Northland Pioneer College

 

Nursing Program

 

 

Project Evaluation Report

Homegrown Healers

Arizona Department of Commerce

Community College Grant for Nursing Programs

G058-05

 

 

September 30, 2007

 

Submitted by: Debra McGinty, RN PhD

Dean of Nursing and Allied Health

Project Director

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Changes in Key Personnel

 

Dr. Debra McGinty, Dean of Nursing and Allied Health at Northland Pioneer College, continues to function as the Project Director.  Marilyn Page, RN who holds a Bachelor of Science in Health Arts continues to perform the duties of Nursing Advisor. Her excellent interpersonal and communication skills have contributed to a 14 % Full Time Equivalency (FTE) increase at the White Mountain Campus. Ms. Page understands the value of nursing education. She conveys enthusiasm and encourages Homegrown Healers during every contact.

 

Over the past year, Ruth Zimmerman, RN, MSN was hired as Graduation and Retention Specialist. She planned and implemented key project activities which supported student academic performance. She conducted assessments of student academic performance, identified knowledge and skill deficits, and developed and provided direct services to students at risk in collaboration with faculty. Student progress was tracked by a confidential, individualized portfolio for each participant in the form of a structured learning plan. Scheduled participation in study groups, individual tutoring, mentoring, and laboratory skill reviews provided opportunities to note progress in knowledge acquisition and clinical competence. Her exemplary performance in this position, her qualifications, and her experience allowed her to move to a core faculty position. Currently she is directing and coordinating clinical faculty, providing didactic instruction to first year students, and supervising students in simulation skills labs and clinical rotations. The Project Director and nursing faculty are grateful the Community College grant supported Ms. Zimmerman’s position. She is a valuable addition to our faculty. 

 

A review committee recently completed a screening process and interviewed five qualified candidates for the Instructional and Retention Specialist positions. The committee selected Carol Elaine Stewart, RN BSN as Instructional Specialist at the White Mountain Campus. Ms. Stewart’s resume (Appendix A) reflects extensive clinical experience. She has effectively supervised students in the past year at Summit Healthcare Regional Medical Center, providing direction at the bedside and in the simulation laboratory to optimize student academic performance and acquisition of clinical skills. Michelle Hunt, RN BSN was selected for the Retention Specialist position at the Little Colorado Campus. Ms. Hunt entered the grant as a recipient of tuition assistance to complete her Master’s degree while serving as laboratory manager for the program. She is the epitome of the Homegrown Healer as she was raised in Winslow, Arizona, acquired training and experience in the Phoenix area and returned to the Winslow area to practice at the Little Colorado Medical Center. She will complete a Master in Nursing degree July 2008 (Appendix B).

 

The purpose of these positions is to increase the retention of students by conducting assessments of student academic performance, identifying knowledge and skill deficits, and developing and providing direct services to students at risk in collaboration with faculty. Student progress will be tracked for each participant and structured learning plans designed. Scheduled participation in study groups, individual tutoring, mentoring, and laboratory skill review will provide opportunities to note progress in knowledge acquisition and clinical competence. The nursing program is following a model similar to the previous year while awaiting results of the NCLEX-RN for one student who has not taken the exam. Currently the program NCLEX pass rate for students graduating in last year’s class is 90% which is above the national and state average and a significant improvement over previous years. The Project Director and nursing faculty are very excited to have hired these faculty and look forward to improving our student performance and promoting retention with the use of these grant-supported positions.

 

 

I.       Formative Evaluation

 

To ensure continual refinement and improvement of the Homegrown Healers project, and to assure that progress is being made toward achieving objectives, formative evaluations were conducted by Project Director and Nursing Advisor. The formative evaluations examined 1) evidence of progress as related to the outcome measures identified in the Work Time Schedule charts, 2) numbers of participants served, the services each received, and anticipated entry of Homegrown Healers to the nursing program as a result of project services, and 3) a new participant satisfaction/suggestion survey currently in process, results to be reported in the semi-annual report.

 

 

A. Effectiveness of Key Process Objectives

 

To analyze the effectiveness of key process objectives, please refer to the Work Time Schedule charts (Appendix C) which indicate if outcome measures for each process objective have been met.  Some process objectives required modification because they were not instrumental in promoting overall project outcomes. Outcome measures were met because the Program Director worked with faculty, the Nursing Program Advisory Board and Instructional Leadership Council to determine curricular issues and designed changes to address problems.  When it was discovered, for example, that students enrolled in the Homegrown Healer cohort were needing to extend the time required to complete prerequisites due to course sequencing requirements, meetings were held with other departments to negotiate adjustments.  For example, Chemistry and Anatomy and Physiology became co-requisites rather than sequential courses, thus reducing the time to enter the program by an additional year for many students.

