FRONTIER NURSING UNIVERSITY | VOL. 92, NUMBER 4 | WINTER 2018
QUARTERLY BULLETIN
Jean Fee Tribute Page 2 “Wherever you work, look around for people you might learn something from. It could be a nursing assistant. It might be a doctor or it might be the cleaning women. Just remember, you can learn something from almost everyone.” - Jean Kerfoot Fee Frontier Nursing University • Quarterly Bulletin 1
Past Quarterly Bulletin covers Frontier Nursing University
Susan Stone, DNSc, CNM, FAAN, FACNM President Julie Marfell, DNP, FNP-BC, FAANP Dean of Nursing Anne Cockerham, PhD, CNM, WHNP-BC, CNE Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Tonya Nicholson, DNP, CNM, WHNP-BC, CNE, FACNM Associate Dean of Midwifery and Women’s Health Lisa Chappell, DNP, FNP-BC Associate Dean of Family Nursing Joan Slager, CNM, DNP, CPC, FACNM DNP Director Jacquelyne Brooks, DNP, MS ADN-MSN Bridge Director Michael Steinmetz, CPA, CMA, CSCA Vice President of Finance Shelley Aldridge, BA Chief Operations Officer Denise Barrett, MBA Chief Advancement Officer Maria Valentin-Welch Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Angela Bailey, MA Associate Director of Development and Alumni Relations Michael Claussen, BA Development Officer Beulah Couch Human Resources/Site Manager Barb Gibson Facilities Manager
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Contents Features Who was Jean Fee? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 PMHNP’s First Class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Jonas Scholar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Alumni Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9 Courier Corner and Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . 10 Wendover Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 In Memoriam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Tributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Trustees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Board of Directors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Your Gifts at Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Invest in FNU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
P.O. Box 528 • 195 School Street Hyden, KY 41749 FNU@frontier.edu • 606.672.2312
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New Year, New Look Greetings! Notice anything different about this edition of the FNU Quarterly Bulletin? We certainly hope so! The first Quarterly Bulletin was published in 1925. Since then, the publication has remained largely unchanged, maintaining its 5.5x8.5-inch, black-and-white look for nearly a century.
Susan Stone, FNU President
With the new campus in Versailles, 2018 promises to be a historic year of change at FNU and with it comes the Quarterly Bulletin’s exciting new look. Modern printing technology allows us to print and distribute this larger format, full-color version at virtually the same expense as the former version. Now we can share colorful pictures, larger graphics and interesting stories in an easy-to-read, pleasing-to-the-eye format. Regardless of the design, however, the Quarterly Bulletin always has been and always will be the historic record of Frontier Nursing University. Just as the decision to move to the new campus came only after much discussion and evaluation, the change to the new Quarterly Bulletin was carefully considered with the goals to bring about a more modern-looking publication while maintaining the content that chronicles FNU’s ongoing story and impact. Like anything new, this version of the Quarterly Bulletin promises to be tweaked and changed as we seek to make it the best it can be. We appreciate your support and welcome your feedback and suggestions. Best wishes to you all as we enter this exciting new year. May be it be a blessed one for you, your family, our communities and Frontier Nursing University.
Susan Stone, CNM, DNSc., FACNM, FAAN Susan Stone, CNM, DNSc., FACNM, FAAN Frontier Nursing University • Quarterly Bulletin 1
Feature: Who was Jean Kerfoot Fee? By Kitty Ernst
Throughout these years Jean maintained a close, hands-on relationship with her alma mater, the Frontier Nursing Service and School of Midwifery & Family Nursing. In recent years she has shared her long life of clinical experience by volunteering to precept and mentor Frontier’s family nursing students and provide real time mentoring and rural health care delivery experience for couriers. When needed she would house and feed them in her home to facilitate and enrich their experience.
How did this quiet, full of grace, unassuming woman become involved with Frontier Nursing University? She was born in 1937 and grew up with her sister and brother miles away on her family’s ranch in rural western Alberta Canada. Her early education was what we now call “home schooling” with correspondence courses. Subsequently, she rode six miles each way on horseback to attend the small high school established for the ranch children of the area. On finishing high school, she trained to qualify as a Registered Nurse in the Calgary General Hospital (CGH) nurse training program.
