CoxHealth is the pre-eminent healthcare system serving patients throughout southwest Missouri. Addressing regional healthcare workforce challenges has been at the top of Cox’s priority list for years, but the system lacked the funding to fulfill its vision.
MM’s multi-year funding strategy with the Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) enabled Cox to implement its “Nursing Education – Economic Development” project, which placed more than 500 new nurses into Missouri’s healthcare system, addressing workforce gaps at its own hospitals and other rural providers.
An initial grant award of $2.2 million supported the expansion and renovation of Cox College, while the second grant of $2.1 million helped Cox update its health workforce simulation center and further grow its nursing programs.