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HARTFORD
INSTITUTE / AACN AWARD HONORS NURSING SCHOOLS FOR INNOVATIVE
GERONTOLOGY EDUCATION
1999
Award Cites Six Nursing Programs as Educational Models of
Excellence
WASHINGTON,
D.C., October 17, 1999 -- Combining a focus on successful
aging with the principles of effective care for elders, the
College of Nursing at the University of Akron is the first-place
winner of the 1999 Award for Exceptional Baccalaureate
Curriculum in Gerontologic Nursing, presented by the John
A. Hartford Foundation Institute for Geriatric Nursing at
New York University (Hartford Institute) in collaboration
with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN).
The
awards, established by the Hartford Institute and presented
today in ceremonies at AACN's fall semiannual meeting in Washington,
D.C., nationally recognize schools and programs of nursing
that exhibit exceptional, substantive, and innovative baccalaureate
curricula in gerontological nursing education.
"These
awards honor models of excellence that encourage the highest
standards for preparing nurses to deliver quality care to
the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population," says
AACN President Andrea R. Lindell, DNSc, RN. "Geriatric care
skills increasingly will become part of every nurse's repertoire.
AACN is proud to have played a key role in coordinating and
developing guidelines for this important initiative to spotlight
educational programs that are breaking vitally important new
ground."
"All
nurses in the course of their careers take care of older adults,"
says Mathy Mezey, EdD, RN, FAAN, professor of nursing education
and director of the Hartford Institute at New York University.
"Consequently, every entry-level professional nurse must be
competent in providing optimal nursing care to elders. We
are delighted to be able to foster and showcase nursing schools
in the forefront of meeting their responsibilities to adequately
prepare students through outstanding geriatric curricula.
We are also delighted to partner with AACN in this effort."
As
first-place winner, the University of Akron College of
Nursing received an award of $1,000. Runner-up awards
of $500 each were presented to the University of Maryland
School of Nursing and the School of Nursing at the
University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Honorable
Mentions went to the School of Nursing at San Diego State
University, College of Nursing at the University of Arkansas
for Medical Sciences, and the University of Pennsylvania
School of Nursing.
Winning
curricula were selected for their innovative approach, demonstrated
relevance in clinical settings, and ease of replication by
other nursing schools and programs. Reviewers sought small,
innovative, and promising programs, as well as larger, well-established
curricula, that could be showcased as proven models of excellence.
Among other elements, such programs have separate, free-standing
courses that focus on gerontology; use multiple clinical sites
creatively; form partnerships with community resources; have
faculty knowledgeable in and committed to geriatric nursing
care; and integrate gerontological experiences into the overall
curriculum.
Curricula
of all winners will be summarized and distributed to nursing
programs nationwide.
Winning
Elements
At
the University of Akron, the bachelor's-degree
nursing curriculum includes two courses with specific content
on gerontologic nursing care. The focal point is a junior-year
course that helps students understand the shift from dependence
and disability in older adults to a model of prevention and
successful aging. The curriculum includes clinical experiences
in an innovative acute-care unit for elders and is supported
by a second course, in the sophomore year, focusing on the
physiological problems in old age but stressing the strengths
of disabled older adults. The two courses allow students to
work with older adults in all stages of health and dependency,
ranging from independent elders living in the community, through
illness, recovery or rehabilitation to clients who are completely
dependent or dying. The curriculum also incorporates research
that demonstrates that successful aging is a matter of planning
and "not a game of chance," say the program's coordinators.
Also
honored this year are:
Runners-up
University
of Maryland, School of Nursing - Since offering a separate
course in 1992 dedicated exclusively to gerontologic nursing
-- one of the first nursing schools in the U.S. to do so --
the university presents gerontologic content along a continuum
of care and fully merged within the school's baccalaureate
program. A focus on healthy aging and recognition of the older
adult as a person is integrated with principles of care in
acute-, long-term, and community-based care settings. Students
may also declare gerontology as an emphasis area, and may
select gerontology electives enabling them to work with master's-level
nursing students and interdisciplinary colleagues.
University
of North Carolina at Greensboro, School of Nursing - Required
and elective gerontology courses use a variety of Web-based
activities to stimulate student learning, challenge students
to examine their attitudes toward aging, and encourage critical
thinking about aging issues. Clinical experiences occur in
a range of settings, from nursing homes and retirement centers
to subsidized housing and acute care centers, and focus particularly
on high-level wellness, older persons' individual strengths,
and supports of the aging network in the community. Students
pair with 6 to 8 elders in the community for a semester, thereby
having the opportunity to access individuals in-depth and
over time.
Honorable
Mentions
San
Diego State University, School of Nursing - A gerontologic
nursing course required of all undergraduates emphasizes wellness
and healthy aging and provides weekly experiences with seniors
in their homes, residential and assisted living facilities,
health centers, and senior centers. Age-related content also
has been integrated into other courses on health assessment,
psychiatric nursing, obstetrical nursing, and adult health,
among others. Moreover, coursework is conducted in collaboration
with the San Diego Geriatric Education Center, a multi-professional
partnership with other schools and health facilities with
special attention to meeting the needs of minority elderly.
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences,
College of Nursing - Geriatric content and experiences
are integrated throughout the undergraduate curriculum, culminating
with two specific courses in the senior year. Students examine
attitudes about aging, challenge stereotypes, and focus on
the continuum of care for the elderly with an interdisciplinary
approach in a variety of acute care, rehabilitation, long-term
care, and community-based settings. In a pilot effort this
year, the faculty converted a theory course on older adult
health to a Web-based course that also delivers content to
students' homes.
University of Pennsylvania, School of Nursing
- An integrated curriculum for undergraduates emphasizes the
aging population and the nursing response required - from
generalist clinical care across settings to health and social
policy. Content includes a required senior-level course on
care of the older adult, study abroad at Oxford-Brookes University
in the United Kingdom, an elective case study on "Living with
Dementia," and an additional senior course that allows students
to do scholarly literature reviews on topics in gerontologic
nursing science.
For
information and application for the 2000 awards competition,
contact the Hartford Institute at 212-998-5568, or on the
World Wide Web at www.nyu.edu/education/nursing/hartford.institute.
The
American Association of Colleges of Nursing is the national
voice for university and four-year-college education programs
in nursing -- the nation's largest health care profession.
Representing more than 500 member schools of nursing at public
and private institutions nationwide, AACN's educational, research,
governmental advocacy, data collection, publications, and
other programs work to establish quality standards for bachelor's-
and graduate-degree nursing education, assist deans and directors
to implement those standards, influence the nursing profession
to improve health care, and promote public support of baccalaureate
and graduate nursing education, research, and practice. The
Hartford Institute was founded in 1996 and is the first of
its kind to work exclusively towards the development and implementation
of a comprehensive national agenda for improved geriatric
nursing practice.
The
Hartford Institute's goal is to set a national agenda and
shape the quality of health care for elderly Americans by
promoting the highest level of competency in the nurses who
deliver that care. By raising the standards of nursing care,
we aim to ensure that people age with optimal function, comfort,
and dignity.
The
Hartford Institute's primary mission is to identify and develop
best practices in nursing elder care and to infuse these practices
into the knowledge- base and work environment of every practicing
nurse and nursing student. By assuming national leadership
in establishing the highest standards for geriatric nursing
care, we seek to educate the public to expect and require
them. The Hartford Institute is housed at the Division of
Nursing at New York University and funded by the John A. Hartford
Foundation, Inc., of New York.
# # #
CONTACT: Robert Rosseter
(202) 463-6930, x231
rrosseter@aacn.nche.edu
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