GREENSBORO, N.C. — Staffing shortages are impacting hospitals across the country.
The Association of American Medical Colleges says there will be a shortage of more than 100,000 physicians by 2034.
Experts blame an aging workforce, burnout and the pandemic.
Greensboro College is trying to help by partnering with a local non-profit to bring more diversity.
The college is working with Reading Connections to create a career pathway program for immigrants and refugees in Guilford County.
Students will first learn basic literacy skills like reading and writing. Then, they'll choose one of 12 online healthcare programs offered through Greensboro College.
"There's such a need to bring in more diversity equity and inclusion into our healthcare system and when you consider the local healthcare providers of Cone Health and others this partnership with reading connections is such an exciting one," said Senior Vice President of national healthcare practice and workforce partnerships Geoffrey Roche.
At Cone Health, there are currently 2,100 open positions.
Cone Health Physicians and Provider Recruitment Director Rebekah Driggers said the community will benefit from this partnership, even outside a healthcare setting
"If they don't have the English skills it's going to really keep people out of a lot of opportunities so not even just healthcare but certainly within healthcare for sure because we need for people to be able to have excellent communication and to be able to communicate with patients and their families," said Driggers.
The new career pathway program is already underway.
The certification programs include Medical Assistant, Patient Care Technician, Healthcare Administration and Dental Assistant.