Over the past fifteen years Jean has volunteered to present a story-telling slideshow to the new students on the Jean Kerfoot Fee evening of the day they arrive at Frontier. This meant driving at night from her home April 29, 1937-January 4, 2018 In 1958, at age 21, Jean left CGH and her in McKee to have dinner with the new home in Alberta to travel to the mountains students and present the history of the FNS of Eastern Kentucky and prepare for becoming one of those through her own experience and photographs. Most recently celebrated “nurses on horseback” at the Frontier Nursing Service this happened up to 12 times each year. Her commitment to she had read about. In 1959 she completed her midwifery introducing students to the mission of both the FNS and the training at the Frontier School of Midwifery and began her work FNU was superseded only by her gentle but powerful talent as a FNS District Nurse-Midwife. There she fell in love with for teaching through the art of storytelling. Jean has attended Philip Fee, a young barber who followed her when she returned almost all of the more than one hundred orientations at Frontier to Alberta ‘to think things over”. They were married there in Nursing University since 2002. She challenged the students to be 1962. For 10 years they remained in Alberta to raise their two open to learning as they build their relationships for practice in children while Phillip resumed his barbering business and Jean their home communities. worked for the local health department and on the staff of Turner Valley District Hospital. In an interview about her experiences Jean has been quoted as saying, “Wherever you work, look around for people you might In 1973 at age 35, the Fee family returned to Eastern Kentucky learn something from. It could be a nursing assistant. It might be settling in McKee near to their Fee kin. There Jean applied her a doctor or it might be the cleaning women. Just remember, you blend of experience in both public health and hospital acute care can learn something from almost everyone.” working in the private practice of a local Family Physician and for a short spell at Manchester Hospital. The formal education for Everyone who came in contact with Jean learned something from Family Nurse Practitioners was just beginning to be developed her and took away a piece of her dedication to nursing and the at the Frontier School of Midwifery when, in 1980, Jean’s care of others. We are truly blessed to have had her in our lives for knowledge, skills and experience were accepted for Certification so many years. She was greatly loved and will be greatly missed. as one of the first FNPs licensed by the state of Kentucky. Jean continued to practice as a Family Nurse Practitioner at the non-profit White House Clinics in McKee until she retired from • In 2009 the FNU Alumni honored Jean Fee with “Distinguished Service to clinical practice. Alma Mater” award. • In 2013 Frontier Nursing University recognized her lifelong dedication to the profession of nursing by awarding her an honorary Doctor of Nursing Practice degree • In 2014 Jean Fee was named one of 75 honorees during 75th anniversary of the Frontier Nursing University.
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Feature: PMHNP’s First Graduating Class F
NU launched its Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) program in January of 2017 and proudly presents the first two graduates of the program. Kelly England, DNP, FNP-C, PMHNP graduate has accepted a position at an in-patient facility in Oro Valley, Ariz. Lisa Uribe, MSN, FNP-BC, PMHNP graduate has accepted a position at Palo Verde Behavioral Health Hospital in Tucson, Ariz. England and Uribe are examples of the program’s early success and potential, thanks to talented students and the expertise of the FNU faculty. Both students entered as post graduate students as they both already were Family Nurse Practitioners. This allowed them to complete the program in just one year. “‘It has been an absolute pleasure to guide and educate our PMHNP students,” says Dr. Tracy Hicks, DNP. “The program is well structured with a wealth of information accessible to the students. The hands-on involvement with clinical sites is an asset to the program.” While we celebrate these first graduates, many more will soon follow in their footsteps. The January 2017 class started with 19 students. Now, FNU is accepting 40 students per each quarterly term and there is a waitlist to be accepted to the program. FNU has PMHNP students in 40 different states. The feedback from students has been overwhelmingly positive not only for the education they receive, but also for the confidence they gain as they implement their training in their daily work.
