N UNIVERuSITYrOsF MiAnRYLAgND...Joe Sugarman Spring/Summer2011 VolumeV,IssueI University of Maryland NURSING is a publication of the University of Mary - land School of Nursing.The

Nurses have found a voice asadvocates for themselves and the profession

and arewielding political influenceacross the state—and the nation.

A SMALL WORLD AFTER ALL

CHAMPIONS FOR THE CAUSE

IN THE FLOW

SpeakingUP

NursingU N I V E R S I T Y O F M A R Y L A N D

Spring/Summer 2011 Volume V, Issue IThe Magazine of the University of Maryland School of Nursing

Pockets of JoyThe impoverished country of Haiti has some of the worst health indicatorsin the world—and a severe shortage of health care providers. The School ofNursing is working to improve life for Haitian citizens, such as these irre-pressible young girls, through a new postgraduate certificate program ininfectious diseases that’s aimed at teaching experienced nurses in Haiti thebest practices and most current knowledge related to HIV, tuberculosis,malaria, and other diseases. See “A Small World After All,” p. 18, for more.

18

2834

2 Letter from the Dean

3 NewsCEEL relocates to a larger space,faculty awards, new branding bringsunity, Convocation 2011, honing skillsin team care, and more.

13 ForecastWhy is it important for nurses toadvocate for themselves and theprofession?

14 DiscoveryCell phones offer connection to betterhealth and an end to the waiting game.

16 Living HistoryChampions for the cause

36 Alumni PulseNews of our alumni

42 PhilanthropyStories of giving

A Small World After AllAmid a global health care crisis, the School ofNursing is reaching out to help build the capacityof nurses in the world’s most impoverishedregions. Plus: A healing brigade in Honduras.By Maria Blackburn

Speaking UpNurses have found a voice as advocates forthemselves and the profession and are wieldingconsiderable influence across the state andthe nation.By Len Lazarick

In the FlowEun-Shim Nahm explains why nursing informaticsis so important to the future of health careand what graduates in the field are doing withtheir degrees.Interview by Joe Sugarman

U N I V E R S I T Y O F M A R Y L A N D S C H O O L O F N U R S I N G

Features

Departments

Spring/Summer 2011 Volume V, Issue I

34

28

18

On the Cover Abigail Ehret, a student in theSchool of Nursing’s Health Services Leadershipand Management master’s specialty, metregularly with members of Congress as anintern with the American Nurses Association.PHOTO BY KIRSTEN BECKERMAN

THIS ISSUE OF NURSING showcasestwo feature stories that might seem atfirst glance to be dissimilar: advocacy andglobal health. In reality, however, they areinextricably linked, and both requirepartnerships and collaboration.Nursesare called upon to advocate individuallyand collectively every day—for patients,for the profession, and for health care—locally, nationally, and internationally.At the time of this writing, the Mary-

land 2011 legislative session had justcome to a close; statewide lawmakersfinalized budget cuts, while the federalgovernment barely skirted a shutdown.At the same time, our School of Nursingcontinues to struggle with economicuncertainty, grave health care concernsof our citizens, workforce shortages, andeducation challenges.With more than3 million nurses in the United States,nurses make up the largest segment ofthe health care workforce.They alsospend the greatest amount of time deliv-ering patient care.Therefore, they havevaluable insights and unique abilities tocontribute as partners with other profes-sionals in improving the quality andsafety of health care, as envisioned in theAffordable Care Act.Not only does ourSchool provide more than 40 percent ofMaryland’s professional nurse workforce,but we also contribute health care serv-ices for underserved communities valuedat $6.5 million annually.Our School’s impact, however, does

not stop at our doorstep. Because healthcare is never stationary and is not prac-ticed in a vacuum,we approach thisissue as a continuum, advocating for all.We constantly strive to ensure the rightcare by the right provider at the righttime,while widening access and improv-ing quality, safety, and cost-effectiveness.And yet, there remains one constant:Weneed more nurses and better educatednurses—locally, nationally, and globally.Our School is working to strengthen theglobal nursing capacity in Haiti andNigeria in both education and practice.In Fall 2010, the Institute of Medi-

cine (IOM), in conjunction with theRobertWood Johnson Foundation,

mapped out a plan for how nurses canbe even more helpful in solving thenation’s drastic heath care predicament.This comprehensive, 562-page report,The Future of Nursing, Leading Change,Advancing Health, is the first in morethan 80 years aimed at improving healthand the health care system through thefundamental transformation of nursing.Focusing on the “future of nursing” is

nothing new to our School; everythingwe do centers around preparing futuregenerations of experts and finding newways to enhance the impact of nursingon health and health care.As such,wealready have much of the philosophy andinfrastructure in place to implement theIOM’s recommendations.Our School participated in the

launch of an action plan to implementsweeping changes in the nursing profes-sion by hosting one of 121 regionalawareness meetings conducted through-out the United States last fall.We haveconvened an illustrious group of diversestakeholders from both the public andprivate sectors, across all areas that in-volve health care—practice, research,policy, and education—to encouragethe community to think constructivelyabout a shared vision for improvingaccess to better patient care.

Janet D.Allan, PhD,RN,FAANDean and Professor

2 | SPRING/SUMMER 2011

NursingUNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND

D E A N ’ S L E T T E R

Laurette HankinsPeter KrauseAmanda LamarLen LazarickCynthia SikorskiJoe Sugarman

Spring/Summer 2011Volume V, Issue I

University of Maryland NURSING is apublication of the University of Mary-land School of Nursing. The magazineinforms readers about faculty, student,and alumni involvement in nursing edu-cation, research, practice, and leader-ship and serves as a tool for connectingalumni and other constituents with theSchool of Nursing.

editorial board:Patricia Adams, Editorial DirectorMarjorie FassLaurette HankinsKathryn MontgomeryPatricia MortonBarbara SmithRebecca Wiseman

contributors:Patricia AdamsMaria BlackburnDan CaugheyStacey ConradSue De PasqualePatricia FanningEd Fishel

design and editorial:Alter Custom Media1040 Park Avenue, Suite 200Baltimore, MD 21201443-451-0738www.altercustommedia.com

consulting editor:Sue De Pasquale

art director:Kim Van Dyke

photography:Patricia AdamsKirsten BeckermanTom JemskiRichard LippenholzMarik MoenGenevieve Parr

University of Maryland NURSING ispublished twice a year by the Universityof Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore,Md. We welcome comments, sugges-tions, and story ideas from alumni,partners, and friends. Please send allcorrespondence to the editorial director.

send correspondence to:Patricia AdamsExecutive Director of CommunicationsUniversity of Maryland School of Nursing655 W. Lombard St., Suite 311DBaltimore, MD 21201Phone: 410-706-4115Fax: [email protected]

Copyright © 2011 University ofMaryland School of Nursing.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND SCHOOL OF NURSING | 3

THE SCHOOL OF NURSING’S CLINICALEducation and Evaluation Lab (CEEL)began the spring 2011 semester in a new,larger space that is sure to enhance edu-cational opportunities for undergraduateand graduate students.The 4,962-square-foot area contains

12 fully equipped outpatient examina-tion rooms, four hospital rooms, andtwo family counseling rooms withvideo and two-way audio responsecapability in each room, as well as acomputer-supported automation sys-tem to enable students to see multiplestandardized patients in a streamlinedteaching or testing process.“This expansion allows us to meet

the needs of our growing populationof learners by providing additional andcreative opportunities for learning,” saysKathy Schaivone,MPA,manager ofthe CEEL.“Recently, we helped ourpediatric nurse practitioner studentslearn how to break bad news to our

‘standardized’ parents. It’s a safe envi-ronment where students can practicein a realistic setting."The CEEL is a joint program

between the School of Nursing andthe University of Maryland School ofMedicine, where Standardized Patients(SPs) put nursing and medical studentsthrough their paces as students learn tointeract with living, breathing humans

who present particular health problems.The students’ interactions with SPsare digitally filmed for teaching andassessment. Faculty members workwith students to assess how well theysolicit pertinent information from theirpatients, their listening skills, and theiroverall rapport with the patient.Students are evaluated on physical

exam and diagnostic reasoning skills.“The SP experience is a wonderful

learning tool. Not only does it provideus with feedback on our interpersonaland communication skills from theperspective of the patient, but it alsogives us the opportunity to fine-tuneour history-taking and physical examskills,” says master’s student CarrieDana-Evans, BSN,RN.“The actors are

excellent at playing their roles andproviding valuable feedback that isgenerally difficult to get in a practicalsetting. Being able to observe yourselfgoing through a patient encounter isan invaluable part of the learningprocess, especially in the advancedpractice setting.”Building on the success of its clinical

simulation labs, the School of Nursingopened its CEEL in January 2001.TheSchool was one of the first in the na-tion to educate nursing students usingthis method of teaching and assessment.—Patricia Adams

CEEL Relocates to Larger Space

N E W S

CorrectionAn article on p. 12 (first paragraph) of the

Fall/Winter 2010 edition of NURSING,

“Teaming Up to Battle Breast Cancer,”

contained an error in the reference to the

School of Nursing’s partnership with

Susan G. Komen for the Cure®. The

sentence should read, “… the School of

Nursing has partnered with the Maryland

Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure®

to bring …”We regret the error.

“Being able to observe yourself going through a patientencounter is an invaluable part of the learning process,especially in the advanced practice setting.”

Master’s student Merha Feseha conducts a physical assessment on standardizedpatient Emily Frank.


N E W S

THE SCHOOLOF NURSING celebrated Black History Monthwith a lecture, “The Contribution of African-AmericanNurses in the U.S. Public Health Service,” presented byRADM Deborah Parham Hopson, PhD, RN, FAAN, associ-ate administrator, HIV/AIDS Bureau, Health Resourcesand Services Administration, U.S. Department of Healthand Human Services.

Parham Hopson presented an overview of the U.S.Public Health Service (USPHS), including the organiza-tion’s mission to protect, promote, and advance thehealth and safety of the nation. She noted that USPHShealth professionals—now 6,600 (full-time) strong—have been providing public health and health careservices for more than 200 years. Of the 6,600 activeduty officers, 1,500 are nurses, making them the largestgroup in the U.S. Commissioned Corps.

Parham Hopson also described how she rose throughthe ranks to become USPHS’s first African-AmericanRear Admiral. “It’s one thing to be promoted yourself,but I believe you have the responsibility to bring otherswith you—to help others,” she said, referring to the

fact that there are currently three African-AmericanRear Admirals in the USPHS.

Parham Hopson encouraged students and others inthe audience to consider a career with the USPHS.“Non-traditional career paths can be exciting and ful-filling,” she said. “Not everybody who goes to nursingschool is cut out to work in hospitals. There are otherthings you can do that are just as rewarding.”

In her role as Associate Administrator, Parham Hop-son is responsible for managing more than $2.2 billionfor programs authorized under the Ryan WhiteHIV/AIDS program. In addition, as part of the Presi-dent’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, Parham Hopsondirects a multimillion-dollar global HIV/AIDS programwith training, care, and treatment activities in Africa,Asia, and the Caribbean. —Patricia Adams

Event Recaps

Nurse Pioneer Delivers BlackHistory Month Lecture

RADM Deborah Parham Hopson

TOP OFFICIALS CHARGEDWITHoverseeing implementation of federalhealth care reform were among nurs-ing leaders who spoke at the 2011Evidence-Based Practice Conference,held March 31 and April 1 at theSchool of Nursing.MaryWakefield, PhD,RN, admin-

istrator of the Health Resources andServices Administration (HRSA),delivered a distinguished lectureat the eighth annual conference,“Nursing Practice Based onEvidence:The Emerging Impactof Health Care Reform,”which is

co-sponsored by theVeterans AffairsMaryland Health Care System.Wakefield’s presentation, the

Commander Lura Jane Emery Distin-guished Lecture, was made possibleby the Commander Lura Jane EmerySeminar Series for Nursing PracticeEndowment Fund.Wakefield was welcomed by JayA.

Perman,MD,president of University ofMaryland,Baltimore (UMB),who ad-dressed the need for greater cooperationin health care delivery and education.Dean Janet Allan, in her openingremarks, spoke of the trend-setting

nature of the conference presentationsand the opportunity for participants togain a vision of where the nation’shealth is proceeding.Frances Phillips,MHSA,BSN,RN,

deputy secretary for public healthservices,Maryland Department ofHealth and Mental Hygiene, partici-pated in a panel,“Health Care Reform,New Directions in Community andPublic Health.” She reviewed wideningroles for nursing as Maryland imple-ments theAffordable CareAct, andshe urged nurses to become active asadvocates.—Patricia Fanning

The Emerging Impact of Health Care Reform


“BREAST CANCER SURVIVORSHIP:Defining a New Normal”was the topicof the School of Nursing’s annualKomen Distinguished Lecture, heldApril 14 at the School. Patricia Ganz,MD,director of the Division of CancerPrevention and Control Research at theJonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center,University of California, Los Angeles,delivered the lecture,which emphasizedthe growing number of breast cancersurvivors and the diversity of theirpost-treatment requirements.Ganz noted that the decline in breast

cancer mortality means that for manywomen, cancer is now a chronic disease.But the same treatment advances that

have prolonged lives and reduced risksof second malignancies have been ac-companied by physical effects, includingsymptoms of persistent, post-treatmentfatigue that Ganz described as “under-reported and under-treated.”The annual lecture is part of a grant,

“The Komen MarylandAffiliate Nurs-ing Partnership:Advancing Educationand Practice,” from the MarylandAffili-ate of Susan G.Komen for the Cure®,to advance education and practice inthe treatment of breast cancer.The School is proud to announce

that it recently received a sixth year offunding in the amount of $204,673to continue this initiative and help

expand it to include the University ofMaryland School of Pharmacy andSchool of SocialWork, as well as fornursing programs at Bowie State andCoppin State Universities. SalisburyUniversity joined the partnership inJune.—P.F.

A “New Normal” inBreast Cancer Survivorship

JAY A. PERMAN, MD,president,University of Mary-land, Baltimore (UMB), andElsie Stines,MS,CPNP, projectdirector, president’s office,UMB, delivered the annualDean’s DistinguishedVirginiaLee Franklin Lecture,“‘We’:Interprofessionalism in HealthCare Education and Delivery,”at the School of Nursing lastDecember. Perman noted thatall health professionals shouldbe educated to deliver patient-centered care as members of an interdisciplinary team.He saidmounting research shows that health care delivered by healthprofessionals working in teams not only improves quality, butalso leads to better patient outcomes, greater patient satisfaction,improved efficiency, and increased job satisfaction on the part ofhealth professionals.—P.A.

Elsie Stines and Jay A. Perman, MD

NEIL WEISSMAN, PSYD,delivered the 17th AnnualAnn Ottney Cain EndowedLecture in Psychiatry,“Healing Couples’ Rela-tionships in the Shadow ofTrauma.” Weissman, whois certified in Emotionally Focused Therapy, is a staffpsychologist at the Veterans Affairs Maryland HealthCare System in Baltimore and a clinical assistantprofessor in psychiatry at the University of MarylandSchool of Nursing and School of Medicine. He alsohas a private practice specializing in couples’ therapy.His talk, in March, focused on a therapy model thathas helped military combat trauma survivorsstrengthen their marital relationships, which createsa healing environment for recovery. The Cain Lecturewas established to honor Ann Cain, PhD, RN, FAAN,professor emeritus, upon her retirement. —P.A.

