nursing notes summer 2010
DESCRIPTION
College of Nursing Newsletter Summer 2010TRANSCRIPT
NursingnotesSUMMER 2010
AlumniSpotlight
NCLEX-RNResults
What’s Inside
Full Approval Granted by the Texas Board of Nursing
The Texas A&M Health Science
Center College of Nursing received
full approval from the Texas Board
of Nursing during its April 22nd
meeting. Full approval was granted as a
result of accreditation by the Accrediting
Commission on Collegiate Nursing
Education and the stellar performance of
recent graduates on the National Council
Licensure Examination for Registered
Nurses (NCLEX-RN) examination.
(See related article on page 4.)
Beverley Nutall, a licensed vocational
nurse at the University Pediatric
Association in College Station and Texas
Board of Nursing board member, made
the motion for approval, citing the College
of Nursing as a “model program.”
“We are very proud that the Texas
A&M Health Science Center
College of Nursing is one of the
model programs in the state of
Texas,” Nutall said. “We want to
congratulate Dean Wilkerson and the
nursing faculty for a job well done.”
“Today’s unanimous vote for full
approval from the Texas Board of
Nursing is the culmination of
two years work and represents
the end of the first chapter in the College
of Nursing’s history,” said Sharon A.
Wilkerson, Ph.D., R.N., dean of the
College of Nursing. “While extremely
proud of this accomplishment, we are
already looking forward to new challenges.”
Among these challenges are
development and implementation
of a graduate program, expansion
into additional regions of Texas to
accommodate demand, and growth
of programmatic areas to more fully
integrate into the community.
Dean Wilkerson explains that it is the
commitment to excellence demonstrated
by faculty, staff and students alike that
have made reaching this milestone a reality.
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Our Growth and History
News & Notes
2 | Nursingnotes | Summer 2010
Past, present and future …
Dean’s Note
Greetings,
I am pleased to have this opportunity to share some of the exciting news about the college with you. Most notably, our college received full approval from the Texas Board of Nursing (TBON) in April. We were very confident in our program given its October 2009 accreditation by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education and the phenomenal results of our first graduates on the NCLEX-RN exam. It is very satisfying to be recognized and approved by TBON to continue our good work and mission into the future.
The future is bright and holds great things. In 2012, the College of Nursing will admit its first graduate students. By introducing a graduate program, the College of Nursing will be even better positioned to meet all three key areas of its mission—knowledge, discovery service.
News of our success has spread
August2005
June2009
Health Science Center partners with the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi (TAMU-CC) to provide an accelerated nursing program in the Corpus Christi and Bryan-College Station areas.
Classes begin for first full-time RN-BSN students.
TAMU System Board of Regents authorizes the Texas A&M Health Science Center
to seek approval from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for the
authority to plan a new nursing program.
College of Nursing Honor Society is formed.
March2005
March2009
Accreditation is granted by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.
October2009
All inaugural Class of ’09 students successfully pass the NCLEX-RN exam.
February2010
July2008
December2009
Intial approval is granted by Texas Board of Nursing.
Classes begin for inaugural class of 22 generic and 22 accelerated students.
Commencement for inaugural accelerated students.
July2008
VISION The faculty of the College of Nursing believes that humans are unique, holistic and multidimensional beings who are deserving of respect and dignity. Human beings have a right to self-determination and to make informed choices. They also have a right to competent advocacy when their abilities for self-determination and choice are impaired. Persons are capable of deliberate action for health purposes, have free will, reflect upon their experiences, and attach meaning to their experiences and their environments. Nursing is the professional application of arts, skills and science to help the individuals, families and groups obtain their maximal state of well-being.
&Milestones Projections
Knowledge, discovery, service …
May2012
June2010
February2011
Part-time RN-BSN students graduate.
First day of classes for students in Round Rock.
Sigma Theta Tau Internationalchapter established.
Dean’s Note
June2010
December2010
Classes begin for first part-time RN-BSN students.
First full-time RN-BSN class graduates.
Classes begin for MSN program.
First students at Round Rock campus graduate.
August2012
May2011
TBD
Doctoral program begins.
May2010
Inaugural generic students graduate.
and several regions of the state have expressed interest in having the College of Nursing open satellite cam-puses in their areas. We already have launched an accelerated track program in Round Rock and are actively considering new areas of growth, pending funding and faculty resources.
Nursing notes will be published quarterly, and I look forward to keeping you apprised of what is going on within the College of Nursing!
Until next time,
Sharon A. Wilkerson, Ph.D., R.N.Founding Dean
continued …
MISSION The mission of the College of Nursing is to educate professional nurses of today and leaders of tomorrow through the provision of excellent educational programs in nursing. The college will identify, attract and graduate students of high potential, especially those from groups who have been historically under represented in Texas health care. Furthermore, this mission will facilitate individuals, families and groups in achieving the maximum state of well-being through education of highly skilled nurses, research and service. The mission of the college will be enhanced through faculty contributions to community service, leadership, practice and research.
&Milestones Projections
4 | Nursingnotes | Summer 2010
College of Nursing Graduates Ace the NCLEX-RN
In December 2009, the College of Nursing
held its first graduation and was pleased
to grant Bachelor of Science in Nursing
degrees to nineteen graduates. These
nineteen graduates held the key to the
future of the College of Nursing.
Entry into the practice of
nursing is regulated by the
licensing authorities within
each jurisdiction. To ensure
public protection, each
state requires a candidate
for licensure to pass an
examination that measures
the competencies needed to
perform safely and effectively as
a newly licensed, entry-level nurse. The
National Council Licensure Examination
for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) is
used by state boards of nursing to assist in
making licensure decisions.
