LEWISTON – A Central Maine Community College nursing program is expanding to Lincoln County because two coastal hospitals are in need of nurses.

After two years of planning, CMCC will offer an associate degree program this fall in a satellite building, a renovated Reny’s warehouse not far from the Damariscotta hospital. Students will not have to travel to Auburn, except for graduation.

Helping make the program possible are Miles Memorial Hospital in Damariscotta and St. Andrews Hospital in Boothbay Harbor and their owner, Maine Health, which owns the Maine Medical Center in Portland.

Despite the distance from Auburn’s CMCC – Damariscotta is a 70-minute drive away – “Lincoln County is part of CMCC’s service area,” Dean of Planning and Public Affairs Roger Philippon said Tuesday. In addition to Androscoggin County, CMCC provide services to Oxford, Franklin and Lincoln counties.

The program will start small, accepting eight students this fall, another eight next fall.

“This is very exciting,” Miles hospital spokesman Scott Shott said. “At any one time we have 10 vacancies for nursing.”

Some of those vacancies are part-time. The hospital has about 88 nurses who care for patients, “so 10 vacancies is a significant number.”

The hospitals have had innovative efforts to get nurses in, Shott said. “That said, the average age of nurses at Miles and St. Andrews is almost 50 years old. Oh boy, what do you do five or 10 years down the road” when many retire? he asked.

Starting pay for a nurse with an associate degree is $45,000 at the two hospitals, Shott said.

Most people seeking degrees in the new nursing program will be nontraditional students who are working and raising families, Miles Memorial Director of Education Cathy Cole said.

The biggest reason there’s a nursing shortage in Maine is a lack of programs. “There are 600 people throughout Maine waiting to get into nursing school,” Shott said.

Philippon agreed, saying every nursing program has a waiting list, including CMCC’s.

The reason there aren’t more nursing programs is because they’re expensive to run, Philippon said. “The other issue is it’s not easy to find qualified nursing instructors. It’s a real big challenge.”

An instructor needs a master’s degree, and nurses with a master’s degree can often make more money working in direct care.

The two hospitals “have stepped to the plate donating resources” to make the nursing program happen in Damariscotta, Philippon said. Miles Memorial is spending $130,000 for desks, chairs and equipment for the next two years.

Its parent company, Maine Health, is investing $65,000 this year. Area high school Lincoln Academy is providing lab space.

“Along with CMCC, a lot of people are contributing,” Shott said.

CMCC is hiring one full-time instructor plus several part-time staffers to work in Damariscotta. Students will learn by attending classes, watching classes held in Auburn using an interactive teleconference system, and by visiting clinics at the Damariscotta and Boothbay Harbor hospitals.

Philippon said his college is pleased to offer the program, calling it a “model of collaboration.” CMCC nursing faculty have worked hard on it, he added.

Before a candidate is accepted into the program, they must take a nursing entrance test. Registration deadline for the test is May 30. The test will be given June 7 at Miles Memorial Hospital.

For more information about the CMCC nursing program, requirements and admissions, go to www.cmcc.edu.