HealingRelationshipsin the Shadowof Trauma

Franklin Lecture Focuses OnInterprofessionalism

From left, Dr. Sandra McLeskey, Dr. PatriciaGanz, and Dr. Deborah McGuire

Dr. Neil Weissman


N E W S

Event Recaps

THE SCHOOL OF NURSING graduatedthe largest class of nurses in the state—and possibly the largest in the nation—at its annual Convocation ceremonyheld May 20 at 1st Mariner Arena.The 626 graduates included

299 Bachelor of Science in Nursing,302 Master of Science, 15 Doctorof Nursing Practice, and 10 PhDgraduates.Janet D. Allan, PhD, RN, FAAN,

dean of the School of Nursing,welcomed graduates, family members,faculty, and friends and extendedremarks to the graduates.Pamela S. Hinds, PhD, RN, FAAN,

director, Department of NursingResearch and Quality Outcomes,Children’s National Medical Center,Washington, D.C., and a professorof pediatrics at George WashingtonUniversity, delivered the Convocationaddress.Her message focused on three

words that, she said, “describe us as

nurses and the nature of our nursingpractice. These three words are ‘ordi-nary,’ ‘extraordinary,’ and ‘miracle.’““‘Ordinary,’ she said, "sounds like

a small word, but may be the largestexplanatory factor for all the goodthat happens when we, as nurses,give care to another person. It isthrough ‘ordinary’ that the othertwo words—‘extraordinary’ and‘miracle’—come to be.”Hinds cited examples of how

the three words related to differentexperiences she has had in herpractice as a nurse and nurseresearcher working with childrenand adolescents who have incurablecancers.Later in the day, School of Nursing

graduates participated in the Univer-sity of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB)Commencement ceremony at 1stMariner Arena, where Jay A. Perman,MD, president of UMB, delivered theCommencement address. Linda H.

Aiken, PhD, RN, FAAN, FRNC,Claire M. Fagin Leadership Professorin Nursing, professor of sociology,and director of the Center for HealthOutcomes and Policy Researchat the University of Pennsylvania,received an Honorary Doctor ofScience degree. —P.A.

Convocation 2011626 Graduates Receive Degrees

Master’s grads celebrate the day. Dean Janet Allan (left) and Convocation speaker Dr. Pamela S. Hinds

Nursing grads, led by Nicole Watkins Brynes, prepare forthe Commencement procession.


AS A TYPICAL CHILD grow-ing up in Sierra Leone, MiataKoroma had no real worriesuntil civil war broke out in

June 1996. The rebels de-stroyed villages, killed andraped women, and kidnappedchildren. Because her fatherwas a member of parliamentat the time of the coup, herfamily had to go into hiding."I remember running out

of my house one morning atage 8, barefoot, with mypassport hanging around myneck. My siblings and I ran toa friend’s house, where wehid in a small room for almostthree weeks. I recall drivingthrough congested streets fullof dead bodies. However,through all this terror, I tookgreat comfort in the arms of aUNICEF nurse riding with us.She was scared, too, but sheassured us that we wouldsurvive,” recalls Koroma.Koroma had no idea how

that UNICEF nurse would im-

pact her life. Two years later, atage 10, Koroma arrived in theUnited States as a refugee withan asylum visa and a dreamof becoming a nurse, just likethe one who had helped herfamily in Sierra Leone.“Coming to the U.S was

exciting, but we were greetedwith a rude awakening—poverty,” says Koroma. “Inour first year, the adultsworked two or three jobs at atime just to keep the familyafloat. We were living in un-safe neighborhoods while onwelfare. Fortunately, within afew years, my family gainedsome stability. But collegewas difficult. I dependedsolely on academic scholar-ships, student loans, andincome from working 24 to30 hours a week to survivethrough school.”

Eventually, Koroma wasable to complete her prereq-uisites at Howard Universityand enter the University ofMaryland School of Nursing’sBSN program. A proud gradu-ate of the Class of 2011,Koroma was honored to bechosen to deliver remarks onbehalf of the graduates atConvocation.“As difficult as my journey

has been, I am thankful forevery life experience becausethese events made me a moremature and caring individual,”she says.Looking ahead, Koroma

plans to return to SierraLeone to help others whowere victims of the war. Shesays she wants to let themknow that there is hope forthe future and that they havenot been forgotten. —P.A.

Miata Koroma

Shady Grove faculty members (from left) Mary Pat Ulicny, BarbaraDobish, Dr. Karen Clark, Denise Owens, and Vivian Koroknay

Esther McCready, the first African-American student admitted to theSchool of Nursing (in 1950), pins master’s graduate Nicole Parson.

Realizing a Dream


TEACH FOR THE FUTURETEACHFOR THE FUTUREE A R N A T E A C H I N G I N N U R S I N G A N D H E A LT H P R O F E S S I O N S C E R T I F I C AT E

Share your expertise by teaching in the classroom, online, or in clinical set-tings. Must have a graduate degree in nursing or a health-related profession. The Teaching in Nursing and Health Professions Certifi cate is a 12-credit online program that can be completed in two semesters.

INSTITUTE for EDUCATORSI N N U R S I N G A N D H E A LT H P R O F E S S I O N S

The activity that is the subject of this ad was produced with the assistance of a NurseSupport II grant under the auspices of the Health Services Cost Review Commission.

For more information: 410-706-3413 or [email protected]

ON MAY 12, the University ofMaryland, Baltimore (UMB) andthe University of Maryland Med-ical Center (UMMC) unveiled a newvisual identity, including logos andcolors, which reflects the collaborationbetween the two institutions.The goalof the new look is to provide a simpli-fied and consistent external publicimage to students, faculty, staff, alumni,patients, referring physicians, donors,and the community that is easy torecognize and visually unifying.The new logo, the result of a year-

long effort, replaces independent logosacross the university's six professionalschools and its various academic and

research units and the visual identity ofUMMC, an academic medical centerthat is the flagship of the 12-hospitalUniversity of Maryland Medical System.“The University of Maryland, in

Baltimore, has incredible individualschools and a world-class academicmedical center, all co-located on thesame campus and doing amazing worktogether.A common look will help usmaximize this collaboration now andin the future,” said Jay A. Perman,MD,president of UMB, the founding campusof the University System of Maryland.

The logo represents the pillars ofDavidge Hall, the signature building onthe UMB/UMMC campus at Lombardand Greene streets and one of Balti-more’s most recognizable public land-marks.The Davidge icon anchors boththe university and the medical centerin the deep historical tradition of thecampus.Next year will mark the 200thanniversary when the state legislaturerechartered the College of Medicine ofMaryland as the University of Marylandhere in Baltimore and Davidge Hall wasconstructed.—Ed Fishel

New Branding Brings Unity


S P O T L I G H T O N S H A D Y G R O V E | N E W S

JOHN THOMAS IS HAVING a tough day.During afternoon rush hour, the19-year-old lost control of his motorcy-cle on the D.C. Beltway and spun out.He suffered a complex compound rightankle fracture and fractured ribs 3through 8 on the right.Moreover, hisalcohol level on admission was 0.168.After five hours of surgery and a trip tothe post-anesthesia care unit, he’s recov-ering in a private room and appears tobe in stable condition.But suddenly,Mr.Thomas, who had

been alert and talking, becomes unre-sponsive. His vitals crash, and his breath-ing turns shallow at less than 12 breathsper minute.What’s going on here?That was the scenario played out on a

stage at April’s Interprofessional CriticalCare Simulation event at the Universi-ties at Shady Grove (USG).The patientwas really a life-size SimMan 3G patientsimulator, and attending him were stu-dents from the University of MarylandSchool of Nursing and School ofPharmacy, and Salisbury University’s

RespiratoryTherapy Program.The event was sponsored by the

Collaboration, Interprofessional andInterdisciplinary Education Strategies(CIPES) Committee—a group formedin 2010 to emphasize and arrangeopportunities for interdisciplinary team-work in an educational setting.University of Maryland, Baltimore

President Jay A. Perman,MD,whoplayed the consulting physician duringthe simulation, stressed in his keynotespeech the importance of such training.“None of us has a complete knowledgeset that is required to take care of a pa-tient,” he said.“The best care is oftenteam care—health care professionalsworking together, with each one bring-ing his or her expertise to a situation. Ifthat happens as it’s supposed to, therewill be one major beneficiary: the pa-tient, which is what this is all about.”Critical care patients, he said, already

receive specialized care from a team ofphysicians.“Now it’s time to take thecritical care model and bring it to all

avenues of health care.To do that, youneed interprofessional education.”Heather Congdon, PharmD, assistant

dean of the University of MarylandSchool of Pharmacy program at USGand a co-chair of CIPES, noted:“Getting pharmacy and other healthprofession students involved in interpro-fessional collaborations during theirschooling will help them understandthe importance of the various profes-sions involved in providing patient careand subsequently enhance theircommunications skills and interprofes-sional interactions.”In Mr.Thomas’ case, nursing student

Domingo Baez-Diaz reacted quicklyby calling in a rapid response team,comprised of nursing master’s studentDanielleWarren, pharmacy student Ash-leighVines, and HabtamAyalew, a studentin Salisbury’s respiratory therapy program.Vines recognized that the patient washaving a reaction to the patient-con-trolled analgesia and prescribed Narcanto counteract its effects.Ayalew quicklyrecommended bagging the patient tohelp him breathe.After a few seconds,Mr.Thomas’ vitals returned to normal.“The idea with simulations like these

is to not only see students work througha case and collaborate with each other,but [for them] to understand eachother’s role in the health care system,”says Patricia G.Morton, PhD,RN,CRNP, FAAN, associate dean for aca-demic affairs at the School of Nursingand a co-chair of CIPES.“The goal is tobetter understand each other’s contribu-tions so students are better prepared forreal-world circumstances.”—Joe Sugarman

Honing Skills in Team CareUSG nursing studentsDomingo Baez-Diaz andDanielle Warren (center)participate in an inter-professional simulationexercise led by UMB Presi-dent Jay A. Perman, MD.


Dean Janet Allan was re-elected toa two-year term as treasurer of theAmerican Association of Collegesof Nursing’s (AACN) Board ofDirectors.AACN serves the publicinterest by setting standards, provid-ing resources, and developing theleadership capacity of memberschools to advance nursing educa-tion, research, and practice.

Vanessa Fahie, PhD ’94, BSN ’76,assistant professor, received the University of Maryland,Baltimore’s (UMB) Outstanding Faculty/Staff DiversityAward at ceremonies held in February.The annual eventcommemorates Dr.Martin Luther King, Jr., and recognizesUMB faculty and students who have played a leadership roleor have been an integral part of the diversity of the campus.

Marjorie Fass, MA, assistant dean for student and academicservices, received the AACN’s 2011 Graduate NursingAdmissions Professionals’“Service to the Graduate NursingAdmissions Professional Leadership Network”Award for“Best Practices in Graduate Nurse Recruiting andWilling-ness to Share Insight and Expertise with Colleagues Nearand Far.”

Terry Laidlow, DNP, MS ’95, RN, clinical instructor, and herteam from Sinai Hospital of Baltimore won a 2011 Nursing

IT Innovation Award.This national recognition acknowledgesexcellence and inventiveness in the use of informationtechnology in the field of nursing to directly improve patientcare and safety.

Robin P. Newhouse, PhD ’00, MS ’99, BSN ’86, RN, NEA-BC,associate professor and assistant dean for the Doctor of NursingPractice program,was among the 15 members appointed to theMethodology Committee of the Patient-Centered OutcomesResearch Institute (PCORI) by Comptroller General Gene L.Dodaro, head of the U.S.GovernmentAccountability Office.The Methodology Committee is responsible for helpingPCORI develop and update methodological standards and guid-ance for comparative clinical effectiveness research.Newhousewas the only nurse selected for the newly formed committee.

Barbara Resnick, PhD ’96, RN, CRNP, FAAN, FAANP, profes-sor, was named one of Maryland’sTop 100Women for 2011 bythe Maryland Daily Record. Each year since 1996, theTop 100Women program has recognized outstanding achievement byMaryland women as demonstrated through professionalaccomplishment, community leadership, and mentoring. Inaddition,Resnick was elected president of the AmericanGeriatrics Society (AGS) during the Society’s Annual ScientificMeeting, held in May. She is the first nursing professional tolead AGS, one of the largest professional organizations of healthcare providers.Resnick and the University of Maryland’sFunction Focused Care program received a Dorland Health2011 Silver CrownAward in the Aging in Place category.

Faculty and Staff Recognized with Prestigious Honors,Awards, and Appointments

Marjorie Fass, Dr. Terry Laidlow, Dr. Robin P. Newhouse, and Dr. Barbara Resnick

Dr. Vanessa Fahie and DeanJanet Allan


WHEN ANA DUARTE was a little girl she wouldfold marbles into Silly Putty and then carefully makeincisions with a small tool to remove them.Then shewould close the incision and create mock scars on theputty.“I had a 100 percent cure rate,” she says proudly.Duarte may have always been interested in medicine,

but in college at the University of Maryland, CollegePark, she decided to major in accounting—a career pathtaken by her father and other family members.“I guessit was fear of the unknown,” she says,“a fear of whatmedical school held in store.”She was hired soon after graduating in 1980 by an

up-and-coming telecom company called MCI and workedfirst in accounting and then in IT. But her interest in healthcare didn’t wane.“I was happy enough, and I enjoyed work,

which kept me busy, but I always felt that I just wasn’t livingthe dream,” says Duarte who says she watched hospitaldramas onTV voraciously and especially enjoyed “real-life”surgical programs,much to the dismay of her housemates.“I could watch an open heart surgery while eating dinner,even though it grossed out my roommates.”She even started taking some nursing school prerequisites

but “chickened out,” as she says.“I thought,‘If I go back toschool,what am I going miss? Am I going to be successful?’ Iwas very scared about moving on to something else.”But then, like so many others, she was changed by the

events of September 11, 2001.On that day,Duarte had beenattending a business meeting across from the Pentagon;she witnessed the tragedy there firsthand. She says thatexperience “reawakened a spirit of trying to help people.”She volunteered as an EMT for the Ellicott City FireDepartment and started planning for a career change.A year later,MCI/WorldCom made the decision that

much easier for her.After 21 years at the company,Duarte,and many other long-serving employees, were laid off in thewake of the company’s bankruptcy. She was shocked and sad

“for about a week,” and then she decided, at the age of 42,that it was finally time to pursue her long-held dream.She enrolled in the School of Nursing in 2004, earned

her BSN in 2006, and an MS in 2009.These days, Duartesplits her time between working as a clinical instructor andcoordinator for the School’s undergraduate psychiatry clin-ics and seeing patients in clinical practice.And she couldn’tbe happier with the path her life has taken.“Never in my wildest dreams would I have believed that

things would’ve worked out as beautifully as they have,” saysDuarte, who began the School’s PhD program last year.“I’mgetting to do everything I like to do. I have no intention todeviate from this career. I am finally where I am supposedto be.”—Joe Sugarman

C A R E E R C H A N G E R | N E W S

A Spirit Reawakened

“I was happy enough, and I enjoyedwork, which kept me busy, but I alwaysfelt that I just wasn’t living the dream.”

