Message from the Dean
The Harris College of Nursing and Health Sciences just finished a very successful academic year with several milestones achieved.
Congratulations on another successful academic year in 2008-2009.
Our new Doctor of Nursing Practice degree graduated its first class this spring with 23 graduates. TCU is one of only a few universities in Texas who offer the degree, and the only university that admits all four advanced practice nursing roles (Nurse Anesthetist, Nurse Practitioner, Clinical Nurse Specialist, and Nurse Midwife) in our program. Nurses prepared with a DNP are equipped to provide clinical leadership in practice at the highest level. With the urgent, growing demand to reform the US health care system, DNP graduates will be leaders in finding innovative solutions to promote access, safety, and quality in health care.
News -
Doctor of Nursing Practice program graduated inaugural class
TCU’s inaugural Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) class graduated at Commencement ceremonies May 9. The 23 DNP graduates were the first to complete the groundbreaking program, which is designed to educate nurses at the highest level of advanced practice. The class was also the first DNP graduating class in the North Texas/DFW area and second in Texas, after UT Houston. (more)
More news -
Clinical Nurse Leader track offers better patient care training
Five consecutive years of declining enrollments and multiple reports of poor patient care. That’s the situation nursing educators found themselves in 10 years ago. It was then that the American Association of Colleges of Nursing began talks of a program that would bring a different kind of nurse to the patients’ bedside. Today this is known as the Clinical Nurse Leader Program (CNL). Now, TCU has become the first school in the area to offer this masters degree program. (more)
TCU nursing at 30,000 feet
A post-finals vacation in Las Vegas turned into a life-saving event for TCU nursing student Leah Joslin this week. The 21-year-old rising senior was on a flight back to DFW when another passenger suffered a medical emergency, losing consciousness. Joslin jumped up to help, pushing a passenger sitting on the aisle out of the way. (more)
Events
Harris College of Nursing and Health Sciences and JPS Health Network hosted events on healthy aging
TCU's Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences, JPS Health Network and TCU’s Center for Healthy Aging hosted a symposium on "Use it or Lose it: Creative Partnerships for Healthy Aging” featuring AARP President Jennie Chin-Hansen. The symposium was held on Tuesday, April 14 on the TCU campus. (more)
Accolades
Hartford Scholarship – The impact on Dr. Jenkins and Dr. Cohen
TCU social work professors Dr. Harriet Cohen and Dr. David Jenkins have a lot to brag about. They are two of 12 geriatric social work professionals named nationally as a Hartford Faculty Scholar by the Gerontological Society of America. The John A. Hartford Foundation grants a $100,000 scholarship to support the professional development and research of outstanding junior faculty striving to improve the well-being of older adults. (more)
A true ambassador: nursing student recognized with Spirit of Nursing Award
“Hey Kate, can you start an IV?” This is not the typical question you would expect to be asked on an airplane flight from Central America back home to the States. However, Kate Lunati, a TCU junior nursing major from Atlanta, Ga., was suddenly faced with a life-altering situation. (more)
Sebert Pate helps address nursing shortage through scholarships
The nationwide shortage of nurses is a critical problem for our society, particularly as the Baby Boom generation retires. For decades, Sebert L. Pate, retired chairman of the board of Texas Refinery Corporation, has been helping to meet this vital healthcare need through annual gifts to Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences. The scholarships he has funded, which are directed to undergraduate minority students majoring in nursing, have enabled TCU to educate new professionals since the early 1970s. (more)
Research
TCU’s Center for Oncology Research makes an impact
Oncology is a growing and constantly changing field, and with a $1 million grant from the University of Texas Southwestern Moncrief Cancer Foundation, nursing students at TCU are getting hands-on experience and training. The Center of Oncology Education and Research is in its second year at TCU and the program continues to be a huge success. (more)
Helping bi-lingual aphasics is the work of this professor
If you’ve ever tried to speak a foreign language, you know how tough it can be. The native speaker, unaware of your inability, rattles off a question. You hear the sounds but they don’t make sense. Or they do, sort of, and you know that somewhere in your brain is the answer. “Spit it out!,” you tell yourself. But the moment has passed. The questioner has given you that, “Are you deaf, or just stupid?,” look, and moved on.What a relief it is to get back to your own language. (more)
Community
Curbing childhood obesity
Sharon Canclini, a clinical instructor in TCU’s Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences, wants to help south Arlington students safely walk to school. Building sidewalks might not be the first thing people think of when they consider ways to decrease childhood obesity, asthma and other health problems associated with an urban lifestyle. But that’s exactly where Sharon Canclini, a clinical instructor in TCU’s Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences, says we need to start. (more)
TCU model improves disaster response initiatives
“Something needs to be done to better prepare for disaster response.” Those words echoed in the ears of Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences instructor, Sharon Canclini, and Faith & Life @ TCU program director, Judy Shannon. In the wake of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, community concern over disaster preparedness was heightened, however there were no clear answers on how to improve response initiatives.
