NEW ALBANY, Ind. (Jan. 22, 2025) — Baptist Health, Norton Healthcare and UofL Health will join forces with Indiana University Southeast to build a degree program that will fill needed laboratory science health care positions, establishing a historic five-year workforce development partnership.
Beginning in the fall, IU Southeast will offer a Bachelor of Science in medical laboratory science, training students to become medical technologists or clinical laboratory scientists. These professionals play a critical role in health care by analyzing biological samples to help diagnose and treat diseases.
“This important partnership demonstrates Indiana University’s commitment to serving Hoosiers and our Kentucky neighbors, offering students the opportunity to gain experience in a critical, growing field,” IU President Pamela Whitten said. “Graduates of IU Southeast’s new degree program will go on to provide meaningful care to patients in local communities and across the globe.”
“We are pleased to announce this unique arrangement with our hospital partners at UofL Health, Baptist Health and Norton Healthcare,” said Debbie Ford, chancellor of IU Southeast. “This collaboration reflects our institution’s commitment to addressing community needs while delivering top-tier educational opportunities close to home. Graduates of these programs embark on fulfilling and highly sought-after health care careers, with many choosing to remain in the region, strengthening our economy and serving local communities.”
Previously, the program was offered through a consortium with Bellarmine University in Kentucky, but students will now complete the degree fully at IU Southeast.
“The clinical lab testing done by medical laboratory scientists creates the foundation for all of modern health care,” said Dr. Emily Volk, vice president of system pathology and laboratories for UofL Health. “Without medical laboratory scientists, over 70 percent of the information used to diagnose patients would not be available. I applaud Indiana University Southeast and the other health care providers for working together to increase the number of laboratory medical scientists in our health care workforce.”
The program will transfer to IU Southeast, along with faculty members and laboratory equipment necessary to teach the program. The three hospital groups will support the program’s development at IU Southeast by providing faculty and operational support, supplying laboratory equipment, remodeling campus laboratory spaces, and offering students hands-on clinical experience through internships. Current Bellarmine students in the program will come to IU Southeast in the fall to complete their degrees.
The National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science has approved the transfer of accreditation to IU Southeast, ensuring the program meets national standards. Graduates will be required to pass the American Society for Clinical Pathology national board exam to qualify as medical laboratory scientists.
“It takes a robust team of trained professionals to make sure the public gets the health care they need, and our organizations are proud to support the new medical lab sciences program at Indiana University Southeast,” said Charlotte Ipsan, senior vice president and chief hospital officer for Norton Healthcare. “A lab technologist’s work is vital to obtaining accurate test results that providers need to determine care plans.”
Medical laboratory professionals work in various settings, including hospitals, clinics, diagnostic labs and research facilities, and the partnership will help fill these critical positions in the health care system.
The demand for medical laboratory scientists is steadily rising in Indiana and Kentucky. According to Lightcast labor data, job demand in this field has increased by 5.4% over the most recent four-year analysis. From October 2023 to October 2024, monthly job postings for medical laboratory scientist positions averaged 435 across the two-state region. Local median salaries for these roles range from $58,740 to $82,900, reflecting competitive opportunities in this critical health care profession.
“Lab scientists are vital members of the overall health care team,” said Mike Schroyer, president of Baptist Health Floyd. “Their work is vital in determining the plan of care for both inpatients and outpatients. Their work is also vital in caring for chronic conditions that count on accurate testing to regulate medications and prevent recurrent hospital admissions.
“Baptist Health is very honored and proud to support Indiana University Southeast’s new medical lab sciences program. We look forward to supporting the program and the students’ needs.”
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About IU Southeast: IU Southeast is one of nine campuses of Indiana University. Offering top-quality and nationally accredited programs in education, nursing, business, social sciences, natural sciences, arts and humanities, the scenic 180-acre campus is less than 15 minutes from downtown Louisville, Kentucky. It currently has over 3,750 students and employs over 360 faculty members. About 400 students live on campus in five fully furnished, lodge-style residence halls. Through an agreement with the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Indiana University Southeast offers in-state tuition to students enrolled from eight counties in the Louisville region. For more information, visit https://southeast.iu.edu. IU Southeast is a tobacco-free campus.
