The Urbanist — "Treating the US Nursing Shortage with Good Design"

Host: Andrew Tuck, Monocle
Date: October 16, 2025
Main Guest: Karen Parzick (Higher Education Market Leader, SLAM)
Reporter: Carlotta Rebelo

Episode Overview

This episode explores how innovative design and architecture are tackling the critical nursing shortage in the United States by transforming nursing education facilities. The conversation centers on new state-of-the-art nursing campuses—especially the recently opened Providence School of Nursing in Rhode Island—as a lever not only to expand enrollment but also to support student wellbeing and foster recruitment. The episode also features brief reports on Helsinki's historic herring market and Norway’s rise as a center for urban robot farming, but the core is a deep-dive on healthcare architecture’s role in addressing workforce gaps.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Understanding the US Nursing Shortage

• Multifaceted Crisis: The nursing shortage in the US is exacerbated by high burnout, understaffing, an aging population, and declining retention rates—even among younger nurses.
• Hard Numbers:
  • "Over 600,000 nurses are set to leave the profession by 2027. And what was surprising to me is 200,000 of that, 600,000 are people under 40."
    — Karen Parzick [02:57]

2. Facilities as a Bottleneck and Opportunity

• While general university enrollments drop, nursing and health sciences see rising demand, straining outdated facilities.
• Architects and universities are responding by:
  • Building/expanding programs (over 50 new or expanding US nursing programs this year).
  • Investing in simulation centers:
    • Simulations now account for up to 50% of clinical training hours in some states.
    • Example: University of Minnesota’s 30,000-square-foot simcenter serves students and local clinicians.

"Programs that had invested in simulation environments and technology prior to [policy] change were able to increase their enrollment."
— Karen Parzick [05:02]

3. Providence College’s Model: A Case Study

• The new School of Nursing and Health Science at Providence features:
  • Latest simulation and virtual anatomy tools
  • Research spaces linked to biomechanics and movement analysis
  • Student life amenities: dining hall, chapel, large classrooms
• Design choices integrate the building into campus life, serving all students—not just those in nursing—creating a vibrant, attractive environment.

"That premise of if you build it, will they come? Absolutely. They're coming in large numbers..."
— Karen Parzick [07:21]

• Demand Example:
  • 1,600 applicants for 150 spots in only the program’s second year.

4. Designing for Wellbeing in Healthcare Education

• Essential design considerations:
  • Natural light, acoustics, comfortable proportions (avoiding spaces that are too loud, crowded, or poorly lit)
  • Varied study spaces: both large and small
  • Stakeholder engagement: Including perspectives from nursing, physical therapy, speech, and occupational therapy programs

"A great building makes everyone who experiences it feel cared for."
— Karen Parzick [08:59]

5. The Power of Design in Recruitment and Retention

• Attractive, thoughtfully-designed spaces inspire both students and faculty, increasing enrollment and program prestige.
• Facilities act as recruitment tools for clinical partners, integrating real-world healthcare with education.

"When you're in a space that feels like the institution cares about and is investing in the program... it goes a long way."
— Karen Parzick [10:43]

• Architect's Perspective: Parzick, though self-admitted biased, argues that good design universally improves experiences, from education to patient care.

6. Design Beyond Education—Cross-disciplinary Value

• Patient care settings benefit from similar principles: natural light, acoustics, and inviting materials enhance both patient recovery and staff experience.
• Architects are increasingly called upon to support both training and clinical care environments.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Karen Parzick on the challenge:
  "It's not just people retiring, it's people saying, this is hard, I've had enough." [02:59]

• On simulation centers’ impact:
  "Incorporating those high quality, simulation technology rich spaces allows for more efficiency in how nursing students train..." [05:25]

• Wellbeing as a pillar:
  "From a perspective of design, a great building makes everyone who experiences it feel cared for." [08:59]

• Recruitment value:
  "...when clinical partners feel like they can make use of those spaces, too... It goes a long way to create spaces that are nice spaces to be for recruitment of students, recruitment of faculty, involvement with clinical partnerships, it all just makes a difference." [10:57]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:57] Introduction to theme — Andrew Tuck
• [02:50] US nursing shortage: numbers and workforce exodus — Karen Parzick
• [04:01] Technology and simulation centers in nursing education — Karen Parzick
• [06:54] Providence College: new nursing facility as a model — Karen Parzick
• [08:58] Designing for wellbeing and learning — Karen Parzick
• [10:39] The recruitment power of good design — Karen Parzick

Language & Tone

The conversation is practical, optimistic, and insightful, blending data with human-centered architectural philosophy. Parzick is knowledgeable and passionate, often reflecting on her own experiences as both a student and architect. The episode emphasizes that thoughtful design is not a luxury but an essential tool to address systemic workforce and education challenges in healthcare.

For listeners interested in how cities and institutions can "design their way" out of a personnel crisis, this episode offers concrete examples, actionable insights, and a vision for making healthcare education more attractive and effective by rethinking the built environment.