“As this was my first completely online course as well as my first online school I wasn’t sure what to expect. I wasn’t sure if I could expect the same education as I had previously received in a traditional school. I must say that I believe I have received a much better education.” – PMHNP student Angela Astleford
“I am more confident in my ability to care for patients with mental illness after taking the core courses,” says Rachel Houser, a student in the program. FNU is committed to supporting students like Houser with an excellent faculty. Growth of the program requires growth of the PMHNP faculty. Current faculty have expressed their pride in leading the program and in the success of the students. “It has been my honor to develop and teach in the PMHNP program,” says Dr. Heather Shlosser, DNP, FNP-BC, PMHNP-BC. “I have the pleasure of working with excellent faculty and brilliant motivated students every day who are all striving to optimally meet the needs of the behavioral health population.”
Class 155, FNU’s first PMHNP Class.
One such student is Amy Dendinger, who has been inspired to open her own practice. “I have decided that I will open and own my own holistic women and children’s psychiatric practice and pursue my DNP at FNU. I am so excited to meet this challenge,” Dendinger says.
Dr. Hedy Rougeau, DNP, a PMHNP faculty member at FNU, says that the already strong program will continue to grow and improve thanks to the expertise of the faculty and dedication of the students. “The PMHNP program The first PMHNP Clinical Bound group (l-r): Lisa Uribe, Kelly prepares students very well to England, Marli Parobek, Hope Smith, Amy Whistler. become PMHNPs,” she says. “The PMHNP faculty support each other and we work closely together to continuously find ways to improve our PMHNP program.”
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Feature: Jonas Scholar Editor’s Note: In 2006, philanthropists Barbara and Donald Jonas founded the Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence, a first-of-its-kind philanthropic program dedicated to advancing the nursing profession. The Jonas Scholars program has had a significant impact on students of Frontier Nursing University. Two members of the 2012-2014 cohort received $30,000 in scholarship support, four members of the 2014-16 cohort of students received $50,000 in scholarship support, and four more students in the 2016-18 cohort are receiving $70,000 in scholarship awards. That’s a total of $150,000 impacting 10 FNU students.
To honor this tremendous support and our students who have earned these scholarships, we are profiling the FNU alumni who were named Jonas Scholars and the work they are doing now. Here is the first of those profiles.
Jonas Scholar: Lana Bernat, MSN, CMN, DNP Class 22
As a Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM) at Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, it might be common for Lana Bernat to tell her patients to relax and get some rest. Good advice, for sure, but strange words for a woman who seems to do anything but relax. Even at an early age, growing up on a dairy farm in Kensal, North Dakota, Bernat knew she wanted to be a nurse. “I wanted to be a nurse for as long as I can remember, perhaps 5 or 6 years old,” Bernat says. “My grandmother used to stay with us for a few months out of every year. She had me help her with her insulin shots and her prosthetic leg. I loved it. When I was eight, I had a tonsillectomy. In those days, it still was an overnight stay in the hospital. I had the kindest nurse whose smile just made me feel comfortable, and I remember thinking I wanted to be like her when I grew up.” Bernat graduated from North Dakota State University in 1996 with a Bachelor of Science in nursing and was commissioned as a U.S. Army Nurse Corps officer, serving in the field of women’s health. For the past 22 years, she has juggled professional and family life. Bernat and her husband, who is also in the Army, have six children, ranging in ages from 5 to 19. As their family grew, Bernat transferred back to civilian life in 2000, earning a Master of Science in Leadership in Healthcare Systems from Regis University in 2005. She worked in various obstetrics positions in the Army, Air Force and civilian hospitals until 2009. They moved to New York where she took a position in outpatient case management, eventually becoming chief of a quality management department. “My résumé looks like I was running from the law,” Bernat jokes. “Such is the life of a military spouse.” In 2013, after the birth of their sixth child, Bernat completed midwifery education at Frontier Nursing University. She subsequently completed her DNP at FNU in 2017.
