Nursing adds more simulators with grant
A check was presented Jan. 26 by the Blue & You Foundation.
51黑料网鈥檚 Department of Nursing has enhanced its Health Education Simulation Center (HESC) with additional OB and pediatric simulation equipment, thanks to a $149,265 grant from the Blue & You Foundation.
The foundation recently awarded almost $3.5 million in grants to 40 health improvement programs in Arkansas.
Henderson鈥檚 nursing department used its grant funds to purchase an advanced full body birthing simulator with accurate anatomy and functionality. 鈥淪imMom鈥� will allow multi-professional OB training of birth management.
A second simulator, 鈥淪imJunior,鈥� represents a six-year-old boy that simulates a wide range of conditions from a healthy, talking child, to an unresponsive, critical patient with no vital signs.
SimJunior allows learners to focus on a broad range of pediatric skills to gain exposure and practical experience of life-threatening pediatric problems.
鈥淚t is becoming more difficult to place our students in pediatric clinical rotations,鈥� said Judy Carlyle, assistant professor of nursing. 鈥淭his grant will allow Henderson nursing students to experience pediatric simulations within the HESC. It also allows Henderson Nursing to offer our students and our community 鈥渓abor and delivery鈥� experiences with the addition of an obstetric simulator.鈥�
Dr. Shelly Austin, chair of Henderson鈥檚 nursing department, said, 鈥淪imulation provides real-life experiences for our students to practice different patient scenarios in a safe environment. It allows them to experience patient scenarios that they may not see in their clinical settings if the opportunity doesn鈥檛 arise.
鈥淚t will also provide OB and pediatric clinical experiences which are limited in our area. Because of that, we are able to maintain the 25 percent increased enrollment of nursing students.鈥�
Last May, Henderson introduced its 鈥淣ursing Anne鈥� and 鈥淪im Baby鈥� simulators that were purchased with Blue & You Foundation grant funds received last year.
Henderson hopes to increase enrollment for its nursing programs by replacing 25-50 percent of clinical hours with simulation, which will help relieve the limitations from available clinical space.
鈥淭he increased enrollment will help alleviate the nursing shortage in our region and help us reach the goal of 80 percent BSN nurses available by 2020 as recommended by the Institute of Medicine,鈥� Austin said.
Henderson aspires to be a comprehensive Health Education Simulation Center to allow the university to help improve healthcare in the rural impoverished population of its six-county service area.
The simulation center will be available to all health professional students at Henderson, including those seeking health-related degrees other than nursing.
鈥淣ursing will be designated as the primary user of the HESC, but we will encourage students in our other health professional degrees to utilize it,鈥� Austin said.
Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield established the Blue & You Foundation for a Healthier Arkansas in 2001 as a charitable foundation to promote better health in the state. The foundation awards grants annually to non-profit or governmental organizations and programs that positively affect the health of Arkansas.
In its 18 years of operation, the Blue & You Foundation for a Healthier Arkansas has awarded $36 million to 1,922 health improvements in Arkansas.
Henderson nursing students get their first hands-on experience with "SimJunior" simulator.