November 22, 2024

EagleEye

A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff

UMW Receives Approval for Residential Nursing Program

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Beginning fall 2015, students in a unique nursing program at the University of Mary Washington will be able to live on the Fredericksburg campus while taking courses at both the university and Germanna Community College (GCC).   NursingThe Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) Academic Partnership Plan (BSN-APP), commonly referred to as the “1+2+1” BSN Plan, recently received approval from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges,  the accreditation body for degree-granting higher education institutions in the southern region. Through the program, students complete required liberal arts and nursing prerequisite courses at both UMW and Germanna during the first year; attend the community college during the second and third years to complete an associate’s degree in nursing; then return to UMW for course work during the fourth year to complete the BSN-completion program. “This partnership allows UMW students to major in nursing,” said Pamela McCullough, director of the UMW’s BSN-completion program. “Students can experience the rich residential life of the university while attending both UMW and Germanna.” The program is just one of the nursing education initiatives taking place through partnerships with Germanna Community College and Mary Washington Healthcare. The BSN-completion program began accepting students in June 2014 and currently has 33 registered nurses enrolled to complete their degree. The first cohort of students will graduate in spring 2016. For more information about the 1+2+1 program, please visit http://cas.umw.edu/bsn-program/or email BSNProgram@umw.edu.

UMW Accepting Applications for Nursing Completion Program

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The University of Mary Washington will begin accepting applications on Tuesday, April 1, for its inaugural bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) completion program. The program, which will begin this fall, received final approval by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) on March 18. UMW's bachelor of science in nursing completion program will begin in fall 2014. Image courtesy of Mary Washington Healthcare. The program is designed for registered nurses who have graduated with an accredited associate’s degree or diploma nursing program and have a registered nurse (RN) license. The program, available both full-time and part-time, will combine online and face-to-face classroom learning. UMW plans to maintain the tradition of small class sizes to allow students to have a one-on-one relationship with faculty. In addition to higher level nursing courses, the BSN completion program includes coursework which allow nurses to make connections between their everyday clinical nursing situations and the liberal arts disciplines, including advanced writing techniques, sociology courses on global health and medicine, and medical ethics. “Continuing one’s education to the bachelor level encourages the registered nurse to see a more global picture of healthcare,” said Dr. Pamela McCullough, director of the program. “The nurse is looking at populations instead of individuals and is learning how to think using different models. It’s exposure to different ways of thinking.” For more information about admissions criteria or the program’s curriculum, visit http://cas.umw.edu/bsn-program/. For admission questions, contact Sarah Lindberg at slindber@umw.edu. For questions related to the curriculum, contact Pamela McCullough at pmccullo@umw.edu.

New Director Brings Expertise to UMW’s Nursing Completion Program

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Pamela McCullough has a nearly 35-year nursing career, a focus on patient-centered care, and a passion for the liberal arts. Now, she is taking the helm of the University of Mary Washington’s new bachelor of science in nursing completion program, which is slated to begin this fall. The program is designed for registered nurses who have graduated with an accredited associate’s degree or diploma nursing program. Pamela McCullough “Continuing your education to the bachelor level makes you able to see a more global picture of healthcare,” she said. “You are looking at populations instead of individuals. You are learning how to think using different models. It’s exposure to different ways of thinking.” McCullough pointed to recent studies that show patient outcomes are improved when at least 80 percent of nurses hold bachelor’s degrees. “Not only does the employer want it, but there is an advantage for the individual,” she said. “[The curriculum] focuses on how to think outside the box.” As an undergraduate, she started out as a theater major, then started her nursing coursework. Those connections between the liberal arts and healthcare drew her to UMW’s program. McCullough, herself a registered nurse and certified nurse practitioner, wants the degree program to be a good fit for working nurses. “I want to make it flexible and individualized,” she said. “Some nurses will want to go fast and some will go slow. I want to adapt our program to meet their needs.” The coursework will include classes that allow nurses to make connections between their everyday situations and liberal arts disciplines, including advanced writing techniques, sociology courses on global health and medicine, and medical ethics. McCullough has lived in the Fredericksburg area since 1998. Most recently, she spent more than two years as nursing program director at Stratford University in Woodbridge. She also spent a decade as a certified nurse practitioner at Pratt Pediatrics in Fredericksburg. She received a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree and post-master’s certificate from the Catholic University of America and a doctor of nursing practice from Old Dominion University. She completed her doctoral capstone project at UMW’s Student Health Center from 2009 to 2011. For more information about the program, please contact McCullough at pmccullo@umw.edu.

UMW Receives Grant to Establish Nursing Program

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Mary Washington Hospital’s Community Benefit Fund has awarded the University of Mary Washington a $25,000 grant to create a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Completion Program at the university. The program, tentatively planned for fall 2014, will be designed for registered nurses who have graduated with an accredited associate’s degree or diploma nursing program.  The grant supports the hiring of a consultant to help plan the curriculum. Approval for the program will come from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. “The university is delighted to be the recipient of the Mary Washington Hospital grant,” said President Richard Hurley. “The funding will be instrumental in developing this essential program to address the need for a highly educated nursing workforce and to improve the quality of healthcare in the region and the commonwealth.” Marianna Bedway, chief nursing officer and senior vice president for Mary Washington Healthcare, said creation of an RN-BSN completion program will enhance and encourage further education of registered nurses in the region. Currently, only one-third of nurses in Virginia hold a baccalaureate degree and 11 percent have a master’s degree or higher. “Mary Washington Healthcare provides some of the highest quality care in the country, and our nurses play a critical role in delivering that care.  In order to respond to the demands of an evolving healthcare system and continue to meet the changing needs of patients, nurses must achieve higher levels of education,” she said. According to the grant proposal, Virginia’s population is expected to climb by a million within the next 20 years, faster than the projected growth of registered nurses.  By 2017, approximately 10,000 more registered nurses will be needed in the commonwealth, with an additional 30,000 needed by 2028. The need for additional nurses in the greater Fredericksburg area is expected to increase by 23 percent. “There is great value in having baccalaureate-prepared nurses at Mary Washington Healthcare, and in this community.  The program will afford nurses a unique opportunity to meet current standards of nursing, while enhancing the overall education experience within a liberal arts curriculum. We are excited to partner with the University of Mary Washington in support of this program,” said Bedway. The UMW program is aimed at nurses within the Fredericksburg area planning district. The closest similar program is nearly 50 miles away at George Mason University. “We anticipate that our BSN completion program will attract nurses in this region as well as graduates of local community colleges,” said Richard Finkelstein, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, who will oversee implementation of the program at UMW. The university will hire a director who will act as the academic administrator. Because the program is a completion curriculum, courses will not require UMW to create new labs or to purchase nursing-related equipment. “This degree primarily engages students in courses that connect them to liberal arts perspectives on issues related to health care delivery,” said Finkelstein.