The Medical College of Georgia has received a $950,000 federal grant to help train nurses at the doctoral level.

The program will prepare nurses for the acute care and critical care settings. Janie Heath with the MCG School of Nursing said the program is expected to enroll more than 50 students in the next three years.

Of the nearly 3 million registered nurses in the United States, just 8 percent have advanced degrees. That means only 140,000 are nurse practitioners and 5,500 specialize in acute care.

The grant is from the Health Resources and Services Administration.

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