SON: Connections - Fall 2003

Headlines | Briefly | From the Deans Desk
From the Deans Desk

Partners Become Powerful Allies in Addressing Nursing Need

Nancy Fugate Woods
Ph.D, R.N., F.A.A.N.
Dean and Professor

Over the past decade, this country has witnessed an escalating demand for caregivers and nursing education. The aging of the nursing workforce and faculty has intensified the need to enhance nursing education and to prepare future nursing educators, leaders and researchers. This push strains the capacity of the University of Washington School of Nursing just when support from the state budget has diminished, dramatically affecting our teaching capacity and goals.

These changes in demand and funding have hastened the evolution of partnerships that are now indispensable to the school's mission. I am heartened by the sustained and expanded programs made possible through alliances, particularly with regional health care organizations, in response to the need to educate more nurses and prepare them for practice in a complex world.

As students respond to the call for more nurses, the demand for our programs is increasing. This fall more than 400 students applied for 96 openings in the baccalaureate nursing program. Some 90 percent of the applicants we turned away were qualified for admission.

Because we need to accommodate more students in our programs, partnerships have taken on a new meaning and level of commitment. Increasingly, we find the school relying on the gracious hospitality from clinical facilities and health care organizations for support in educating our students and for welcoming our research efforts. Regional hospitals and community health organizations have established scholarship programs for students, increasing the pipeline of students. They have joined with the school to jointly fund faculty who spend part of their time teaching and conducting research at area hospitals, allowing us to expand our teaching capacity. They provide preceptors and some donate a significant amount of expert nurses' time to teach our students in the clinical settings, enhancing the students' learning experience. In return, our partners receive access to expert educators, nurse researchers and top-notch students.

As this academic year begins, we will continue our efforts to enhance existing programs and forge new partnerships with the clinical agencies in our community and beyond. Together, we can address the nursing shortage.

Headlines | Briefly | From the Deans Desk