The Texas Board of Nursing requires
at least 80 percent of graduates to pass the
NCLEX-RN in order for a new college or
school of nursing to attain full approval.
In February, Dean Sharon A.
Wilkerson was informed
that all nineteen students
passed the NCLEX-RN,
giving the College of
Nursing an incredible
100 percent pass rate.
“We are very proud of
our inaugural class,” said Dean
Wilkerson. “They have set the bar
extremely high, and we look forward to
seeing what our graduates will accomplish
as professional nurses.”
Assess This!
100Percentage of College of Nursing
graduates who passed the NCLEX-RN from January–March 2010.
76National pass rate for all NCLEX-RN test takers from
January–March 2010
19Number of College of Nursing
graduates taking test
49,595Total number of test takers in January–March 2010
Assess This!
33 New students
86 Returning students
40 Graduates (including May 2010)
3BSN options Offered:
Generic (Two-year program)
Accelerated (15-month program)
RN to BSN (12-month pro-gram, full-time
Graduate program coming in 2012.
Summer 2010 | Nursingnotes | 5
AlumniSpotlight
Bethany Schneider: NICU Nurse on the move
Nursing wasn’t the first
profession that came
to mind when Bethany
Schnieder was planning her
professional future, but in
hindsight, she recognizes
it should have been. After
completing a Bachelor
degree in Biology at Texas A&M, Bethany
began applying to Physician Assistant’s
schools. Prior to being accepted into a P.A.
program, she heard about the new College
of Nursing being developed by the Texas
A&M Health Science Center and imme-
diately applied and was accepted in the
inaugural class.
Bethany was a stand-out nursing
student and was the recipient of
the Dean’s Excellence Award at her
graduation. “I really enjoyed my time
at the College of Nursing. Classes were
small and it was a great environment
in which to learn. The entire faculty
was committed to my success.”
After graduation, Bethany accepted a
sixteen week internship at the Level IIIb
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
at North Central Baptist Hospital in
San Antonio. The Level IIIb facility has
provided her with a tremendous amount of
experience caring for premies and micro-
premies born with as few as 24 weeks in
the womb.
“I can’t imagine a better experience to
prepare me for taking care of these tiny
babies,” says Bethany, “The nurses here
are phenomenal and have
been extremely generous
in sharing their knowledge
with me.”
Bethany will complete
her internship in June
and while she is certain
she wants to be a NICU
nurse, she is not sure where life will
take her. When asked about her future,
Bethany states “I am getting married
later this month and I am not sure
where my fiancé will find a job. He
will complete his graduate degree in
Aerospace Engineering in December
and we will see where life takes us!”
Bethany Schneider (soon to be Bethany
Graves!) has known since childhood she
wanted to “take care of kids” when she
grew up. As one of six children, she never
imagined “taking care of kids” would come
in the form of taking care of the tiniest and
most fragile
of them all.
But, in
hindsight,
she is
exactly
where she
wanted
to be.
6 | Nursingnotes | Summer 2010
Special Thanks to The MedIn April, The College Station Medical
Center generously donated $50,000 to the
College of Nursing. This gift represents
a history of giving and a continued
commitment to the College of Nursing on
the part of The Med. Their annual donation
of $50,000 supports various programs and
initiatives, and is much appreciated.
Interdisciplinary Team Wins CompetitionCollege of Nursing faculty members
Regina Bentley, associate director of
Academics Affairs and Kathryn Cochran,
assistant dean for Student Affairs
teamed up to coach an interdisciplinary
“Improving Medication Reconciliation”
student-team competition. Each team had
four students–one each from the colleges of
nursing, pharmacy, industrial engineering
and business. The funding for the student
competition was provided through
an HSC grant with the Annenberg
Foundation. Teams were tasked with
evaluating processes and recommending
improvements to reduce errors related to
medication administration in a hospital
environment. The teams were judged
based on a poster describing their findings,
a written report as well as a presentation of
the project before a panel of three judges.
The Bentley/Cochran team won the
competition and student members Emily
Shields from Nursing, Kristen Clancy
from Pharmacy, Fredrick Lou from
Business and Micheal Wetteland from
Engineering are to be congratulated for a
job well done.
Faculty Development WorkshopOn April 30, the College of Nursing
and the Seton Family of Hospitals
hosted the Central Texas Region Faculty
Development Workshop in Round Rock.
This workshop was the second in a series of
three and focused on the use of simulation
in an educational setting. Faculty from
nursing schools throughout Central Texas
were in attendance. This workshop series
is funded through a grant from the Texas
Workforce Commission.
W.F. Boy & Johnnie Hasskarl Humanism in Nursing AwardAt the May 2010 commencement, the
second recipient of the W.F. Boy & Johnnie
Hasskarl Humanism in Nursing Award
will be announced. This award honors the
nursing student in the graduating class
who has best demonstrated compassionate
care during the course of their education.
This award is generously underwritten
by Hospice Brazos Valley. Many thanks
to Hospice and the Hasskarl family for
developing and supporting this award.
Graduation DayOn Friday, May 21, 2010, at 2:00 p.m. in
the Annenberg Presidential Center, the
College of Nursing will host graduation for
the second half of its inaugural class. Please
join us in wishing these students farewell
and good luck in their future endeavors.
Welcome to the Incoming ClassIn July, the College of Nursing will admit
33 new students into its Generic Program.
The Generic Program provides the final two
years of course work required for a Bachelor
of Science in Nursing.
News&NotesMore Info?
For more information about the College of Nursing, please contact us at:
Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Nursing362 SRPH Administration Bldg.College Station, Texas 77843-1266
Office: (979) 862-8422 Fax: (979) 458-4358
nursing.tamhsc.edu