Today,Excellence is not an option. It’s an expectation.

Melissa, RN, BSN, CCRNUMSON ‘03 Loretta, RN, BSN

UMSON ‘96

Nick, RN, BSNUMSON ‘07

At the University of Maryland Medical Center, we share your goals of advancing your career, enhancing the practice of nursing and promoting positive patient outcomes. The exciting and dynamic partnership of UMMC and University of Maryland School of Nursing creates an environment for heightened learning and exceptional practice, combining the strengths of a prestigious nursing school with a nationally recognized academic medical center.

Advancing the practice of nursing, every day. That’s our commitment at UMMC. Whether you’re a new graduate, experienced RN, or an advanced practice nurse, we offer a supportive and exciting environment as well as a comprehensive benefi ts package, Nursing Professional Advancement Program, new graduate support program, and tuition support program.

UMMC is proud to support an environment of diversity and encourages inquiry from all applicants. EOE

umm.edu/nursing

Rebekah, RN, BSNUMSON ‘10

Caring For Our Community

www.carefirstcommitment.comAn independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

Proud to support the University of Maryland School of Nursing


F O R E C A S T

Why is it important for nurses to advocatefor themselves and the profession?

Quinn GormanCurrent Clinical Nurse Leader Student

As someone who has worked in theMaryland General Assembly, I can say thatlegislators truly do rely on the testimony ofoutside experts for an accurate picture ofan issue at hand, especially when that issueis technical in nature. No less importantly,advocates serve to represent a portion ofthe stakeholder landscape. If the nursingprofession fails to bend the ears of thosewho control the legislative and regulatoryframework surrounding our work, some-one with another set of interests won’thesitate to step in—and potentially effectchanges that will make our working condi-tions worse and our public image no better.

I am a new student at the School ofNursing without the clinical experience ofmany of my classmates, yet I have heardfrom many of those who are already onthe job what can be a troubling narrativeof under-appreciation and exhaustion. Ithink we’d all like to change that; I thinkwe all know advocacy is one of the mostpowerful tools to do so.

SusanWozenski, JD, MPHAssistant Professor and Vice Chair,Department of Family and Community Health

Nurses are the largest segment of ournation’s health care workforce, yet theprofession’s voice has not been the loudestin ensuring that our health care system im-proves the health status of our nation. Asis the case with most health professionals,nurses are prepared in schools and programsthat do not provide many opportunities forinterdisciplinary education and practice.Many find that when they begin practicing,they and their colleagues from other healthprofessions are unaware of the unique skillseach discipline brings to patient care, com-municating health information, leadershipand management, and improving the healthof the community. Advocacy on behalf ofthe profession is essential for nurses to beable to practice to the full extent of theirprofessional education, ultimately enhancingoutcomes for the patients and the popula-tions they serve. In the absence of our ownvoices, misconceptions about the roles ofnurses and devaluations of our contributionsto health care get to rule the day.

Shirley Nathan-Pulliam, MAS,BSN ’80, RNDelegate, Maryland State Legislature

While nurses have historically advocatedfor their patients, they have not donemuch advocating for themselves or for theprofession. However, it is very important todo so. Only nurses understand their scopeof practice, passion, and enormous capac-ity for caring for the sick. Nurses aretrained to identify and solve problemsthrough the nursing process; they are thebackbone of the health care delivery sys-tem. If nurses would work collectively theywould gain more respect and have morepower. Nurses could come together to ad-vocate for a common cause, e.g. fundingfor nursing, working conditions, or healthcare delivery. Nurses can be found at thebedside, in the board room, in facultyroles, in legal and political arenas, and inresearch labs. The nursing profession canlead you anywhere your heart desires. Iwould urge new nursing graduates to takea stand and learn how to become strongadvocates, not only for themselves but alsofor the profession. Stand up and be heard!


D I S C O V E R Y

Cell Phones OfferConnection to Better Health

ONEOF THEMOST basic tenets of manag-ing chronic diseases is to take medicationsas prescribed to control symptoms.But for the thousands of chronically

mentally ill people who are homelessand living on the streets of downtownBaltimore, remembering to take theirmedications regularly isn’t an easyproposition.Many have no watches, noalarm clocks, no computers or phones,no calendars or datebooks.Often, theneed to take their medicine gets lostamid their daily struggles to secure food,water, shelter, and safety.“When people live in survival mode

there are so many things that need yourattention, and without any outside cuesto take their medication, people just get

caught up in other things,” explainsCharon Burda,MS ’03, CRNP-PMH,an assistant professor at the School ofNursing who has worked in psychiatricnursing since 1985 and at Health Carefor the Homeless since 2005.To address this problem, she did some-

thing that hadn’t been done before. Sheprovided 10 homeless individuals whohad substance abuse and psychiatric dis-orders with cell phones, as part of a smallpilot study. Every day for 30 days they re-ceived an automated call reminding themto take their medications.The resultswere surprising.The automated callsreached participants 93 percent of days,and when reached, participants reported100 percent adherence with the pre-scribed medication regimen.“We werejust bowled over,” says Burda.“Nobodyhas ever used technology with this acuityof illness or this economic group before.”Some skeptics told Burda that giving

cell phones to the homeless was a mis-take.The phones were too valuable andwould get lost or sold or be used to selldrugs.That never happened.What did happen was that the cell

phones had positive impacts that Burdanever expected. For the duration of thestudy, participants were allowed unlimiteduse of their cell phones,which cameequipped with Bluetooth technology andother high-tech bells and whistles.Hav-ing the cell phones made them feel safe,

that someone cared about them, theyreported.And being able to call familymembers, some of whom they hadn’tspoken to in years,made them feel lessisolated.“They didn’t feel as marginalizedbecause they had those connections,” sheexplains.“And they felt an increase insafety because there are no longer anypublic pay phones in Baltimore.”School of Nursing collaborators on

the study included principal investigatorProfessor Mary Haack, PhD,RN,FAANand current PhD student Ana C.Duarte,MS,CRNP-PMH.The study is sched-uled for publication in the Journal of theAmerican Academy of Nurse Practitioners.In the future, Burda hopes to do a

larger study of this type and work toillustrate how cell phones and otherforms of technology can help providecare to hard-to-reach populations.“I want to show that when people

have access to resources and technology,they use it appropriately,” she says.“Notonly is this very cost-effective, it is infor-mation [that can be generalized] becausecompliance is such a big issue for all ofhealth care. If we have a way to cue pa-tients, even those whom we feel mightnot be able to fully access care the waywe want them to,we could save a lotof money and make a difference, andour patients will feel more connected.Really, it doesn’t get better than that.”—Maria Blackburn

Homeless studyparticipantswho receivedautomatedmedicationreminders on theircell phonesreported high ratesof compliance.


D I S C O V E R Y

WHETHER THEY ARE standing at thepharmacist’s counter or lying in ahospital bed, few people relish waitingfor their prescription medications.But consider the plight of new patients

at sub-acute care facilities, such as a nurs-ing homes or rehabilitation centers, whoarrive from the hospital after recent sur-gery.They often have to wait for hoursuntil the facility’s off-site pharmacy canfill and deliver their pain medication,blood pressure pills, or nightly sleep aid.“Sometimes if patients arrive late in theday they have to wait until the next dayto get all of their routine medications,”says Assistant Professor MarisaWilson,DNSc,MHSc,RN-BC.And the waiting game can reoccur

frequently throughout their stay asproviders change their patient’s medication to more effectivelyrespond to their symptoms. Every time there’s a change, nursesmay have to scramble to gather the medications needed tocare for patients while they wait for the filled prescriptionsto be delivered.Often they must make multiple calls to theoffsite pharmacy, attempting to speed up the process.Automated dispensing systems, refrigerator-sized machines

that securely store and dispense some 300 of the mostcommonly ordered drugs onsite, could help improve thedispensing process. But there is still so much about them thatremains unknown.Do they shorten patient wait times? Sincethe devices allow nurses to remove single doses of medications,can they help curb the waste and health costs associated withfrequent medication changes? Can they improve workflowand reduce dispensing errors?That’s whatWilson and Nicole Brandt, PharmD, an

associate professor at the University of Maryland School ofPharmacy, are hoping to find out.The two researchers haveembarked on an interdisciplinary study of aTalyst automateddispensing device recently implemented in two units atBrightwood Center, a Genesis HealthCare site in Lutherville,Md.“Having this device sounds like a dream come true, and itcan be,” saysWilson.“But it depends on how it is imple-mented and on the processes and procedures that are put inplace to support it.”

Here’s how the devices work:A provider orders medicationfor a patient and the prescription is sent to the offsite phar-macy, where it is reviewed and validated by a pharmacist andthen transmitted electronically from the pharmacy to theautomated dispensing device at the facility.Nurses at the facilitythen transcribe the order into the patient’s Medical Adminis-tration Record, go to the machine to withdraw the medication,and then administer it to their patient. Because the drugs arealready in the facility, nurses and patients don’t have to wait forthem to be delivered once the prescription is validated.Brandt will be evaluating how the system works at Omni-

care, the offsite pharmacy provider for Brightwood residentsthat must process the orders from the pharmacy end, includingkeeping the automated dispensing device at the facility filled.The interdisciplinary view is essential to understanding bestpractices for implementing automated dispensing devices,Brandt says.“With any new technology there are alwaysglitches, and if you were to just look at the facility side youwouldn’t see all of what’s happening,” she says.“You needto look at this process from a whole systems perspective.”Wilson says,“Hopefully, the end result of what we do will

allow participants to fine-tune this automated dispensingprocess so that we have a device that reaches its maximumefficiency for nurses and patients and will provide them with asatisfying experience.”—M.B.

An End to the Waiting Game?

Dr. Marisa Wilson, pictured here next to a Talyst automated dispensing system, is measuring theeffectiveness of such systems.


NURSES ADVOCATING for themselves and the profession isnot a new phenomenon, although prior to the 19th century,not a great deal of advocacy by nurses or for nurses was evi-dent. Nurse advocacy in the modern era began in the late1800s with the push by nurses in several British colonies tohave nursing registration acts endorsed. South Africa passedthe first law in 1891 that dealt with nurse registration, thoughother health professions were also addressed in the same legis-lation. New Zealand passed the first true nursing act in 1901,which dealt solely with the nursing profession. In the UnitedStates, control of education and professional practice cameunder each state’s jurisdiction, and a decentralized advocacyarose. Sophia Palmer (1853-1920) was one of the earlyadvocates for the nursing profession. She was a leader in thedevelopment of nursing organizations and the movement to

secure state regulation of nursing. She also championed theneeds of the individual nurse while shaping the foundation ofthe profession. By 1903, five states, in a span of two months,enacted licensing laws.Twenty years later, legislation regulatingnurse training was implemented in every state.The push forstate regulations strengthened the various nursing organizationsand helped to bind nurses together.In its early years, the University of Maryland School of

Nursing’s contribution to nursing advocacy was mainlythrough the efforts of its alumni. Early faculty members andalumni helped to create the Maryland State Association ofGraduate Nurses (MSAGN), later known as the MarylandNurses Association (MNA). Immediately after being formal-ized, the MSAGN set out to accomplish one of the firstobjectives for which it was created—advocating for the state

Champions for the Cause

By Dan Caughey

Over the decades, nurses have advocated for issues vitally

important to advancing the profession.

During Advocacy Day in Annapolis, Dean Janet Allan took a moment to explain the importance of interprofessional collaboration—the focus of a Universityexhibit—to a group of students.


registration of nurses. From the start, the Association wassuccessfully involved with lawmakers in crafting the legisla-tion, and a bill was put forward to form a Board of NurseExaminers, which was signed into law in 1904. School ofNursing alumni also helped in the effort to shape internalschool policy, in addition to raising money and contributingservices to the School and University Hospital.School of Nursing alumni were rightly proud of their ad-

vocacy achievements.The editors of the first Alumni AssociationBulletin in 1920 noted their role in advocating for trainednurses and opening up more employment opportunities forgraduates.The School, through its alumni, continued to advo-cate for nurses and shape policy. By the 1920s, 10 percent ofthe MNA’s members were from the School.At one point inthe early 1920s, the School could boast that all the nationalassociations had its graduates as their presidents.The Alumni

Association also pushed to get other nursing alumni associa-tions in the state to pool their resources and work together toeffect changes and improvements for nurses. Such activism wasseen on the national scale as well.The three most prominentnational nurses’ organizations—the American Nurses Associa-tion (ANA),National League of Nursing Education (NLNE),and the National Organization for Public Health Nursing(NOPHN)—all sought to harness their state chapter’sadvocacy energies and focus them on the national level.Some national associations, such as the NOPHN, advo-

cated for certain types of nursing. Established in 1912 byLillianWald, the founder of American public health nursing,NOPHN was designed to set professional standards, sharetechniques, and protect the reputations of its members. In1952, NOPHN merged with the National League for Nurs-ing. Other organizations were formed to push for betterrights for minority nurses who had been under-representedbecause of discrimination. In 1908, the National Associationof Colored Graduate Nurses (NACGN) was founded byMartha Minerva Franklin.This organization was dedicatedto promoting the standards and welfare of black nurses andbreaking down racial discrimination within the profession.

NACGN was important, as black nurses at that time were notallowed membership in the ANA or most state associations.The main purpose of the NACGN was to gain integrationof black nurses into nursing schools, nursing jobs, and profes-sional organizations.Through tireless advocacy, in additionto greater tolerance and inclusiveness espoused by ANAleadership afterWorldWar II, black nurses were able to earnmembership in various state nursing associations in 1948,and in national associations by the mid 1950s.Throughout its history, the ANA has advocated for better

working hours and pay for nurses.The organization was alsoan early backer for certain sub-groups of nursing—most no-tably military nurses and minority nurses—that faced greaterobstacles to fair conditions.The ANA helped to secure aseries of laws that improved the status and pay of militarynurses within the various armed services in the first half of

the 20th century.Theorganization also worked toward greater diversity withinstate and national nursing organizations. By 1979, theAlumni Association helped in getting legislation passed tocreate a new NurseTraining Act.The School took a moreactive and direct role in advocating for the profession in2000, when it hosted a statewide summit on the nursingshortage, which included discussions of initiatives such asaccelerated programs and collaborative agreements withcommunity colleges to help meet nursing demands. In 2001,the School held a legislative reception at the GovernorCalvert House in Annapolis, marking a milestone in theSchool’s history.More than 300 faculty, students, staff, andalumni mingled with state legislators and government offi-cials in an informal setting, in an effort to raise awareness ofchallenges facing the profession.The School of Nursing continues this tradition of advocacy

today. Last February,more than 50 students and faculty mem-bers, along with Dean Janet Allan, traveled to Annapolis toencourage funding for Loan Assistance Repayment Programsfor nursing students and continued support for the Governor’sbudget request for the University of Maryland, Baltimore.

