Nursing

Teaching and Learning
The excellence of the educational programs at the IU School of Nursing was recognized this year by several external bodies. Strong partnerships among the four schools of nursing in Central Indiana, Clarian Health Partners, and IUSON were continued, and other partnerships with several health systems and foundations in Central Indiana were strengthened.   

  • The BSN and MSN educational programs of IUSON were reaccredited for eight years by the National League for Nursing.
  • The $2.6 million renovation of the learning resource laboratory was completed. This new 10,000 square foot facility, made possible through donations, is called the Jean Johnson Schaeffer Center for Innovation in Clinical Nursing Education. This center enables students in both graduate and undergraduate programs to acquire and hone clinical knowledge and skills, using clinical simulations, clinical information management systems, and virtual environments.  
  • IUSON continues as an NLN Center of Pedagogical Excellence in Teaching. The school is only one of 11 schools of nursing in the country to be awarded this designation by the National League for Nursing through 2009.
  • The 2008 U.S. News and World Report ranked Indiana University School of Nursing graduate programs as fifteenth overall, with two programs, clinical nurse specialist and psychiatric/mental health, ranked in the top ten.
  • The undergraduate NCLEX Pass rate averaged 95 percent (range 93-98 percent) for first-time test-takers. This exceeds the national average of 85.47 percent and the Indiana state average of 85.5 percent for 2007-08.
  • Faculty and administrators from IUSON, the School of Medicine, and Clarian Health Partners continue to work on steering, operational, and curriculum committees for the new Interdisciplinary Simulation Center, Fairbanks Hall, which is scheduled to open in late 2008.
  • The new master's option in nursing education began in Fall 2008 with 52 students enrolled. Fifteen of these students were awarded full funding by the Indianapolis Private Industry Council.
  • The Fairbanks Foundation awarded $539,025 to the school to offer a faculty training institute in clinical simulation.  The first Institute was held August 2007. Ten faculty members from four schools (IUSON, University of Indianapolis, Marion College, and Ivy Tech Community College) participated and collaborated to develop and evaluate state-of-the-art clinical simulation scenarios for nursing education.
  • The partnership between Clarian Health Partners (CHP) and the Indiana University School of Nursing, and the new program fee for undergraduates enabled the school to expand its undergraduate class by 32 percent overall for a total of 310 admissions yearly. Eight faculty associates and six clinical faculty were hired by CHP to expand teaching capacity.
  • Seven Ph.D. students graduated in 2007.
  • IUSON had 12 students in IUPUI’s top 100 students. Three of these students were in the top ten.
  • The departmental honors program graduated four students in 2007-2008.

Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity
The school continues to hire research intensive faculty at assistant, associate and full professor ranks.

  • For the second year in a row, IUSON ranked eighth (of 102 schools of nursing) in the amount of NIH funding received in 2007.
  • Research dollars awarded in to IUSON in 2007 totaled $8,912,931.
  • Additional funding for 12 Ph.D. students and four post-doctoral fellows was provided by NIH and the American Cancer Society via individual awards and by T-32 and R-25, both research training grants.
  • A five-year HRSA Health Information Technologies Scholars (HITS) grant has been awarded to a collaboration among schools of nursing at Indiana University, the University of Kansas, the University of Colorado at Denver, the Health Sciences Center, and the National League for Nursing. The purpose of the grant is to develop, implement, evaluate, disseminate, and sustain a faculty development collaborative that will prepare faculty to integrate information technologies into the nursing curriculum and expand the capacity of collegiate schools of nursing to educate students for the 21st century. Project leaders and members of the core management team include Helen Connors, Pam Jeffries (co-PI), Diane Skiba, Mary Anne Rizzolo and Diane Billings (Consultant). Jan Ward serves as a CE-Coordinator and member of the Internal Executive Committee. 
  • Additional funding for educational research and program support was received from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and the Indianapolis Private Industry Council.
  • IUSON co-hosted the Midwest Nursing Research Society (the nation’s largest regional research conference) with Purdue University in Indianapolis in March. Sixteen IUSON faculty presented and ten doctoral students volunteered. Three graduate and two undergraduate student posters were featured at the conference.
  • Verna Ferguson, a T32 Behavioral Health post-doctoral fellow, was awarded $40,000 over two years from Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer.  This grant aims to support data analysis of the focus groups for the Pediatric Oncology Nurses’ Experiences of Communication about End of Life with Parents and other Health Care Providers.

Civic Engagement

  • The MOM project, “Healthy Families Home Visiting Program,” has successfully transitioned to new management and in the future will be administered by The Villages of Indiana. The Villages is an agency that provides a wide array of children’s services. 
  • The IUSON and the School of Physical Education have partnered for programming to improve children’s health and to provide student learning opportunities in George Washington Community School. The IUSON has worked with the school system to develop a Wellness Center that will open in Sept. 2008.
  • The Pulse of Indiana Nursing, an alumni magazine, was published four times this year. The publication is distributed to 3,000 alumni, partners, and friends of the school.
  • The IUSON/Department of Nursing Moi University Kenya partnership was formalized with a three-year strategic plan. Drs. Broome, Mays, and Halstead travelled to Kenya last year to consult with the faculty and develop an RN-BSN program. Isaac Wanakacha and O’Brien Munyao came to Indianapolis for one month. Wanakacha is the head nurse in the new ICU at Moi Teaching Hospital and Munyao is a faculty member. Both studied the critical care courses at IUSON and gained additional clinical experience in the ICUs at Methodist Hospital.