About Norton Healthcare
Norton Healthcare is a leader in serving adult and pediatric patients from throughout Greater Louisville, Southern Indiana, the commonwealth of Kentucky and beyond. The not-for-profit hospital and health care system has six Louisville-based hospitals and three hospitals in Southern Indiana.
With more than 23,000 employees, over 1,750 employed medical providers and more than 3,000 total providers on its medical staff, Norton Healthcare is Louisville’s second largest employer. It provides care at more than 400 locations throughout Kentucky and Southern Indiana. The six Louisville hospitals have a total of 1,927 licensed beds, and the Southern Indiana hospitals have a total of 347 licensed beds. The hospitals provide inpatient and outpatient general care as well as specialty care, including heart, neuroscience, cancer, orthopedic, women’s and pediatric services. The system also includes 10 outpatient centers, 19 Norton Immediate Care Centers, 14 Norton Prompt Care clinics and an expanded telehealth program. A strong research program provides access to clinical trials in a multitude of areas.
About UofL Health
UofL Health is a fully integrated regional academic health system with nine hospitals, four medical centers, Brown Cancer Center, Eye Institute, more than 250 physician practice locations, and more than 1,000 providers in Louisville and the surrounding counties, including southern Indiana. Additional access to UofL Health is provided through a partnership with Carroll County Memorial Hospital.
Affiliated with the University of Louisville School of Medicine, UofL Health is committed to providing patients with access to the most advanced care available. This includes clinical trials, collaboration on research and the development of new technologies to both save and improve lives. With more than 14,000 team members – physicians, surgeons, nurses, pharmacists and other highly-skilled health care professionals, UofL Health is focused on one mission: to transform the health of communities we serve through compassionate, innovative, patient-centered care. For more information on UofL Health, go to www.UofLHealth.org.
About Baptist Health
Founded in 1924 in Louisville, Kentucky, Baptist Health is a full-spectrum health system dedicated to improving the health of the communities it serves. The Baptist Health family consists of nine acute care hospitals, employed and independent physicians, and more than 450 points of care, including outpatient facilities, physician practices and services, urgent care clinics, outpatient diagnostic and surgery centers, home care, fitness centers, and occupational medicine and physical therapy clinics.
Baptist Health’s eight owned hospitals include more than 2,300 licensed beds in Corbin, Elizabethtown, La Grange, Lexington, Louisville, Paducah, Richmond and New Albany, Indiana. Baptist Health also operates two joint venture hospitals: the 410-bed Baptist Health Deaconess Madisonville in Madisonville, Kentucky with Deaconess Health System based in Evansville, Indiana, and the Baptist Health Rehabilitation Hospital, a 40-bed inpatient rehabilitation facility with Encompass Health, based in Birmingham, Alabama.
Baptist Health employs more than 24,000 people in Kentucky and surrounding states.
Baptist Health is the first health system in the U.S. to have all of its hospitals recognized by the American Nursing Credentialing Center with either a Magnet® or Pathway to Excellence® designation for nursing excellence.
Baptist Health’s employed provider network, Baptist Health Medical Group, has more than 1,775 employed providers offering care in 78 specialties, including approximately 825 physicians and 955 advanced practice clinicians. Baptist Health’s physician network also includes more than 2,000 independent physicians.
Learn more at BaptistHealth.com.
From left, IU Vice President for Regional Campuses and Online Education Ken Iwama; School of Natural Sciences Dean Pamela Connerly; IU Southeast Chancellor Debbie Ford; IU President Pamela Whitten; IU Southeast students Adrienne Nalley and Cheyenne Helton; Charlotte Ipsan of Norton Healthcare; Dr. Emily Volk of UofL Health; and Michael Schroyer of Baptist Health Floyd at an IU Southeast event announcing the new partnership.
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Support construction of the park’s soon-to-be built Outdoor Education Pavilion, which will help serve the hundreds of thousands of people who visit the park each year, including local, school, scout and tourist groups. The pavilion aligns with three of SoIN Tourism’s priority categories:
NEW Albany, Ind. (January 29, 2025) – Indiana University Southeast has appointed Dr. Lisa Hoffman as Associate Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Services & School Partnerships. Hoffman has served as interim associate vice chancellor for enrollment services at IU Southeast since September 2023.