L I V I N G H I S T O R Y

Left to right: Dean Heller with other advocatesafter Governor Glendening signed a bill thatcreated a statewide commission on the crisisin nursing in 2000; Sophia Palmer, early nurseadvocate; and State Senator Paula Hollinger(right) with a UMSON representative at thefirst legislative reception in 2001.


A SMALL

AFTER ALL

IN THE FACE OF A GLOBAL HEALTH CARE CRISIS, THE SCHOOL OF NURSING IS REACHING

OUT TO HELP BUILD THE CAPACITY OF NURSES IN IMPOVERISHED REGIONS OF THE WORLD

THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS IN EDUCATION AND TRAINING.

STORY BY MARIA BLACKBURN

WORLD

THE FIRST TIME thatYolanda Ogbolu traveled toNigeria to teach several dozenhealth care providers the intrica-cies of neonatal resuscitation, hergoals were modest.“If I can helpsave one baby’s life, it will havebeen worth it,” the seasonednurse practitioner told herself.But her experiences in the

small hospital for women andchildren in a rural part of north-ern Nigeria opened her eyes tothe realities of infant mortality insub-Saharan Africa.There werenot enough doctors and nurses,even basic medical equipmentwas scarce, and patients were sosick with infectious diseases likeAIDS and malaria that the smallmedical staff was often over-whelmed. Despite their bestefforts, they could save very fewbabies—a grim reality in a

country where 240,000-plusinfants die annually in their firstmonth of life.Shocked to learn that 99 per-

cent of infant deaths occuroutside the United States,Ogbolu realized that saving justone baby wasn’t enough. She hadto do more to help the peopleof Nigeria care for their sickand save lives long after she hadreturned home to Baltimore.“I wanted to make a differ-

ence,” says Ogbolu, PhD ’11,MS’05, BSN ’04, an assistant profes-sor at the School of Nursing.As a master’s and doctoral

student at the School,Ogbolustudied the complex reasons whyhealth disparities exist through-out the world.Now, as deputydirector of the School’s Office ofGlobal Health, she is working toaddress these disparities by col-

laborating with faculty and part-ners at University of Maryland,Baltimore, and around the world,to help increase the capacity ofnurses in under-resourced coun-tries. By equipping people andorganizations with the knowl-edge and resources they needto independently address theircountry’s public health, she isconfident that countries likeNigeria can create strong, sus-tainable health care institutions.“There is a severe health careshortage in many parts of theworld, and I believe empoweringnurses is the way to best addresspatient outcome needs,” she says.“Nurses are the backbone ofthe health care system in manydeveloping countries, and weneed to empower them through[additional] education and byincreasing their capacity.”


Rehabilitation tent ward at Scared Heart Hospital, Milot, Haiti

Building sustainable partnershipsto strengthen the critical role ofnurses in the global health work-force has been a priority in theOffice of Global Health since itsfounding in 2009. In addition togiving students opportunities toprovide care and conduct researchin countries like Honduras andZambia, sharing the School’sresources and faculty expertisewith international nurses as part

of a visiting scholars exchange pro-gram, and offering the nation’s firstpost-master’s certificate in globalhealth for nurses, the office iscollaborating with nursing schoolsacross the globe on a variety ofprojects dedicated to building theglobal capacity of nurses.“Some 20 percent of the

world’s population in the richercountries consumes 80 percent ofthe world’s health care resources,while the poorest regions of theworld, like Africa and SoutheastAsia, have 50 percent of the totalglobal disease burden yet only2.4 percent of the world’s healthresources.This enormous globalhealth inequity is one of the mostglaring problems in our humancivilization,” says JeffreyV. Johnson,PhD, director of the Office ofGlobal Health.“There is a globalhealth crisis, and a huge burdenof disease is falling on developingcountries.The number one obsta-cle to dealing with that crisis is alack of health care providers.”Even in the face of a global

nursing shortage, nurses still com-prise the largest group of healthcare workers in many regions of theworld.“Nurses are very critical tojump-starting the capacity of healthsystems in developing countries tobe able to engage more proactivelyin their own global health crises,”Johnson says.“They are not onlythe most prevalent and availablehealth providers, they can do a lotmore than what they are doing.”But the world’s estimated 13

million nurses can’t respond to thisneed without additional trainingand education, and that’s where theSchool’s Office of Global Healthcomes in.“We are now workingwith a number of countries to part-ner with nursing schools and helpthem develop their capacity to trainnurses who are capable of movinginto advanced practice,where theyare taking on the roles more likethose of physicians—particularly

in resource-limited settings,”says Johnson.There’s a lot to do, and the

global health faculty members areworking hard to keep up with itall.A visit to the Office of GlobalHealth on an afternoon in mid-February found the place buzzingwith activity. Six nurses, all facultymembers from the University ofNotre Dame of Haiti, were inBaltimore for a six-week infectiousdisease certificate training program.Two nursing school deans fromNigeria were visiting to reviewa primary health care specialistcurricula being developed, visitingclinical sites, and meeting withthe School’s faculty.And ShavonMoses, a nurse educator fromGuyana who participated in theoffice’s International NurseExchange Program last year, hadreturned to prepare students in theEssentials for Global Health classfor their upcoming fieldworktrip to Guyana. Boxes of donatednursing textbooks lined the floor,all awaiting shipment to Nigeriaas part of the annual Nurses forGlobal Health book drive. Phoneswere ringing,meetings were con-vening, classes were being taught—and change was happening.“I remember three years ago

sitting all by myself in this bigoffice and it was completely silent,”says Johnson.“I told myself,‘thishas got to change,’ and it has, be-cause so many people want to do[global health].”

�IN THE DAYS AND WEEKSafter the January 2010 earth-

quake in Haiti killed an esti-mated 316,000 people and injured300,000 more, physicians andnurses from the University ofMaryland Medical Center andaround the world flocked to thisdevastated island country to carefor its citizens.


“IF I CANSAVE

ONE BABY’SLIFE, IT WILLHAVE BEENWORTH IT.”

—YOLANDA OGBOLU

Dr. Yolanda Ogbolu holding a Nigerian infant

Open air ward at St. Francoise de Sales Hospital, Port au Prince, Haiti


Some 4.5 percent of the popu-lation in Haiti is infected withHIV/AIDS, according to theWorldHealth Organization (WHO), andthe country’s health indicators areamong some of the worst in theworld. Like many developingcountries, Haiti does not haveenough nurses, physicians, andother health care providers to

address its high burden of disease.In 2008,WHO reported that therewere three physcians and onlyone nurse for every 10,000 peoplein Haiti.After the earthquake,Marik

Moen,MSN,MPH,RN,workedto develop a postgraduate certifi-cate program in infectious diseasesdesigned to teach experiencednurses in Haiti the best practicesand most current knowledge re-lated to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis,malaria, and other diseases.“Before, if there was any type

of certification or specializationwithin nursing in Haiti it wasn’tstandardized—nurses learned onthe job,” says Moen, coordinatorof education initiatives for the

School’s Office of Global Health.“Beyond their terminal degreefor nursing there is no accreditedpost-graduate education.”Under this “train the trainer”

program, School of Nursing facultymembers teach the first group ofnurses, who then return to theUniversity of Notre Dame,Haiti,and their home hospital institutions

in Haiti to train the next groupof nurses.Once nurses earn theircertificates through this Ministryof Health-accredited program theywill return to work at their homeinstitutions throughout the countryto provide a higher level of infec-tious disease care to patients.The first six-week training

session was originally scheduledto take place in Haiti last fall, butit was moved to Baltimore aftercholera, as well as civil unrestbrought on by the country’s presi-dential elections, broke out.Andso a morning during the springsemester found Hermlande Gardere,Chantal Corioland, and four othernurses from Haiti in a School ofNursing classroom.They were

learning the intricacies of perform-ing chest and lung physical assess-ments fromAssistant Professor JoanDavenport, PhD ’08,RN, and prac-ticing their skills on one another.“I like how the teachers here

share information and assess patientsin clinic—it’s so different than it isin Haiti,” explains Gardere.“Herethey take a lot of time to assesspatients.At home we have to seea lot of patients and we don’treally have time to assess eachpatient properly.”During the class, Davenport

repeatedly showed her studentshow much valuable informationa thorough physical assessmentcould provide. Gardere vowed toput her newly honed assessmentskills to work when she returnedhome.“It’s very important for meas a nurse to make a change inhealth care in Haiti, especiallyin infectious disease,” she says.“We have to properly take care ofthese patients.”Corioland, a nurse at St. Fran-

coise de Sales Hospital who hasbeen providing care to patientsin tents since the earthquakedestroyed some 70 percent of thehospital, acknowledged that it hadbeen difficult to leave her 5-year-old twins at home so she couldattend the training in Baltimore.But she was confident that theintensive training would help

Dr. Carol O’Neil discusses differentlearning styles with visiting Haitiannurses (from left) Hermlande Gardere,Chantal Corioland, and Marie NicoleSully-Guerrier Jean.

IN 2008, THERE WERE THREEPHYSICIANS AND ONLY ONENURSE FOR EVERY 10,000PEOPLE IN HAITI.

make a difference.“After theearthquake there was a lot to do,but there were not so many handsto help,” she says.“People needhealth care providers like us tohelp prevent disease, and we aregoing to have a lot of diseases withso many people living under tents.Six of us are not enough to coverit all, but it is a place to start and toteach others how to help.”Imparting knowledge about in-

fectious diseases isn’t the only pur-pose of the training; it’s also aboutteaching the trainers how to teach,says Associate Professor CarolO’Neil, PhD,RN,CNE, co-direc-tor of the School’s Institute forEducators in Nursing and HealthProfessions.O’Neil, who has morethan 30 years of teaching experi-ence, worked with other Schoolof Nursing faculty members to

convey to the six Haitian nursesthe importance of student-centeredlearning; how to respond to differ-ent learning styles; and the bestway to use case studies, Power-Point, and other resources toeffectively convey information.O’Neil and Moen were both

impressed by the group’s seem-ingly boundless desire to expandtheir knowledge. One day, two-and-a-half hours into a three-hourclass, after her several suggestionsthat the students take a shortbreak went ignored, O’Neil hadto order the group to stand upand stretch.And when Moentried to plan a one-day sightseeingtrip toWashington, D.C. over theweekend, it never got off theground.Why?“They wanted to stay in

Baltimore and study,” she says.

�

IN NIGERIA, THE BURDEN ofdisease is as great as the heathcare workforce is small. In addi-

tion to having one of the highestinfant mortality rates in the world,and high rates of malaria and tuber-culosis, Nigeria is home to some3 million people living with HIV/AIDS, according to the NigerianFederal Ministry of Health.Eventhough it has only 2 percent of theworld’s population,Nigeria accountsfor more than 10 percent of theworld’s maternal deaths in childbirth.Each year some 55,000 Nigerianwomen die giving birth.There are only 35,000 physicians

and 210,000 nurses to serve Nige-ria’s 150 million citizens, accordingtoWHO.And some 70 percent ofNigerians, especially those in rural


When Carolyn Nganga-Good, MS ’07,RN, took Jeffrey V. Johnson’s courseon Social Justice and Health in 2006,she learned from speaking with himthat there were faculty and studentswho shared her global health inter-ests. Certainly, she thought, theremust be a way to inform studentsabout global health disparitiesaround the world and to share withthem how to get involved.

“Do something about it,” Johnsontold her. So with his support and thehelp of classmate Neshat Tebyanian,MS ’08, RN, CRNP, and Yolanda Og-bolu, PhD ’11, MS ’05, BSN ’04, she co-founded Nursesfor Global Health. “Most of the student groups at thetime were focused on what was happening locally,”explains Nganga-Good, who works as a program analystin the STD/HIV Prevention Program at the BaltimoreCity Health Department. “I saw Nurses for Global Healthas an avenue for people who have global health inter-ests to hear about what’s happening in the world.”

Today, the group has more than 300 members andis one of the largest and most active student groups atthe School. It hosts an annual global health conference;

sponsors speakers, seminars, andother events; and brings togetherstudents from across the Universityof Maryland, Baltimore (UMB)campus. Its annual textbook drive,established in 2009, collects severalhundred books a year that have beendonated to nursing students withlimited resources in Nigeria andHaiti. The group hopes to expand itsefforts to reach out to other resource-limited countries.

“Every year the group has gottenbigger and bigger,” says Nurses forGlobal Health’s current co-chair

Pujeeta Pfau, a Family Nurse Practitioner student inthe Global Health Post-Master’s certificate program.“Most programs at UMB are very demanding of stu-dents’ time and mental energy, and sometimes you thinkyou don’t have time to do anything else. For me, beinginvolved in Nurses for Global Health is really upliftingbecause it gives you more of a personal view of whatglobal health is all about.” —M.B.

For more on Nurses for Global Health, visithttp://umaryland.edu/ngh.

MEET LOCALLY. ACT GLOBALLY.

Dr. Jeffrey Johnson presents nursingtextbooks to Olatokunbo A. Olanipekun,secretary-general/registrar, NursingandMidwifery Council of Nigeria.

areas, don’t have access to healthcare in the country’s primary, sec-ondary, and tertiary care centers.Much of the health care in Nigeria’sprimary care centers is provided bynurses and community health work-ers who are overburdened andoutnumbered.Because of this, thesenurses are often forced to“task shift”and prescribe medicine or take onother clinical and public healthleadership roles outside their rangeof practice.“All over the world,

nurses are extending beyond theirlevel of training not because theywant to, but because they feel obli-gated to take care of their patients,”Ogbolu says.“They are taking lead-ership on the ground, primarilybecause under certain conditionsthey are the only people there.”And the needs of patients at

primary care centers are about toget more complex, as the Nigeriangovernment moves to decentralizeHIV/AIDS care from tertiary care

centers.Most primary care nurseslack the proper education and train-ing to work at this higher level, andthat’s a problem, according to EmiliaIwu,MSN,APNC, an assistant pro-fessor at the School who is based inNigeria and works as a senior tech-nical advisor with the Institute ofHumanVirology-Nigeria (IHV), aninstitute of the University of Mary-land School of Medicine.“Look atthe many public health implicationsthat exist if that care is not done

properly,” she says.“The patientsmay end up with resistant virusesthat can be transmitted to the restof the population.”To address this, School faculty

members are working on a projectto train nurses and communityhealth workers at primary carefacilities in Nigeria to task shiftmore effectively and engage in suchtasks as prescribing antiretroviraldrugs for healthy people with HIVand assessing and treating pregnant

women, children, newborns, andpatients with infectious diseases.The two-pronged strategy—whichis being coordinated as part of apartnership that includes IHV-Nigeria, Nigeria’s Ministryof Health, the Nursing andMidwifery Council, and thedepartments of nursing at the Uni-versity of Nigeria at Enugu andObafemi Awolowo University—will not only build capacity, it willincrease professionalism amongnurses, says Ogbolu.To focus on Nigeria’s immediate

health needs, a School of Nursingfaculty work group headed byOgbolu has spent much of the lastyear developing a curriculum for a12-month advanced diploma pro-gram. Its aim: to improve the com-petency and education of nurses,nurse midwives, and communityhealth officers working in the pri-mary health care sector by trainingthem to become primary healthcare specialists.“The idea of taskshifting is that the nurse takes onsome of the tasks of the doctor, andthe doctor can then focus on themost demanding cases,” Johnsonsays.“Rather than see everyone, thedoctor sees only the patients he orshe needs to see, and the nurse seeseveryone else.The work of thenurse—taking vitals, triage, etc.—(continued on inside back cover)


“WHAT WE ARE GIVING THEM ISTHE KNOWLEDGE AND THE EX-PERTISE TO GO BACK TO THEIRCOMMUNITIES AND GIVE CARETO THE PEOPLE WHO ARE MOSTIN NEED.”—CAROL O’NEIL

Marik Moen helps Haitian nurse Emme-lynne Pierre-Louis translate words fromFrench to English.


