Making healthy connections: introducing nursing as a career choice to middle school students.

The current economic climate has resulted in many experienced nurses returning to the workforce. Despite this, the nursing shortage is looming in our future and the recruitment of a diverse nursing workforce reflective of the population remains a high priority. The Merrimack Valley in northeastern Massachusetts has two large cities, Lawrence and Lowell, in which the Hispanic and the Southeast Asian populations are disproportionately higher than state and national levels. Through the University of Massachusetts Lowell's Bring Diversity to Nursing Project, partnerships with both city school systems were developed and after-school programs aimed at highlighting nursing as a career choice were initiated. Mr. Thompson's Heart is the focus of a middle school, pre-entry program developed by faculty. Introducing career choices in middle school gives students fundamental information about careers and how to begin investigating them. Mr. Thompson's Heart introduces nursing as a career choice combining career information with a focus on developing healthy lifestyle habits. Multiple hands on activities create excitement and interest in the nursing profession.