A lack of nursing faculty and a lack of nurse training are putting a spotlight on the nursing shortage in northern Virginia. Hospitals, desperate for capable RNs, fight each other for the best and brightest.

To change the worrying trend, Northern Virginia Community College and nearby universities and hospitals have joined forces to establish the Northern Virginia Health Care Workforce Alliance. The alliance has raised $4 million from participating hospitals and the state and federal government. That money, it hopes, will go toward doubling the nurse workforce and health technicians during the next four years.

Other players in the alliance include colleges such as George Mason, Marymount, Old Dominion, and hospitals such as Inova Health System, Potomac Hospital, and Prince William Hospital.

Sources: Washington Post and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation