The Nursing Student's Guide to Salt Lake City Education and Careers

Visit our Complete Directory of
Salt Lake City Nursing Schools & Programs!

By C.J. Gustafson, Nursing Schools.com Contributing Writer

The area around Salt Lake City, Utah was originally inhabited by the Anasazi Indians and other Native tribes. The first Europeans explored the area beginning in 1776, but the land was not settled by non-Indians until Brigham Young and his band of 147 Mormon settlers arrived in 1847. The Mormons, who belonged to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, were searching for a place where they could practice their religion freely. The remote and unpopulated areas of Salt Lake City, named for the nearby large, saltwater lake, provided an ideally isolated location until the gold rush of 1849 brought a flood of fortune seekers through Salt Lake en route to California.

Salt Lake City, Utah From Mormons To Mining
Salt Lake was incorporated as the City of the Great Salt Lake on January 6, 1851. (The word "Great" was dropped from the name in 1868.) It became the territorial capital in 1856. It has remained the state capital ever since.

In 1863, lead and silver were discovered in Bingham Canyon, marking the beginning of Salt Lake City's mining industry, which drove the economy for over a century and continues to be an important factor today. Hundreds of copper, silver, gold and lead mines were opened in nearby canyons.

The nation's first transcontinental railroad system made getting to Salt Lake much easier and people poured into the area in search of mining jobs. The city's population increased 116 percent between 1880 and 1890 from 20,800 to 44,800. By 1919 Salt Lake Valley had become the largest smelter district in North America, and nearly 100,000 more people had arrived. The city boomed as new construction and facilities were created to meet the needs of the growing population.

Although the Great Depression brought construction to a temporary standstill, demands for metals in World War II brought new prosperity to Salt Lake City's mining industry, and mining remains one of the main industries in the city.

Learning To Diversify
In an effort to reduce the environmental impact of an economy based on mining, Salt Lake City's industry base is diversifying, and in recent years, emerging businesses have led to one of the highest concentrations of biomedical, high technology, and software firms in the nation. This new development also has brought change for other areas of the city.

The population of Salt Lake City has grown to 181,743, with 898,387 people residing in the metropolitan area as a whole. Although the Mormons still make up approximately forty percent of the population, many different cultures and religions have helped bring diversity to the communities as well.

A Health Conscious Community
A city profile by Courtney Ronan on the Realty Times Web site gives a local's perspective on Salt Lake City. "Its spectacular mountain peaks (approximately 11,000 feet in average height), clean air, comparatively slower lifestyle, numerous recreational opportunities, and rich religious and cultural history have contributed to the city's popularity."

In describing local lifestyles, Ronan writes that, "The Wasatch Mountains have set the tone for the city's lifestyle. The recreational opportunities these mountains provide served the city well in its successful bid for the 2002 Olympics."

Ten world-class ski resorts, including Alta, Brighton, Snowbird, and Solitude, and over a dozen state and national parks and recreation areas within a days drive help contribute to a healthy lifestyle. In fact, the state of Utah has been ranked as one of the healthiest states in the nation, and it has had the lowest smoking rate since 2000.

Nursing in Salt Lake City, Utah Major Medical Providers
Salt Lake City's excellent health care system also contributes to the overall health of the population. The University of Utah's School of Medicine and the University Hospital make up the core of the state's public medical complex. The University of Utah Health Sciences Center conducts leading edge research and care in a variety of fields including cancer treatment, genetics, diagnostic imaging, obstetrics and gynecology, newborn intensive care, cardiac care, and burn treatment.

Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI), a department of the University of Utah, is the only National Cancer Institute- designated cancer center in the Intermountain West. HCI researchers investigate the causes of cancer and work to develop new treatments, with an emphasis on the genetics of cancer. The center also offers outpatient care.

The University of Utah's College of Nursing offers BA programs, Master's-level education in 12 specialty areas, and the only doctoral-level nursing program in the state of Utah.

Intermountain Health Care (IHC) is a charitable, community-owned, nonprofit health care organization based in Salt Lake City serving the health needs of Utah and Idaho residents. The IHC system includes health insurance plans, 21 hospitals, clinics, and all of the physicians, nurses, and other medical practitioners required to support these facilities.

IHC is in the process of building a new hospital, the Intermountain Medical Center. The facility will be a health care campus built on 100 acres in the heart of the Salt Lake Valley. It is expected to be completed in 2006, bringing even more health care jobs to the area.

Primary Children's Medical Center has been singled out as one of the top 10 children's hospitals in the nation. It is the only American College of Surgeons verified Level 1 Trauma Center for Children in the surrounding five-state area.

The Intermountain Shriners Hospital for Children provides specialty care and rehabilitation to children with diseases and disorders of the bones, muscles, and joints. All care is free to children under 18 years old.

Salt Lake City Colleges & Universities
With several large and growing medical facilities, the Salt Lake City area colleges and universities have created a wealth of educational and training opportunities to help meet the demand for trained nurses. In addition to the University of Utah, nursing students have several other excellent choices for schools.

Westminster College is the only private, comprehensive, liberal arts college in Utah. Their nursing program is recognized across the nation and is actively involved in community health care and provides many opportunities for hands on learning, as does the Salt Lake Community College Nursing Program.

Students at these schools can train to become a Legal Nurse, Nurse Practitioner, or a Registered Nurse (RN). They can study a wide variety of different nursing specialties including Critical Care Nursing, Forensic Nursing, Hospice Care Nursing, Midwifery, and Nursing Informatics. And they can pursue a career as a health care administrator, medical researcher, or other related position.

The variety of schooling options, a thriving health care community, beautiful surroundings and a healthy lifestyle all add up to a great place to study to become a nurse or other health care professional. As summed up by the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, the city is beautiful, safe, and vibrant and "…combines unparalleled access to natural recreation, a bustling economy, dynamic nightlife, remarkable history, warm hospitality, and Utah's Greatest Snow on Earth.™" For many people, this is a recipe for perfection, making Salt Lake City a popular choice for nursing students and professionals.

Nursing schools in Salt Lake City >>