For four months at the end of 2001, nurses in Nigeria were onstrike, and the country’s neonatal mortality rate, already oneof the highest in the world, skyrocketed. At Wesley GuildHospital in IIesa, the neonatal mortality rate doubled from125 deaths per 1,000 live births to 250 deaths per 1,000 livebirths during the strike, despite the fact that physicians andparents who had received special training were caring for thenewborns during this period.

Some researchers might quickly overlook those statistics,which were published in 2005 in the Internet Journal of Pedi-atrics and Neonatology, and move on. Not Yolanda Ogbolu.“To me this said that there was something very special aboutwhat nurses are doing that can help improve the lives ofbabies,” says Ogbolu, PhD ’11, MS ’05, BSN ‘04.

The assistant professor wanted to learn more about howthe care nurses provided to newborns in Nigerian hospitalscorrelated to infant mortality rates at those facilities. Solast May, for her doctoral dissertation, she spent six weeksin Nigeria, visited 27 hospitals in 10 states, and surveyed231 nurses and 27 hospital administrators to find out moreabout staffing levels and organizational conditions at thesehospitals and how they related to neonatal outcomes.

Although Ogbolu had traveled to Nigeria before and con-ducted trainings in hospitals there, she was taken aback by theconditions she found. In some wards, one nurse was caring foras many as 150 patients. In others, there was no runningwater, no oxygen, no working phones, and so few beds that

patients who couldn’t share a bed slept on the floor. Thenurses lacked critical knowledge. For example, some 77 per-cent of the nurses she interviewed had never received trainingin neonatal resuscitation or in caring for premature infants.“I started to see many of the reasons why babies die in thefield,” she says. And from that data she concluded that addingmore nurses in Nigeria may not be enough; the health caresystem needs to be strengthened to make a major impact onneonatal mortality.

Her study, which will be published, was qualitative as wellas quantitative. “When I tell the qualitative story, that’s whenpeople begin to understand the true story of nursing andneonatal care in Nigeria,” she says. There was the physicianwho, after telling Ogbolu his hospital lacked a resuscitationbag and oxygen, laughed sarcastically as he said, “When ababy comes in and is not breathing, there is nothing I can do.”And another who, after telling her his hospital had an ambu-lance, confessed that the vehicle had neither gas nor a driver.

Witnessing these conditions was difficult for Ogbolu as anurse and a mother, but she pushed on because she believesher research is critical to understanding the nurses and babiesbehind the statistics. “We all know there’s a health care[provider] shortage, but no one has taken the time to go thereand show what nurses really experience on the ground andhow it impacts whether newborns live or die,” she says. “Ihave that data, and I want to publish it so that people hearand understand the nurses’ stories. I owe it to them.” —M.B.

IMPROVING THE ODDS FOR INFANTS IN NIGERIA


HealingBrigade

Story by Sue De Pasquale

Photos courtesy of Genevieve Parr

Above: Genevieve Parr keeps an Honduran

infant calm while a nurse practitioner

student removed stitches from the

abdomen of the baby’s mother. Far left:

Parr counts out a two-months supply of

multivitamins for distribution. “We made

hundreds of these bags,” she says.

Through fundraising efforts, the group

brought more than $70,000 worth of

medications to the impoverished area.

Left: Parr provides fluoride treatment to

a young boy. Children and families were

also given toothbrushes and counseled

on dental hygiene.

N THE IMPOVERISHED COMMUNITY of La Cienega,Honduras, few people have access to medical services. So whenstudents from the Medical Brigades group from the University ofMaryland,Baltimore (UMB) visited last January and set up a smallclinic, local people walked for hours to receive basic health care andeducation.Over three days, the UMB students—together withlocal doctors—saw and treated more than 700 men,women, andchildren.The Brigade included Genevieve Parr, a [then] master’sstudent in the School of Nursing’s Clinical Nurse Leader program,and 25 other UMB student volunteers.While villagers presented avariety of health issues, says Parr, the most common problems wereparasites (which cause stomach pain), fungal skin infections, and dryand irritated eyes.Despite the language barrier (Parr says her Span-ish is “mediocre”) she and her colleagues found it surprisingly easyto communicate.“It was really rewarding,” says Parr.“Global Medical Brigades

provided the opportunity for our graduate students to take theskills and knowledge that they have acquired through their respec-tive programs to a much-needed outlet.We not only providedprofessional care for the community members, but we also gavethem tools, education, and support to make healthy changes intheir everyday lives.”

I


Far Left: A rock-solid brigade—Students from

each UMB professional school painted a rock to

represent their school. Left: On their last day in

Honduras, the Medical Brigades students from

UMB made time to tour the beautiful Valley de

Angeles. The group, sponsored by Global

Medical Brigades, the world’s largest student-led

global health and sustainable development

organization, included students from the schools

of nursing, dentistry, pharmacy, law, and social

work. Below: Parr sterilizes dental equipment for

use by UMB dental students, who, together with

a local dentist, assessed and treated hundreds

of people—many of whom had never received

dental care.


By Len Lazarick

SPEAKINGNURSES HAVE FOUND A VOICE AS ADVOCATES FOR THEMSELVESAND THE PROFESSION AND ARE WIELDING POLITICAL INFLUENCE

ACROSS THE STATE–AND THE NATION.

ON WEDNESDAYS throughout the spring,Abigail Ehret, BSN,RN, has not been going toher job as a nurse at the University of MarylandMedical Center’s Cardiac Care Unit. Instead,she heads to Capitol Hill for hearings on healthcare legislation.A student in Health Services Leadership and

Management master’s specialty at the Schoolof Nursing, Ehret exemplifies the expandeddimensions of nursing practice the School isworking to foster.As an intern with the Ameri-can Nurses Association (ANA), Ehret meetsregularly with members of Congress and theirlegislative aides to explain her role as a nurse,she says,“and how the Affordable Care Act canhelp my patients.”“They love hearing from nurses,” Ehret says,

noting that many members of Congress havebeen working with hospital associations andnurses on health care issues in their home states.Many of the lawmakers have a family memberwho is a nurse or have had other positive con-tacts with nurses.“They’ve had an experienceto share with me about how a nurse hastouched them in a special way,” she says.Like other nurse advocates, Ehret has been

pushing the priorities of the ANA, which hasfocused on implementing the recommenda-tions in the 2010 Institute of Medicine (IOM)report on “The Future of Nursing.”The report

emphasized as one of its four main policy goals,“nurses should be full partners, with physiciansand other health care professionals, in redesign-ing health care in the United States.”The ANA is also trying to gain support for a

bill that would allow advanced practice nursesto order home health care.There is a fiscal di-mension, too, Ehret says.“We’ve been focusingon cost-saving measures.”“I’m surprised at how much access I’ve had,”

Ehret says.“It’s been an eye-opening activity forme.Realizing that nurses do have a voice,moreof us need to be aware of health care legislation,and be aware of the changes needed for ahealthy work environment for ourselves and ourpatients,” she says.“More nurses need to becomemore politically involved.”That’s indeed the goal of leaders at the

School of Nursing.In recent years, the School has placed a

greater emphasis on engaging state and federalpolicymakers in helping to increase the supplyof nurses and the faculty to teach them, and inexpanding what these nurses can do for pa-tients. That’s especially crucial today as federalhealth care reform adds 20 million to 30 mil-lion people to the insurance rolls, and millionsof Baby Boomers move into their golden years.“It’s a public health crisis,” says School of

Nursing Dean Janet Allan.

UP

“More nurses need to becomemore politically involved.”

—ABIGAIL EHRET

Abigail Ehret, BSN, RN

KIR

STEN

BEC

KER

MA

N


“If you don’t have nurses, you don’thave health care.”Allan notes that nurses have had a

long-standing philosophy of advocatingfor their patients.“We really wanted toincrease the amount of advocacy forthe profession,” putting more emphasison that in the curriculum, she says.With the School’s location near

Annapolis, the state capital, and thenation’s capital inWashington, D.C.,“it’s very easy for our students andfaculty to become involved,”Allannotes, pointing as one example to theAmerican Association of Colleges ofNursing’s Student Policy Summit heldthis spring inWashington.The annualconference, which focuses on theimportance of policy engagement forfuture nursing leaders, drew 18 studentsfrom the School, including representa-tives from the undergraduate, master’s,and doctoral programs.Indeed, faculty and students have

participated in a wide range of activitiesto advance both the nursing professionand improved access to health care—from the corridors of Annapolis to the

halls of Congress.They have success-fully fought to increase funding toeducate additional nursing faculty tohelp reduce the shortage of trainednurses.They have worked to breakdown the barriers that prevent nursepractitioners from providing the fullrange of nursing care.They continueto fight for full recognition and reim-bursement for advanced practicenurses.And they continue to work onthe policies that will implement federalhealth reform on the state level.

“Wildly Successful Advocacy”In 2002, when she came to Maryland,Dean Allan found that health policy-makers “knew that there was a nurseshortage, but they had no idea therewas a nurse faculty shortage.” Nurses inpractice have always been paid higherthan those in academia, she notes, butthe gulf has widened in recent years.So Allan and legislative assistant

Shannon McClellan met with thedeans and directors of nursing pro-grams from around the state, alongwith representatives of the Maryland

Hospital Association (MHA), the stateDepartment of Health and Mental Hy-giene, and other agencies.They alsomet with U.S. Senator Barbara Mikul-ski, who challenged them to come upwith a plan that she could advocate.Together, they persuaded Maryland’s

Health Services Cost Review Com-mission, which sets all hospital rates, tolevy a .1 percent special assessment onhospitals to produce $8 million to $13million a year for the Nurse SupportProgram II.The program is now aboutfive years old and has financed the edu-cation of scores of nurses with master’sdegrees and doctorates from universityand college programs in Maryland.Many now hold faculty positions atnursing schools around the state.“It’s kind of a model for the coun-

try,” Allan says—an example of “wildlysuccessful advocacy.”In addition, the School joined with

others in Maryland to partner withthe MHA to establish the “WhoWillCare?” campaign, aimed at addressingthe nurse shortage by doubling thenumber of students graduating with

Dr. Janice Hoffman (center), assistant dean for the BSN program, and a group of students arrive in Annapolis for Advocacy Day 2011.

BSN degrees. Dean Allan was a mem-ber of the original planning committee.The campaign has raised $17 million

from more than 400 donors, includingthe hospitals themselves, nurses, ven-dors, and other contributors, accordingto Catherine Crowley, EdD,MBA,RN,vice president of the MHA.The money has been used for grants

to subsidize training at nursing schoolsand to help fund space for clinical prac-tice sites.“We’ve seen an increase inthe number of enrolled student andgraduates,” Crowley says.With thegrowing emphasis on primary care inhealth care reform,“these people willbe in increasing demand.”

At the Forefront of Health Care ReformUnlike leaders of other states who arechallenging the federal 2010 PatientProtection and Affordable Care Act incourt, Maryland’s top leadership hasacted quickly to implement the federalhealth care changes.Throughout the spring legislative

session, School of Nursing facultyserved on and testified to the workgroups for the Health Care ReformCoordinating Council chaired byMaryland Lt. Gov.Anthony Brown.The School’s Assistant Dean for the

Master’s Program, Jane Kapustin, PhD,CRNP,BC-ADM,FAANP, testified onbehalf of the Nurse PractitionerAssocia-tion of Maryland (NPAM), a group inwhich she’s long been active and served aspresident.“They asked me what barriers

I foresee to primary care,”Kapustin says.Her response:Maryland needs to

grant nurse practitioners (NPs) paritywith physicians for reimbursement—“equal pay for equal work,” she says,while insurers must recognize the prac-titioners as “credentialed” primary-careproviders.What “really got the atten-tion” of lawmakers, she says, were thecurrent restrictions on what NPs canbill from private insurers and theMedicare program as well.As a longtime NP, Kapustin has

fought many a battle at the State Houseover scope of practice for NPs.“Once you go and once you are met

with success, you want to go again,”says Kapustin. She believes so stronglyin the advocacy role that she requiresstudents in her “role synthesis” courseto attend one or two advocacy sessions,and she urges her students to get in-volved with the NPAM,“so that theybecome future advocates.”In the 2010 session of the state’s Gen-

eral Assembly, the NPAM went throughthe Maryland Code to see what wasallowed to physicians but not to NPs.“We were met with such acceptance.Thelegislators had no issues at all,”Kapustinsays.“They like us, they trust us.”Whilesome competing interests “talk aboutprotecting their wallets,”Kapustin says,“we’re never in Annaplolis for moremoney” but to get barriersremoved to patient care.“Wejust want what’s fair.”

Assistant Professor Ann Mech, JD,RN, who coordinates legal affairs forthe School, also prepared testimonyfor the Health Care Delivery SystemWorkgroup of the Health Care ReformCoordinating Council.“You see thesort of waxing and waning of reim-bursement as an issue and that dependsa lot on the economy, as well as scope ofpractice issues coming to the forefront,”Mech says.Nurses are “certainly gaining more

traction on these issues,” she says, butthey are still continuing efforts to beseen as “co-equal with physicians inprimary care.”The IOM report “gives nursing a

little more gravitas to weigh in onsome of these difficult things,” DeanAllan notes.The report includes a rec-ommendation for the Federal TradeCommission to investigate restraint oftrade on nursing by other professions.“There’s plenty of room for every-

body.We’re going to need everybody,”Allan says.“We need more primary careproviders.One way to have enough is toremove the practice barriers.”

SUPER Students Get in the GameAssociate Professor Catherine Kelleher,ScD,MPH,MS, RN, got her first tasteof political activism working withcommunes and free clinics in the San

Nurse legislators Addie Eckardt (left) and Shirley Nathan-Pulliam meet with students duringAdvocacy Day. Right: Dr. Jane Kapustin regularly testifies at the State House over scopeof practice for NPs.