Diversity
The school remains committed to continuing to enhance diversity in our education, research, and civic engagement programs and activities. 

  • Dr. Julia Anderson, a senior level officer at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development/NIH visited Indiana University School of Nursing as the sixth Davis-Sams Visiting Professor.  Dr. Anderson’s focus is health disparities, historical and contemporary perspectives. Dr. Anderson made formal presentations, consulted with faculty, and met with Dean Broome, as well as students.  
  • Jenny Erkfitz, undergraduate student, presented on “Bloodless Medicine: Meeting the Challenges” on October 22, 2007. The presentation provided information on the use of blood from the perspective of religion.
  • Marion Broome, Judith Halstead and Rose Mays presented  “Internationalization: Our trip to Kenya” on October 31, 2007.
  • Lillian Stokes was featured in the Fall 2007 issue of Minority Nurse in an article about the diamond jubilee of the Chi Eta Phi Sorority, Inc., of which she is the Supreme Basileus. Chi Eta Phi Sorority, Inc. is a national sorority for black professional nurses.
  • A search has begun to replace the Director of Diversity. Dr. Lillian Stokes will retire after 41 years at IUSON in September 2008.
  • Two undergraduate students are supported by the DSRP (Diversity Scholar Research Program) in 2007-08. Two students were accepted into the McNair Program for summer research opportunities in 2008.

Best Practices

  • STATS (Self-Tracking and Assessing to Succeed):  Students are provided tools and resources, including faculty/student mentoring, individual tracking, and assessment forms, test-taking, and time management tips for every learning style, study logs, stress management support, and other helpful resources to facilitate learning and success at IUSON. A packet of materials, resources, and tools are distributed to students at the beginning of their first semester at IUSON. 
  • Student/faculty mentoring: A dedicated mentor relationship is offered to third- and fourth-semester students to provide them with perspectives on learning, practical experience, nurturing, and support. During the first semester in the program, a group of ten students is assigned a faculty mentor whom they work with throughout the semester, both in a face-to-face setting and through online discussion forums and email. The mentoring:
      • Exposes students to the language, behavior, and responsibilities of a professional
      • Increases personal and professional confidence
      • Fosters leadership skills.
  • Student Success Central: Student Success Central is designed to help to promote student success in nursing courses. A six-member team, consisting of the Director of Diversity and Enrichment, Assistant Dean of Student Services, three faculty members, and an academic advisor, serve as student success coaches. Students are assigned a coach, either by self-referral or faculty referral, based on an academic or personal issue that is interfering with the student’s ability to be successful in his/her course. The success coaches work with the students to assess needs, develop a success plan, and assist students throughout the course of study. 
  • The school’s new Web site was up and running in August of 2007. The site underwent major renovation and is now the front door to the school. It is designed with a user-centered approach to facilitate collection of student information.

External Awards and Appointments

  • IUSON/IPIC received the Theodore E. Small Workforce Partnership award from the National Association of Workforce Boards in 2008. This is a prestigious award given for workforce development achievements.
  • Dr. Anne Belcher was elected Section Council Member, Public Health Nursing Section of the American Public Health Association, 2007-2010.
  • Dr. Janet Carpenter has been appointed as a regular reviewer for the NIH study section, Behavioral Medicine Intervention and Outcomes.
  • Dr. Patricia Ebright was selected unanimously by the American Association of Critical Care Nurses Board of Directors to receive the 2008 GE Healthcare-AACN Pioneering Spirit Award.
  • Mary Jo Eoff and Prudence Twigg were identified as IU School of Nursing “favorite professors” by student-athletes.
  • Denise Ferrell was recognized with The Advancement of Nursing Award in the Indianapolis Star’s Salute to Nurses in May 2008.
    • Dr. Joan Haase received the Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nurse Distinguished Researcher Award. Dr. Haase will also receive the Oncology Nursing Society 2007-2008 Connie Henke Yarbro Excellence in Cancer Nursing Mentorship Award at the ONS Congress.
    • Drs. Judith Halstead and Pam Jeffries were inducted as Fellows into the NLN Academy of Nursing Education.
    • Dr. Sarah Horton-Deutsch was selected as a National League for Nursing Leadership and Mentoring protégé.
    • Dr. Pamela Jeffries was the recipient of the 2007 National League for Nursing Excellence in Nursing Education Research Award.
    • Marcia Laux was appointed to the State Board of Nursing.
    • Dr. Rose Mays was designated a Fellow of the Society for Adolescent Medicine.
    • Angela Barron McBride received the 2007 Harold Burdette Award for supporting behavioral oncology research.
    • Dr. Susan Rawl has been appointed as a permanent member of the American Cancer Society national study section for a four-year term.
    • Drs. Beth Richardson and Melinda Swenson were formally inducted into the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners as Fellows.
    • Dr. Kathleen Russell was selected for the 2007 Excellence in Health Science Research Award.
    • Dr. Diane Von Ah, T-32 postdoctoral fellow, received the 2008 Midwest Nursing Research Society Women’s Health Research Section New Investigator Award.