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“During my many years as an obstetric nurse, I met many Frontier CNM alumni,” Bernat says. “FNU has an incredibly strong reputation in the midwifery community, and I saw this lived out in my CNM colleagues. I did not even consider applying elsewhere.” Bernat says that the Jonas Scholarship was crucial to her being able to complete her DNP. “The Jonas Scholarship was an opportunity that came up during our move to Hawaii,” Bernat says. “When I first moved here, I was unable to work right away due to being in the transition between RN and APRN. The scholarship provided funding for tuition and childcare, and I was able to start working as a volunteer nurse-midwife. My volunteer work turned into my work site for my doctoral project. Without the Jonas Scholarship, I may not have been able to complete my DNP. I also met some amazing scholars at the Jonas Leaders Conference. I know that I have not even tasted the full impact yet. There are projects and needs that are sure to arise in my journey and it will be possible because I had the opportunity to be a Jonas Scholar.” Today, Bernat is applying her wealth of experience and education to help people in Hawaii. Despite its reputation as a paradise, Bernat explains that it’s not so for many of its residents, especially when it comes to access to healthcare. Many of the smaller islands do not have adequate healthcare, Bernat says, and travel to healthcare is not always easy. Hawaiian preterm birth rates have consistently been over 10 percent. Even on the big island of Oahu, women might have to drive an hour or ride the city bus for two hours to see their healthcare provider in Honolulu.
Bernat says that her experiences -- varied and widespread as they have been over the years -- have led her to exactly where she wants to be. “Do you see now, how this journey was meant to go this way?” Bernat says. “Now I am living the dream as a CNM who is uniquely prepared to help drive quality from the point of care to the organizational level. My combined education and experience has provided me with a rich and diverse perspective of healthcare systems. As a result, I have more confidence as a clinician.” Nursing professionals like Bernat are the kind of people the Jonas Scholarships are intended to support. Those nurses who are making a difference in their communities and taking leadership roles in improving healthcare. Bernat, who met the Jonas family at the Jonas Leaders Conference this past October, recognizes the value and impact the Jonas Scholarships have for her and so many others. “Words of thanks seem very inadequate when you reflect on the incredible contributions from the Jonas family to our nursing profession,” Bernat says. “Think about the number of patients and communities touched by the Jonas family. I am one small person, but as members of this amazing Jonas community, we are making a difference everywhere. I am humbled, honored, and grateful to have a place in the family. I feel a sense of responsibility to carry on their commitment for excellence by continuing my work in quality and, in the future, nursing education.”
“Access to care cannot be defined in terms of clinic availability or a percentage of insured residents. Access to care has to be evaluated through a broader lens, looking at barriers such as transportation and cultural confidence in healthcare professionals,” Bernat says. “We have to meet patients where they are and look for opportunities to develop partnerships within the community to improve population health.”
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Alumni Spotlight during her time in the program became somewhat of a lifeline for her as she pursued her degree. During her schooling, she faced challenges, like she feels all students do, but worked daily to balance her roles as a mom, wife, sister, daughter, student, friend, and community member. “Honestly, this journey would have never been completed was it not for my FNU community and my family and friends that never doubted me and stuck by me through all my high’s and low’s,” said Cami.
Cami Kesler Cami Kesler, MSN, FNP serves a population most may think of as well-off, suburban,with good access to health care. But Cami sees her Utah Valley patients as a community facing a different but very real set of challenges that she can address every day with her degree from FNU. After focusing on maternity care working in a hospital Labor & Delivery unit for 12 years, Cami enrolled in FNU’s community-based graduate program to become a Family Nurse Practitioner. She works at Utah Valley Pediatrics, serving patients from zero to 19 years of age. Her focus areas include newborn care, female teenage health, and mental health education, which in her community are relevant and concerning issues. In her role, she believes in creating provider-family relationships when it comes to creating health care management plans. “All families should feel heard in their concerns, not simply directed in what to do,” said Cami. “They should feel safe in their personal choices, not forced into what is ‘right’.” The Utah Valley community, though generally engaging in positive lifestyles and boasting a low obesity rate, sees a need in the area of teenage mental health and sex education.