KIR

STEN

BEC

KER

MA

N


Francisco area in the early 1970s. Shelater worked on international healthprojects, eventually earned public healthdegrees from Harvard and Johns Hopkins,and worked as a health services researcherand in public health policy.Now she teaches health policy and

advocacy to School of Nursing under-graduate and graduate student nurses,such as Abagail Ehret, who took Kelle-her’s semester-long seminar in healthpolicy last year.The course provides anoverview of how health professionalscan influence health policy and in-cludes field trips to agencies in whichnurses are engaged in policy roles.Kelleher is also the advisor to the

School’s SUPER Group (StudentsUnited for Policy, Education and Re-search), a student chapter of Academy-Health, the national health servicesresearch and policy organization.TheSchool is the only nursing school inthe nation with such a chapter; most ofthe other 22 student chapters are atschools of public health.In the past,“nurses too often have

been on the sidelines when it comes topublic policy,” Kelleher says, and theextracurricular SUPER group, whichgets students engaged in discussionswith public policymakers, is one waythat the School has been seeking tochange that.

SUPER also markets itsevents campuswide to getstudents thinking about theinterdisciplinary interplay

under- pinning policy-making and theneed for broad input.Nursing studentsthemselves bring a variety of perspec-tives, including students in the ClinicalNurse Leader (CNL) program whooften serve as SUPER officers.“Everybody in the CNL program

has a bachelor’s degree in somethingother than nursing,” says CNL studentHeather Boulanger, chapter presidentwho plans to go into pediatric oncol-ogy and earn a Doctor of NursingPractice degree.As an undergrad, shehad studied political science and his-tory and had planned on going to lawschool before she turned to nursing.Like Ehret, Faye Koerner took

Kelleher’s health policy seminar and isalso working with the ANA.During thespring semester, she worked on an inde-pendent study project for the ANA ondefining the regulations that surroundthe practice of advance practice nurses(APRNs).This is aimed at encouragingmore third-party payers to includeAPRNs in direct reimbursement.Thehope is that APRNs can use this infor-mation as they discuss provisions withinsurance companies.“The insurers have a lack of knowl-

edge of advanced practice nurses,whatthey are capable of and permitted to do”,says Koerner a nurse practitioner.Work-ing with an economist and nursing

analysts at ANA, she’s assembling “what’salmost becoming a dictionary” of termsand definitions. She says she’s excitedthat her work will help nurse practition-ers with their reimbursement issues.Other students and faculty are also

encouraged to attend the School’s annualAdvocacy Day inAnnapolis,where meet-ings are scheduled with numerous statesenators and delegates (see “This is OurTime,” p. 33). Lawmakers and policy-makers are also invited to the Schoolof Nursing for a half-day program in thefall in which they’re exposed to nursingissues. Last September, those attendingwere shown how students are taughtusing patient simulators and how ad-vanced practice nurses learn to handle arange of illnesses.The visitors were also ex-posed to the kinds of nursing research doneat the School on health care outcomes.Faculty and students get involved in

advocacy issues as well through theirwork with vulnerable and disadvantagedgroups such as the homeless.“We try toembed [advocacy] very much in ourcurriculum,”Allan says.Over the course of 24 years dealing

with nursing issues at the MHA,Cather-ine Crowley has seen a major change inhow nurses tackle public policy issues.Today, she says,“they are vastly moresophisticated, they’re more highly organ-ized, and their message development ismore concise.The lawmakers now seenurses as a major constituency and lookfor their support as well as to hear what[nurses are] saying.”

Left: Dean Janet Allan waits for UMSON to be recognized on the floor of the Senate. Above:Dr. Suzanne Miyamoto, (left) director of government affairs, AACN, meets with Dr. CatherineKelleher and SUPER officers Marissa Hildebrandt, vice president; Oluwatoyin Orunja,treasurer; and Heather Boulanger, president.


This is OUR TimeThe School of Nursing’s annual Advocacy

Day in Annapolis is about winning friends

and influencing the General Assembly.

But for dozens of white-coated students

and faculty who participate, it is also

a teachable moment about how to

advocate for the profession among

people who can shape policies that

affect them.

The 2011 Legislative Day on February

23 began with a pep talk from Barbara

Klein, the university’s associate vice

president for government affairs, who

urged those assembled to make a per-

sonal connection with legislators in their

effort to explain the value of the School

and its programs.

The students then fanned out through

the House and Senate office buildings

for appointments with 65 legislators and,

in some cases, their aides.

The students brought personal and

professional issues to the table. “I’ve

always been one to advocate for people.

When there’s something wrong, I’m the

one to get it fixed,” says Regina Leonard,

a student in the School’s nursing program

at the Universities at Shady Grove who is

president of the Maryland Association of

Nursing Students, chair of the National

Student Nurses Association (NSNA)

Council of State Presidents, and a member

of the NSNA Board of Directors.

Leonard’s particular issue of focus:

“There’s not enough funding for people

who are changing careers,” as many of

her classmates at the School of Nursing

are doing.

Leonard, 33, who holds a master’s

degree in science education, had been

a biology teacher at T.C. Williams High

School in Alexandria, Va. Now, she wants

to be a nurse anesthetist and also has

plans to run for public office some day.

“A lot of people are going back to

nursing as a second career,” agrees

Christy Callahan, 35, who was a dental

assistant for 16 years. She now plans to

go into psychiatric nursing and behav-

ioral health for children. “I was in a car

accident and broke my back and the

nurses were amazing,” Callahan says.

“I decided to do that. I wanted to make

people feel like that.” She believes the

trip to Annapolis “made a difference.

They’re not going to support us unless

we support them,” she says of the

state’s legislators.

Alysia Holsey, 21, was a pre-med

student at the University of Maryland,

College Park before she turned to nursing.

“I felt I wanted to be more hands-on with

patients,” Holsey says.

Jay A. Perman, MD, president of the

University of Maryland, Baltimore, spoke

to the students at lunch. Perman’s mes-

sage: “If these legislators won’t listen

to you, they won’t listen to anyone.

Administrators can talk and talk, but

the people they listen to are students.”

Perman urged the nursing students

to be advocates for patients and advo-

cates for health care.

Delegate Shirley Nathan-Pulliam of

Baltimore County, MAS, BSN ’80, RN, a

native of Jamaica who earned her Bachelor

of Science in Nursing degree at the School

of Nursing after training in England, em-

phasized the need for students to advocate

for underserved populations.

“You need to see yourselves beyond

just students at the University of Mary-

land,” Nathan-Pulliam said. “You have

an obligation to educate legislators.”

With nurses being one of the largest

professions in the United States, she

said, “we should have more power than

we do.”

In her own remarks to the students,

School of Nursing Dean Janet Allan ral-

lied them with the inspirational message:

“This is really our time … a time to really

make a difference”— especially on

health care reform. —Len Lazarick

Top: Regina Leonard. Above: UMSON students take a break from their busy Advocacy Dayschedule to visit the House of Representatives, where UMSON was recognized.

In The FLOW

After earning a master’s degree in nursing with a

focus on gerontology from the University of

Hawaii at Manoa, Korean-born Eun-Shim Nahm,

PhD ’03, RN, FAAN, made the unusual decision

to move to Baltimore. “Can you imagine that?”

she asks. “Baltimore from Hawaii!” But Nahm

had her reasons: “I really wanted to do nursing

informatics, and there was no other place for me

to study.” At that time, the School of Nursing

had the oldest and largest graduate program in

nursing informatics. “And I’m still here,” she

says. “It’s a very good place to be.”

Since 2003,Nahm has been a faculty memberin the nursing informatics master’s specialty andcurrently serves as its program director and as anassociate professor.Here, she explains why her dis-cipline is so important to the future of heath careand why she left such a beautiful place to pursue it.

So what, exactly, is nursing informatics?Good question! Have you heard about health careinformatics? Nursing informatics is a sub-domainof health care informatics. It involves using nursingscience, computer science, and information scienceto manage and communicate data, information,knowledge, and wisdom in nursing practice.That’sthe reason why we offer nursing informatics as aspecialty at the graduate level—it integrates severaldisciplines. It’s a fun domain.

What makes it so interesting?In clinical practice, nurses provide care and thepatient gets better, but in nursing informatics, wesee different aspects of care.We see data flow within

Interview by Joe Sugarman


health care systems, such as from admissions to the financeoffice, and then to external agencies.We help clinicians andadministrators utilize that data to enhance patient care.Whenthe patient is admitted, the admissions office enters their demo-graphic information into an information system, which thenflows to the clinical systems for the entry of treatment data.Finally, all the data goes to the finance department and to thepayers or other regulatory agencies. In nursing informatics, youcan see all those aspects of care on top of clinical care.To me,that’s why it’s so interesting (and fun).

Why is nursing informatics important?Nowadays, health care can’t be sustained without health careinformation technology (HIT). HIT allows clinicians to pro-vide safer and more efficient care, improving the quality ofcare and reducing costs.When I was a staff nurse 15 years ago,I would have to track down paper-based copies of patientrecords.And when I found them, it would take so much timeto read what others wrote. In addition, patients’ informationwas all over the hospital. I would have to read progress notesto understand doctors’ treatment plans for the patient and theadmissions records to see medications, and call the lab to seewhat the most current lab reports were for the patient. Now,you just go to the electronic health record (EHR) and accessall that data right away.That’s certainly helped me in takingcare of my patients.

How do EHRs reduce costs?By using EHRs,many redundancies in heath care can beeliminated. For instance, clinicians do not have to ask a patientthe same questions over and over again. So the patient getsbetter and more coordinated care, which also saves expensiveprofessionals’ time. It can also prevent medical errors, improvingquality of care and reducing costs.You can also eliminate a lotof paperwork.Another benefit:When you have paper-based copies of

medical records, the information is not available remotely.EHRs make patient information available when and where itis needed by gathering records together in one place.And theycan be constantly updated.

What has been the impact of health care reformon informatics?The main goal of health care reform is to make health caremore affordable and more widely available and to hold insur-ance companies more accountable.A vital component of thatis information technology infrastructure and EHRs.

What role has the School of Nursing played in the field?The School of Nursing offered the first nursing informaticsgraduate programs in the world, establishing a master’s programin 1989 and a doctorate in 1991. Since then, we have graduated

more than 500 students from our program—and we’re all overthe world.We’re definitely one of the leading programs world-wide. For more than two decades, we’ve offered the SummerInstitute in Nursing Informatics, which draws 500 to 700attendees annually.Many of our graduates have been national leaders in health

care informatics, such as Dr. Carol Romano, a Rear Admiralwho was an Assistant Surgeon General and chief nurse officerin the U.S. Public Health Service.Many hold important posi-tions at the National Institutes of Health or at the federal level.In hospitals, many serve as chief nursing informatics officers ordirectors of information technology departments.One of themain goals of our program is to prepare our students to beleaders in nursing informatics.

What else can you do with a degree in nursing informatics?Our graduates are working in many areas.The majority workin hospital settings, but many work for vendors—the compa-nies that develop health care information systems.They alsowork for federal agencies or consulting firms.A lot of smallhospitals don’t have resources to implement HIT within theirorganizations, so they hire consulting firms to help them evalu-ate and implement systems. Nowadays, an increasing number ofhospitals have separate nursing informatics departments, as doschools of nursing, where our graduates can teach.

What do you see for the future of this field?It’s very exciting and bright. Nursing informatics has becomea core essential for all levels of nursing education.The averageage of nurses today is 48.Many of them did not learn infor-matics when they were students, so there is a great deal ofeducational need.Information technology has become a national priority,

and our students are in very high demand. In many cases,our graduates write their own job descriptions because theycontribute uniquely to an organization. I don’t think there’s alimit to what a nurse informatician can do.

The 21st annual Summer Institute in Nursing Informaticstakes place at the School of Nursing July 21-23, 2011. Thisyear’s theme is “Real Meaningful Use: Evolution or Revolu-tion?” The keynote speaker is Farzad Mostashari, MD,ScM, deputy national coordinator for the Programs andPolicy Office of the National Coordinator for Health Infor-mation Technology, U.S. Department of Health and HumanServices. For more information and to register, seehttp://nursing.umaryland.edu/sini/index.htm.


1970sBarbara L. Hudson, BSN ’75,spent several years as an Armynurse after graduation, withher first assignment as chargenurse on a 10-bed cardiacstep-down/19-bed Hematol-ogy/Oncology floor. Shethen went to work in theRecovery Room/SurgicalICU (Army) and Cardiotho-racic ICU (civilian). Sheworked for a few years inPsych/Chemical Dependencynursing and then returnedto the ICU in a small, ruralhospital. Hudson recentlymoved to Louisiana andworks for a safety schoolthat conducts drug tests andprovides Occupational Safetyand Health Administrationclasses for maritime and oilindustry workers.

Bill Hergenroeder, BSN ’77,worked as a registered nursefor about five years aftergraduating. Since 1986, hehas been following his passionas a custom woodworker athis shop in Cockeysville,Md.,where he constructs custom-made tables, chairs, head-boards, bookshelves, andbuilt-ins. Hergenroeder wonthe Fine Craft-Body ofWorkAward at the 2010 Fine Fur-nishings Show in Baltimore.He received a commissionfrom architectThomas Suttonto build several small tablesfor an interior renovation ofBaltimore’s Pazo Restaurant.Hergenroeder’s passion inwoodworking is inlay work,also known as parquetry.

Donna Z. Leister, MS ’86, BSN’77, administrator at Future-Care Cherrywood in Reis-terstown, Md., was namedAdministrator of theYear bythe Health Facilities Associa-tion of Maryland. For morethan 20 years, Leister hasprovided care to older Mary-landers and individuals withdisabilities. She was featuredin an HBO television series,The Alzheimer’s Project, thatfocused on the daily work ofher nursing staff, includingshort-term therapy and long-term care with residents atFutureCare Cherrywood.Leister’s doctoral research,“TheVanishing NursingHome Administrator: Stressand Intent to Leave,” focusedon the relationship betweenthe number of hours admin-istrators worked per weekand the intent to leave theirpositions.

Elizabeth Schuyler Niemyer,BSN ’78, was promoted toRear Admiral of the UpperHalf in August 2010. Sheserves as the 23rd Director ofthe U.S. Navy Nurse Corps atthe Bureau of Medicine andSurgery inWashington, D.C.As Director, she leads a teamof 2,840 active, 1,135 reserve,and 2,200 Federal civiliannurses in support of NavyMedicine’s mission.AdmiralNiemyer was commissionedas a Lieutenant in the NavyNurse Corps in 1981. She hasheld executive positions at theNational Naval Medical Cen-ter in Bethesda,Md., where

she served as Director forManaged Care; the NavalHospital in Rota, Spain,where she was ExecutiveOfficer and CommandingOfficer;TRICAREAreaOffice-Europe, where shewas Executive Director; theBureau of Medicine and Sur-gery, where she was AssistantDeputy Chief of Staff for Op-erations; and theTRICARERegional Office-West, whereshe was Regional Director.Admiral Niemyer’s personaldecorations include the De-fense Superior Service Medal,Legion of Merit Medal (twoawards),Meritorious ServiceMedal (two awards), NavyCommendation Medal, NavyAchievement Medal, and theNational Defense Medal.

