties included in the scholarship program were based on input from Missouri’s hospital community and projected areas of demand in the health care workforce. More information and additional research detailing the status of the state’s hospital workforce is available online at www.mhanet.com.