 

In the past year, the Instructional Leadership Council approved additional changes which shortened the time to complete all prerequisites to the program to three semesters. The number of prerequisites and total number of credits required to graduate were reduced to align the program with the National League for Nursing accreditation requirements. Nutrition and Intermediate Algebra prerequisites requirements were eliminated. The new curriculum was approved by the Arizona State Board of Nursing.

 

Nursing program enrollment increased 38% from June 30, 2005 to June 30, 2006 and had increased 64% by June 30, 2007. Prerequisite requirements presented problems for a substantial number of students, many of whom were from non-traditional populations. Only two additional students from the first, largely Native American Homegrown Healer cohort were admitted to the program this past year. Like other many other students, because of work and family demands, these students were able to complete only one or two prerequisite courses each semester. This pattern presents a problem students enter the nursing program. In addition to significantly increased study and reading requirements, they are faced with a required load of 10 credit hours which requires18 hours of in-class time each week. These hours do not include co-requisites the student may need. Microbiology BIO 205, for example, requires an additional 6 hours of class time weekly. These unanticipated time demands understandably influence academic performance, the student’s ability to complete course requirements, and thus retention in the nursing program.

 

B. Homegrown Healers

 

Beginning September 2006 and continuing through June 2007, students currently under-represented in nursing were enrolled in the Homegrown Healers program. Students were identified from Certified Nursing Assistant classes in the Whiteriver, Show Low, and Winslow geographic areas.  Five additional students were enrolled in the program from the Whiteriver area (in addition to the fifteen from previous year). Sixteen additional students were enrolled in nursing prerequisites at the White Mountain Campus (in addition to five from previous year). Significantly greater recruitment efforts resulted in more services being provided to students from Winslow and north of I-40 this year. Thirteen students at the Little Colorado Campus (in addition to five from the previous year) were selected (Table 1).   The nursing advisor developed a program of study for each student and reviewed results from a personal learning style inventory where applicable.  Referrals to financial assistance sources both on and off campuses supported student efforts to acquire funds.  Students were denied in some cases because they had already exhausted their eligibility for financial aid or were attending classes on a part-time basis.  

 

The nursing department is meeting funding needs of prospective students in a variety of ways. The Department of Economic Security is currently meeting with many students, awarding funds provided by the Workforce Investment Act.  Recently, the nursing program became the recipient of a privately endowed fund which will offer sustainable annual scholarships beginning next year.  The nursing program has received additional scholarship funds this year for textbook and childcare needs. The program recognizes personal and financial responsibilities limit choices to acquire educational degrees and must be overcome with a variety of sources of funding.

 

Students attended sessions with the advisor and/or other faculty to receive tutoring in math, biology, English, philosophy, and other prerequisites as well as those skills covered in Destination: Nursing, a presession series of workshops presented by the faculty (Appendix D). Additional advisement is being provided as necessary.

 

To determine progress toward the project goal, Table 1 displays data collected for the 1) number of students enrolled in Homegrown Healers in the latest cohort , 2006-2007, 2) the specific support services each participant received, and 3) the entry year to the nursing program. These data demonstrate progress is being made toward increasing the number of students in the nursing program from under-represented populations utilizing grant funds.

 

The grant-supported outreach efforts undertaken by the Nursing Advisor attracted a large number of applicants to the nursing program who have subsequently enrolled. The Nursing Advisor visited nursing assistant and prerequisite classes in the Fall 2006 and Spring 2007 semesters. She identified potential nursing students and provided information and support.  These visits included traveling to campuses and centers at Whiteriver, Springerville/Eager, Winslow, Polacca, and Chinle, AZ. The Nursing Advisor attended college/career fairs at many area high schools including Joseph City, Whiteriver, Show Low, and Dinnehotso. She provided presentations and nursing program information. Students from area grade schools attended a career day at the college featuring interactive games and discussions with nursing faculty in the nursing simulation skills lab.

 

Student

Academic Advisement

Instructional  Assistance

Tutoring

 

   Financial

Aid

Counseling

Workshop or Boot Camp    Series

 

Planned Entry to Nursing Program

WRV1

                  X

              X

X

X

 

2008

WRV2

X

X

X

X

 

2009

WRV3

X

X

 

X

 

2009

WRV4

X

X

X

X

 

2008

WRV5

X

X

 

 

 

2009

   WMC1

         X

X

 

 

X

          2007

   WMC2

X

 

 

 

X

2007

   WMC3

         X

X

X

 

X

2007

   WMC4

         X

 

X

X

X

2007

   WMC5

         X

 

 

 

X

2007

   WMC6

X

 

X

 

X

2007

   WMC7

X

 

X

 

X

2007

   WMC8

X

 

 

 

X

2007

   WMC9

X

 

 

 

X

2007

  WMC10

X

 

 

 

X

2007

  WMC11

X

X

 

X

X