1980sGloria K. Lamoureaux, Col.(Ret), USAF, NC, MS ’83, re-tired from the U.S.Air Forcein 2000. She is currently aconsultant on Air Force im-plementation of a patient-centered medical home.

Susan K. Newbold, PhD ’06,MS ’83, edited and wrote achapter in the InternationalPerspectives section of Sabaand McCormick’s Essentialsof Nursing Informatics (2011)(5th Ed) NewYork:McGraw-Hill. In addition, she co-editedNursing Informatics:WhereTechnology and CARINGMeet (2011) (4th Ed) NewYork: Springer-Verlag.Newbold is the educationteam leader for the Hospital

Corporation of America,Nashville,Tenn.

Lisa Rowen, DNSc, MS ’86,RN, FAAN, chief nursingofficer, University of Mary-land Medical Center, wasselected by the BaltimoreDaily Record as one ofMaryland’s Top 100Womenfor 2011. Rowen was alsonamed to this list, whichrecognizes outstandingachievement by Marylandwomen, in 2008.

1990sJeffrey Derry, MS ’90, ANP-C,is an adult nurse practitionerand a Captain in the UnitedStates Public Health Services.He currently works at theFederal Correctional Com-plex in Butner, N.C.Derry,his wife Zenaida, and their sixchildren live in Oxford, N.C.

Dana R. Keller Palka, BSN ’93,is employed as a QualityImprovement Coordinator-Emergency Medicine atRhode Island Hospital inProvidence, R.I. She is amaster’s candidate (Classof 2011) in the NursingManagement and PolicyLeadership program atYaleSchool of Nursing.

Michael R. Jones, BSN ’99,successfully defended hisdissertation,“A QuantitativeStudy on Nurses’ Job Satis-faction and Its Effect onRetention,” in the Univer-sity of Phoenix’s School ofAdvanced Studies, for the

Alumni PulseCLASS NOTES ANDNEWS

degree of Doctor of HealthAdministration. Jones willcontinue his professionalpurpose to improve accessand delivery of health care inthe United States throughthe adoption of technology.He currently serves as aprincipal with Dell Services’Healthcare and Life SciencesConsulting Group.

2000sRonnie Ursin, DNP, MS ’07,BSN ’05, RN, completed hisDoctor of Nursing Practicedegree at CaseWesternReserve University in De-cember 2010. He receivedNurse Executive,Advancedcertification (NEA-BC)through the AmericanNurses Credentialing Centerin November 2010. Ursinis currently the NursingDirector for Medicine/Pulmonary atWashingtonHospital Center,Washington,D.C. He was selected as asite visitor for the NationalLeague for Nursing Accred-iting Commission, and hewas accepted into the Masterof Business Administrationprogram at Hood College inFrederick,Md.

Elizabeth Galik, PhD ’07,CRNP, is president-electof the GerontologicalAdvanced Practice NursesAssociation (GAPNA),which represents nearly10,000 certified advancedpractice nurses who workwith older adults in a widevariety of practice settings.

Hilary Goldberg, MS ’10, isemployed as an oncologynurse at the NewYorkUniversity Medical Center.

Erin Elizabeth Compton,MS ’10; Kelly Gaudreau,MS ’10; Samantha Jacobs,MS ’10; and Lauren Thiel,MS ’10, are employed atthe University of MarylandMedical Center.

Jo Hannah Bellis Hurtt,MS ’10, is employed as anoncology RN at SuburbanHospital, Bethesda,Md.

Elizabeth Krug, MS ’10, isworking as an RN on theProgressive Care Unit atSinai Hospital of Baltimore.She continues to manage thecommunity service projectthat she started in May 2010at the GeorgeWashingtonElementary School, whichprovides opportunities forchildren to gain increasedexercise and physical activity.

NAME: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________

MAIDEN (AT TIME OF GRADUATION): _________________________________________________________________________

DEGREE(S) & YEAR(S) OF GRADUATION: ______________________________________________________________________

SCHOOL OF NURSING OR CURRENT SPECIALTY: ________________________________________________________________

HOME ADDRESS: ____________________________________________________________________________________________

CITY:________________________________________ STATE:_______________________ ZIP:___________________________

E-MAIL ADDRESS:____________________________________________________________________________________________

IS THIS A NEW ADDRESS? YES � NO �

PHONE: HOME:________________________ BUSINESS:________________________ MOBILE:________________________

NEWS: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

AlumniShare Your News!

Please send us information about what’s happening in your life–new jobs, promotions, family events, presentations, honors, awards,advanced education/degrees—so we can add your news to the“Alumni Pulse” section of NURSING magazine. Share your news bye-mailing [email protected] or by mailing the form below.Photos are welcome! Your updates will be included as space permits.

PLEASE COMPLETE FORM AND RETURN TO:Cynthia Sikorski, Associate Director of Alumni Relations

University of Maryland School of Nursing, 655 W. Lombard St., Suite 209W, Baltimore, MD 21201Fax: 410-706-0399 | [email protected]

�

IN MEMORIAMAngela Dooley Clark, DIN ’36

Mary J. Custer, DIN ’44

Thelma Baugher Feld, DIN ’48

Bettie Geesaman Kahl, DIN ’48

Elizabeth Warfield Kraus, BSN ’52

Virginia Banes Layfield, DIN ’37

Helen Powers, DIN ’35

Della Riley Rasmussen, DIN ’36

Laurie A. Shinham, MS ’92, BSN ’85

Joyce A. Shivers, BSN ’80

Norma C. Tinker, DIN ’48

Sandra Tossman, BSN ’69

*This list includes notices received by

the University of Maryland School of

Nursing from November 6, 2010 to

March 23, 2011.



A L U M N I P U L S E

2011 AlumniReunion Celebration

THE CLASS OF 1981 - The Class of 1981 enjoyed the largest turnout at thereunion with 19 classmates gathering to reconnect and celebrate.

THE CLASS OF 1966 – The Class of 1966 achieved the highest ReunionClass Gift raised – more than $475,000 in gifts and pledges, includinga $25,000 named endowed scholarship that will be recognized as theClass of 1966 Scholarship and a $450,000 bequest intention.

NEW HERITAGE CLASS – THE CLASS OF 1961 - The Class of 1961celebrated its 50th Anniversary and its induction into the Schoolof Nursing’s Heritage Class. It also attained the highest ReunionClass Gift participation rate – 49 percent!

The annual School of Nursing Alumni Reunion was held Saturday, April 30. More than 140 alumni, faculty,and guests gathered at the School to celebrate class years ending in “6” and “1.” Members of the Class of1961, celebrating their 50th anniversary, were inducted as the new Heritage Class. Visit event photo galleryat: http://nursing.umaryland.edu/alumni.

THE 2011 DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD - Dean Janet Allan (left) andAlumni Council President Deborah Schofield, DNP ’09, MS ’95, BSN ’92(right), present Donna S. Havens, PhD ’91, with the 2011 DistinguishedAlumni Award. Havens is a professor at the University of North Carolinaat Chapel Hill School of Nursing. Her career is a rich blend of roles in nurs-ing, practice, academe, administration, and research. She is one of a fewresearchers who is defining and translating evidence-based practice forexecutive nurse leaders and managers.


Immediately following the devastating earthquake inHaiti in early 2010, EDDIE LOPEZ, MS ’02, traveledto Haiti to provide emergency medical care forthree months.As a nurse specializing in trauma and critical care

and a Lt. Commander in the Navy, Lopez was one ofhundreds of Navy per-sonnel affiliated with theBaltimore-based hospitalship, the USNS Comfort.“We received the call

three days after theearthquake hit, and I had15 hours to get ready,”Lopez recalls.“As soon asthe ship was within heli-copter range of Haiti westarted taking on patients.There were so manycases of spinal injuries,crushed legs, and dehy-dration.Tetanus andrapid rhabdomyolysis

were also huge problems.We even had to deliver ba-bies because mothers were giving birth prematurelydue to stress.”Lopez,who reports directly to theAdmiral of the

Navy, recalls the desperate conditions in which reliefoperations took place.“We worked 16-hour days withlimited supplies. It was disaster medicine,which meansyou just do the best you can with what you have.”Lopez served in the Navy while attending the

School of Nursing full time.After graduation heworked as an intensive care nurse in Iraq and Kuwait.In 2003, he joined the Navy Medical Center inBethesda,Md., where he became an administrator. In2007, he took a position at the Bureau of Medicineand Surgery inWashington,D.C.Lopez is currently pursuing a master’s degree in

national security and strategic studies at the NavalWar College in Newport,R.I.Lopez also acts as an ambassador for the School of

Nursing, recruiting potential students.“In my travelsfor recruiting, I have spoken at a lot of schools, and Ithink the University of Maryland School of Nursinghas a huge advantage over others,” he says.—Peter Krause

As a geriatric nurse practitioner working in long-term care,BETH YARNOLD, MS ’98, BSN ’96,makessure that patients enjoy the highest possible quality oflife for their remaining years.In her 11th year at Forest Hill Health and

Rehabilitation Center in Forest Hill, Md.,Yarnoldworks directly with elderly patients receiving sub-acute rehabilitation or long-term care.Many of herpatients have dementia. One of her specialties ispalliative care.“Palliative care is the aspect of long-term care that

I most enjoy. It ensures that whatever time a patienthas remaining is defined by comfort and dignity. Itserves to avoid procedures that would only prolong alife without quality and, for many, a life of emotionalturmoil. Doing less in those cases is actually doingmore for the well-being of the patient,” saysYarnold.Before joining Forest Hill,Yarnold worked in

Baltimore as a primary and critical care nurse atBayview Medical Center and as a nurse practitionerat St. Elizabeth Homefor Nursing Care.Yarnold says that the

School of Nursing pre-pared her well for herfield.“The School ofNursing has had atremendous influence onmy career. I was able toreceive both my BSNand MS through theSchool’s RN-to-MS fasttrack program,whichwas very flexible. Iworked three days aweek while attendingclass. It was wonderful,”saysYarnold, who has served on the School’s AlumniCouncil Executive Committee since 2003.Yarnold also served as a clinical instructor at the

School for two semesters, working with first-yearnurse practitioner students. She also volunteers as apreceptor for nurse practitioner students.“Giving back to my profession is very important

to me,” saysYarnold.“It is imperative to support theSchool that gave me the opportunity to work in afield I love.”—P.K.

Bringing Comfortto Haiti Less is More, with

Palliative Care

Greetings, UMSON Alumni!In the course of our lives, we come across many things that are puzzling. We seekthe truth, we pursue wisdom, and we endeavor to find answers. Nurses, in particular,want to solve the puzzle, to fix the problem. Nurses effect positive outcomes andnecessary changes.

As a state school without a strong tradition of financial support from alumni andfriends, there is much that is misunderstood and unknown about the importanceof giving back to the School of Nursing.

We offer for your contemplation, on this page and the next:

• some statistics and statements—some are fact, some are fiction• a “wish list” showing how you can make an impact• a favorite of many self-confessed problem-solvers—a crossword puzzle,

this one based on the School of Nursing

Thank you for heeding the call, not only to solve this puzzle, but also to participatein providing solutions to some of the School’s most pressing challenges. Together,we will continue to strengthen the nursing profession and improve the outcomes forcountless patients!

Wishing you and yours a healthy and rejuvenating summer.

Laurette L. HankinsAssociate Dean for Development and Alumni [email protected]

Out of 18,000 alumni, 35 percent give back by donatingmoney to the School of Nursing. (FICTION)The fact is, only 4.7 percent of alumni contributefinancially to the School.

The School of Nursing has two endowed chairs andfive endowed professorships. (FICTION)The fact is, the School has one endowed chair andno endowed professorships.

Tuition and fees cover the cost of a Bachelor of Sciencein Nursing (BSN) student’s education. (FICTION)The fact is, the annual tuition for a BSN studentis $8,000, but it costs the School of Nursing $25,000.

Only 11 percent of the School of Nursing’s budgetcomes from state funding. (FACT)The School depends on support from alumni and friendsto provide what state assistance, tuition, and fees do notcover—critical funding that is needed to continue theteaching, research, and clinical programs essential tothe School’s mission.

L I F E P U Z Z L E S

Make an ImpactDid you know that …

• $50 buys suturing supplies forstudent workshops?

• $250 provides asthma medicationfor the Wellmobile?

• $350 names a seat in the School ofNursing’s auditorium?

• $500 sends two students to aneducational conference?

• $1,000 purchases a heart lung simulatorfor the clinical simulation labs?

• $1,500 funds a scholarship for onestudent for one semester?

• $25,000 endows a named undergraduateor graduate scholarship in perpetuity*?

• $1,000,000 endows a namedprofessorship in perpetuity*?

*May be funded as a multiyear pledge or a planned gift.

Fact or Fiction?

?

?

?

?


ACROSS

2. Each year, UMSON loses qualified students whosimply cannot _______ to attend.

3. Donors can make a _______in helping UMSONachieve excellence in its tripartite mission ofeducation, research, and clinical practice.

5. All gifts to UMSON are _____ deductible.

7. This Governor’s program provides primary healthcare to uninsured Marylanders, and has sufferedfrom deep budget cuts.

11. Contributions to UMSON can be made by check,credit card, life insurance, a deferred incomegift, or a ___________ .

12. These allow additional qualified studentsto enroll at UMSON.

17. Charitable contributions can help fund costs offuel, medications, and these types of educationalmaterials for the Wellmobile program.

18. Contributions from alumni and friends _________updated equipment and supplies to keepsimulation labs functioning at optimal level.

19. Donors of $350 can have a message engravedon the arm this auditorium item.

DOWN

1. Scholarships do this for student-incurred debt.

4. UMSON must provide competitive salaries andenrichment opportunities to retain this group.

6. This is the last name of the founder of UMSON.

8. Donations to support salaries and continuingeducation opportunities will ensure the ________of our faculty.

9. Many UMSON students accrue a significantamount of this: average of $30K undergraduateand $60K for graduate students.

10. Individual donors can fund this type ofresearch project.

13. Simulation labs and equipment must beupdated frequently to keep them ________.

14. UMSON offers courses at this locationin Montgomery Co. _______ Grove.

15. Individuals who make this type of gift becomemembers of the Louisa Parsons Legacy Society.

16. While government funding is importantfor UMSON, there is an increasing needfor private __________.

ANSWERS(Across):2.Afford3.Difference5.Tax7.Wellmobile11.Bequest12.Scholarships17.Outreach18.Provide19.Seat(Down):1.EasetheBurden4.Faculty6.Parsons8.Excellence9.Debt10.Pilot13.Current14.Shady15.Planned16.Support

1.

2.

11.

6.

12.

5.

16.

17.

13. 15.

14.

18.

7. 8.

3. 4.

9. 10.

19.

Problem Solving

6

7


13

12


A L U M N I P U L S E

A Shining Light at the MuseumHERMI NUDO, MS ‘71, BSN ’63, a retired clinical nurse specialist, continues to employ her expertiseby doing consulting work and participating in medical missions to her home country of thePhilippines. She is also involved with various other charities.Nudo recently made a generous pledge to support the School of Nursing’s Living History

Museum, where she serves as a docent. “I appreciate the education I received from the Schoolof Nursing and I like history, so the museum was a great place for me to give,” says Nudo.As an undergraduate at University of Maryland, College Park, Nudo was hesitant to enter the

nursing profession because she wanted a bachelor’s degree from a university instead of thetraditional associate’s degree offered by hospital-based programs. A friend told her about theSchool’s bachelor’s degree program, one of only a few available at the time, and she switchedher major immediately.After receiving her BSN from the School in 1963, Nudo helped develop the University of Mary-

land Medical Center’s (UMMC) R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, introduced and developedthe clinical specialist role at UMMC, and developed the nursing support for UMMC’s first Live Donor Kidney Transplant Program.She later became part of a nursing management team to open the Baltimore Rehabilitation and Extended Care Center.In 2000, Nudo was diagnosed with breast cancer, which led her to another career path as a staff nurse doing home nursing

through the Veterans Administration’s Home Based Primary Care Program. She retired in 2005, having completed a successful careerspanning from the most technical role in a tertiary hospital setting to various roles in the community.Nudo credits the excellent education she received at the School for the successes in her career. “I received such a wonderful

education and had such a successful career that it is important for me to do what I can to give back,” says Nudo. “The more fundingwe have for nursing, the more chances there will be for others to have the same opportunities I did.”—P.K.

Critical Support for a Critical ProfessionSANDRA SCHOENFISCH, MS ’76, who recently retired from her position as Director of theOffice of Public Health Nursing in the Florida Department of Health, recognizes the importanceof directly supporting the nursing profession.“My family has had to deal with a variety of health problems and ailing parents. It became

very clear to me that there is a continuous need for professional nurses. Nurses play a critical rolein so many settings,” says Schoenfisch.By making a generous multiyear pledge and bequest to the School of Nursing, both of which

are unrestricted, Schoenfisch understands the importance of “greatest needs” gifts.“I have confidence that the School will put the money where they need it most. My baccalau-

reate nursing school at American University closed in 1988. Given my concern for nursingeducation, my allegiance is with the University of Maryland School of Nursing,” she says.In addition to her philanthropy, Schoenfisch remains involved with the School by serving on the Board of Visitors.Schoenfisch, who has held teaching positions at George Mason University (1976-1979) and Florida State University (1979-1983),

praises the School of Nursing for preparing her for her career. “I had a really good experience. The faculty worked well with thenurses. They were student advocates and mentors. These qualities are valuable, and I would hope that they will continue to beavailable to nursing students,” says Schoenfisch.“The School and the range of programs offered today are even more exciting. The Clinical Nurse Leader program, integration of

evidence-based practice, and research are needed for the advancement of the nursing profession,” says Schoenfisch. “That is whyI give back.”—Peter Krause


The School of Nursing's Board of Visitors consists of dynamic leaders from both the private and publicsectors, whose contributions of time, knowledge, and funds serve as a cornerstone for sustaining excel-lence in undergraduate and graduate nursing education. At the invitation of the Dean, Board membersserve in an advisory role; communicate the School's messages to the greater Baltimore business andprofessional communities; and partner with the School in strategic fundraising initiatives.

Board of Visitors

Marjorie Stamler Bergemann, CRNALeesburg, Va.John Bing, CRNAThe Center for Cosmetic SurgeryWashington, D.C.Christopher F. CallaghanAdministrative Vice PresidentHealthcare Bank GroupM&T BankBaltimore, Md.

Sonya Gershowitz Goodman, MS ’73Pikesville, Md.Jeanette A. Jones, MS ’70Richmond, Va.Frances Lessans, MS ’85, BSN ’80PresidentPassport HealthBaltimore, Md.Victoria C. McAndrewsCo-Founder, Senior Vice President, and CFOCMB Outsourcing SolutionsBaltimore, Md.Katherine McCullough, MS ’79ConsultantColumbia, Md.

M. Natalie McSherry, JD ‘74Attorney and PrincipalKramon & Graham PABaltimore, Md.Charlene Passmore, MS, BSN ‘77Millersville, Md.Judy Akila Reitz, MS ’76, BSN ’71Executive Vice President and COOThe Johns Hopkins HospitalBaltimore, Md.Sandra A. Schoenfisch, MS '76Tallahassee, Fla.Deborah Schofield, DNP ’09, MS ’95,President, School of Nursing Alumni CouncilBaltimore, Md.

Alan Silverstone, ChairmanIndependent ConsultantPotomac, Md.Trustee, University of Maryland BaltimoreFoundation, Inc.

U N I V E R S I T Y O F M A R Y L A N D S C H O O L O F N U R S I N G

Shaping Practice Through ScholarshipMAKE THE VISION OF DOCTORAL EDUCATION A REALITY.

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) For leaders driving theapplication of scientific evidence to nursing practice

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) For leaders advancing thenursing profession through scholarship and discovery

For information on UMSON Doctoral Programs:DNP - call 410-706-7522 or e-mail [email protected] - call 410-706-3147 or e-mail [email protected]

ht tp : / /nurs ing .umary land.edu


COURTNEY ANN KEHOE THOMAS, BSN ’66, has alwaysbeen at the forefront of nursing.Thomas spent most of her career in the field of

public health as a public health nurse and nursepractitioner. She served for many years as Director ofChild Health Programs for the State Health Depart-ment of Colorado and recently retired from herposition as nurse consultant for Colorado’s Nurse-Family Partnership Program. As one of the first nursepractitioners in the nation, Thomas has been activeon clinical, professional, and political fronts inspearheading changes to nursing practice andnursing statutes in Colorado and nationwide. Shehas been recognized at local, state, and nationallevels for her contributions to her profession.

Thomas says she feels fortunate to have received her education at the University ofMaryland School of Nursing at a time when many nurses were still entering practice fromnon-academic schools of nursing.“Having a baccalaureate degree allowed me to take advantage of the opportunity to

become a nurse practitioner in the very early days of that new role,” she says. “Nurses likeme have blazed a trail for others and facilitated changes to nursing practice that have notonly benefited nurses, but also our patients. As the largest group of health care providers,the growth and development of our own practice as nurses has brought about significant,lasting, and positive impact on how health care is delivered in this nation.”Thomas, along with her husband Jim (whose mother was a public health nurse), is giv-

ing back to the School of Nursing because, “I have strong ties to the University of Mary-land through my family and my own experience there. I’m a proud graduate of the Schooland it makes sense for me, when the time comes, to leave whatever I have to the Schooland the nurses who will be there to serve as change agents and to carry the banner forall of us who helped to lead the way! I firmly believe that all professional nurses have aresponsibility to continue to build on our past struggles and successes to assure the ongo-ing visibility and leadership of professional nurses as well-prepared and well-qualifiedcomponents of health care delivery. I can think of no better way to do this than to do mypart to assure that future members of the profession are able to participate in the type ofhigh-quality nursing education that is the tradition of the University of Maryland Schoolof Nursing.”

Create a Lasting Legacy THE LOUISA PARSONSLEGACY SOCIETYIN GRATITUDE TO THE MEMBERSOF THE LEGACY SOCIETY

Robert AgetonJanet D. AllanAnonymousAnonymousFloraine B. ApplefeldEstate of Carolyn V. ArnoldZabelle S. Howard BeardAnn Bennett, MS ‘69Marjorie Stamler BergemannJean L. Bloom, DIN ‘46Mary J. BrewerEstate of E. L. Bunderman, DIN ‘31Ann Ottney CainEstate of Dorothy C. Calafiore, BSN ‘51Shirley E. Callahan, DIN ‘52Avon B. ChisholmEstate of Gladys B. and

Lansdale G. ClagettEstate of Bonnie L. Closson, BSN ‘61Stephen CohenRegina M. Cusson, MS ‘79Celeste A. Dye, BSN ‘66Mary H. Gilley, DIN ‘44Lura Jane Emery, MS ‘79Carolyn Cook Handa, BSN ‘63Barbara Heller-WalshMarie L. HesselbachEstate of Kjerstine K. Hoffman, DIN ‘47Margaret H. Iles, DIN ‘53Catherine Ingle, BSN ‘61Mary McCotter JacksonJune Jennings, BSN ’47 and

E.R. JenningsJeanette Jones, MS ‘70Jean W. Keenan, DIN ‘48Debbie G. Kramer, MS ’79, BSN ‘75Cynthia P. Lewis, BSN ’58 and

Jack C. LewisMargaret A. McEnteeEstate of Wealtha McGunnMyrna Mamaril, MS ‘93Estate of Lois MarriottBeverly Meadows, MS ’84, BSN ‘69Joan L. Meredith, BSN ‘62Sharon L. Michael, BSN ‘71Nancy J. Miller, BSN ‘73Patricia Gonce Morton, PhD ‘89, MS ‘79Lyn Murphy, MS ’01 and John MurphyAnn E. Roberts, BSN ‘93Linda E. Rose, PhD ‘92Amelia Carol Sanders, DIN ‘53Patricia A. Saunders, BSN ‘68Phyllis J. Scharp, BSN ‘50Sandra Schoenfisch, MS ‘76Ruth C. Schwalm, MS ‘66Beverly SeeleyDeborah K. Shpritz, MS ’82, BSN ’78

and Louis ShpritzBetty Lou Shubkagel, BSN ‘54Estate of Anna Mae SlacumEstate of Marie V. Stimpson,

MS ’89, BSN ‘84Courtney Ann Kehoe Thomas, BSN ‘66Virginia D. Thorson, BSN ‘55Norma C. Tinker, BSN ‘48Martha C. Trate, BSN ‘48Joella D. Warner, BSN ‘64Estate of Patricia Yow

Whether you wish to support scholarships, research, faculty positions, orother areas of need, there are several methods by which you can benefit theSchool of Nursing, future generations of nursing students, and patients.A planned gift can be designed to achieve your financial and philanthropicgoals and also makes you eligible for membership in our Louisa ParsonsLegacy Society.

Some popular types of planned gifts include charitable bequests and life income gifts.If you would like to learn more about making a planned gift, please contact us. Weare available to work with you and your advisors to create a personalized plan.

Laurette L. HankinsAssociate Dean for Developmentand Alumni RelationsUniversity of Maryland School of [email protected]

Thomas F. Hofstetter, JD, LLMSenior Director of Planned GivingUniversity of Maryland, [email protected]


is done by a trained communityhealth worker. Everyone shiftsresponsibilities to expand thecapacity of the system as a whole.”The program focuses on

strengthening nurse capacity in areaswhere their knowledge is weak,including pathophysiology, pharma-cology, and physical assessment.“What we are giving them is theknowledge and the expertise to goback to their communities and givecare to the people who are most inneed,” says O’Neil,who serves onthe 11-member faculty workgroupthat developed the curriculum.The second part of the strategy,

designed to address long-termneeds for capacity building inNigeria, involves establishment of amaster’s level family nurse practi-tioner program that would preparenurses to practice in a wide varietyof settings and serve as nurse educa-tors, clinical leaders, and mentors. Itwould be the first nurse practitionerprogram in the country.But changes this major don’t

happen overnight.They take time,planning, and lots of collaboration.At a recent meeting of the Schoolof Nursing’s faculty work group,Omolola Irinoye, PhD,RN,dean ofnursing at Obafemi Awolowo Uni-versity, andAgnes Anarado, dean ofnursing at the University of Nigeria,

Enugu campus, shared details abouttheir schools’ infrastructure andanswered questions.During theirtwo-week visit, the deans had manyopportunities to meet with theircollaborators in person, tour theSchool and its facilities, and gaina fuller understanding of nursingeducation at one of the top nursingschools in the United States.“Being here made this [partner-

ship] more real,”Anarado explains.“We could see the disparities inour institutions and further realizethe benefits of our working to-gether. There is no way we couldhave met so many people in somany different units or have beenable to act one-on-one with themif we hadn’t come.”Despite the differences between

her nursing school and the Univer-sity of Maryland School of Nursing,the visit cemented Irinoye’s under-standing of how much the institu-tions have in common.“You are ourpartners,” she told the faculty workgroup.“You share our vision.”

�WHEN THEIR TIME IN

Baltimore concluded,the visiting deans from

Nigeria and nurses from Haitireturned to their universities and

hospitals, eager to carry on theirwork.“When you leave your coun-try and come to another country toget skills and new knowledge, youhave to use many strategies whenyou return and find where thingscan be improved,”Corioland says.“The work is not over.”At the School of Nursing, the

Office of Global Health’s efforts tobuild global nurse capacity are alsofar from being fully realized. In themonths ahead, the office will beworking with Haiti’s Ministry ofHealth to establish certificate pro-grams for nurses in areas includingtrauma and critical care, surgery,and rehabilitation.And as the pri-mary health care specialist curricu-lum moves through the approvalprocess in Nigeria, nursing schoolsfrom other parts of the world arecontacting Ogbolu; they are eagerto explore the curriculum as a wayto help meet their population’shealth needs.“This is a very focusedrole that we are trying to take,”Johnson says.“We are not trying totake on all of the world’s problems,but we are focusing on how we canbuild the capacity of nurses whereit’s needed most.”And given the size of the world,

and the needs that exist in so manycountries, it is an effort that requiresnot only the expertise and collabo-ration of the School’s faculty,but also numerous partnershipswith many countries, institutions,and organizations worldwide.“We are not just training nurses

for ourselves, we are training themto work anywhere,” says Anarado,the University of Nigeria Deanof Nursing.“You don’t lose any-thing by lighting another candlewith your own.You make theenvironment brighter.”

Rachel Hitt (right), assistant director ofthe UMSON simulation labs, accompaniedby Yolanda Obgolu (back), give Nigeriannursing school deans Omolola Irinoye(left) and Agnes Anaradoa a tour of theneonatal simulation lab.

(continued from page 24)

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

Nonprofit Org.U.S. Postage

PAIDBaltimore, MDPermit #7012

655 West Lombard StreetBaltimore, MD 21201http://nursing.umaryland.edu

SUMMER INSTITUTEIN NURSING INFORMATICSReal Meaningful Use:

Evolution or Revolution

Conference: July 20-23

Preconference Tutorials: July 18-20

For information, call

410-706-3767 or go to:

http://nursing.umaryland.edu

EDMUNDS LECTURE

October 5


410-706-3767 or go to:


DEAN’S DISTINGUISHEDFRANKLIN LECTURE

November 3


410-706-3767 or go to:


Maryland Nurses,Maryland Pride!School of Nursing students andfaculty members gathered atthe Great Seal of Maryland dur-ing Advocacy Day in Annapolisin February. More than 50 rep-resentatives from the Schoolmet with legislators to encour-age them to support fundingfor Loan Assistance RepaymentPrograms and to continue tosupport the Governor’s budgetrequest for the University ofMaryland, Baltimore. (For moreon Advocacy Day, see p. 33.)

FPO

Documents

N UNIVERuSITYrOsF MiAnRYLAgND...Joe Sugarman Spring/Summer2011 VolumeV,IssueI University of Maryland NURSING is a publication of the University of Mary - land School of Nursing.The