“A majority of my work is aimed at making a difference before a patient’s teenage years. Then I really focus during adolescent years to make encounters individualized to the needs of my patient and family,” said Cami. “My goal with this age population is to also bridge gaps in faith when associated with physical and mental health.” Cami built a solid network through her Frontier connections, and FNU’s distance education model was a great benefit to her as a wife and mother of five children. Students and staff she interacted with
Cami plans to continue her journey as a relationship builder, a creator of a safe clinical environment, and a resource for advice and insights that her patients desperately need. She recently started a social media page on Instagram because she saw it as an opportunity to create one more line of communication and education with her families and patients. “Instilling health care practices and prevention knowledge in young patients is becoming a dream fulfilled for me,” said Cami. Frontier thanks Cami for her dedication to serving and educating families and young patients.
“Honestly, this journey would have never been completed was it not for my FNU community and my family and friends that never doubted me and stuck by me through all my highs and lows.”
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– Cami Kesler
Alumni Notes Hutson Joins Shenandoah Medical Center Certified NurseMidwife Jona Hutson, FNU DNP Class 15, began seeing patients at Shenandoah Medical Center in November 2017. “I am excited to be back at Shenandoah Medical Center and look forward to providing the women of Southwest Iowa with individualized care and healing using the best evidence available,” said Hutson. “My number one goal is a healthy mom and healthy baby. My second goal is to provide the family with the birth experience they desire.”
FNU Alum Makes News with New Year’s Deliveries Certified Nurse Midwife, Alysha Walker, MSN, FNU Nurse Midwifery, Class 65, of Lincoln Medical Group Women’s Center attended the births of both the last baby of 2017 and the first baby of 2018 just 15 hours apart at Lincoln Medical Center in Fayetteville, Tenn. The hospital’s last baby of 2017 was born at 6:44 in the evening on December 31st. Fayetteville’s first baby of 2018 arrived at 9:13 a.m. on January 1st.
FNU Alumni and Faculty Contribute to Book of the Year Award Winner Frontier Nursing University (FNU) is excited to announce that the book, Freestanding Birth Centers: Innovation, Evidence, Optimal Outcomes, partially written by several FNU faculty members and alumni, was awarded first place in the 2017 American Journal of Nursing (AJN) Book of the Year Awards in Maternal-Child Health. Since 1969, AJN has published an annual list of the best in nursing publishing. The AJN Book of the Year program is a prestigious competition that garners the attention of the medical world, as well as librarians and universities. Freestanding Birth Centers: Innovation, Evidence, Optimal Outcomes, is written for graduate students and professionals and explores freestanding birth center models in the U.S. from the 1970’s to present. It provides a thorough history of the birth center movement and serves as a resource for upto-date evidence on clinical and cost outcomes while also covering all issues involved in implementing and operating a U.S. birth center. The textbook is published by Springer Publishing and is the first of its kind. It was co-authored by Linda Cole, DNP, RN, CNM, Assistant Professor, Course Coordinator, Course Faculty at Frontier, and Melissa Avery, PhD, RN, CNM, FACNM, FAAN. A number of Frontier-educated women, including Alumni Alisha Wilkes, DNP, CNM, ARNP and Autumn Versace Vergo, MSN, CNM, CPM, as well as alumna and current Frontier Course Faculty Jill Alliman, CNM, DNP, contributed to chapters pertaining to their medical and professional specialties. FNU Senior Instructor Kathryn Schrag, MSN, CNM, FNP, co-authored the book’s first chapter, Organizing for Change: History, Pioneers, and the Formation of a National Organization. Diana Jolles, CNM, MSN, FACNM, PhD(c), a Frontier instructor and Course Coordinator, also made contributions to the new book. The foreword was co-written by Ruth Watson Lubic, an FNU Trustee, with Kitty Ernst, CNM, FCH, FACNM, instructor and Mary Breckinridge Chair of Midwifery at Frontier.
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Notes FNU Celebrates National Midwifery Week in NYC By Angela Bailey, MA, Associate Director of Development and Alumni Relations A group from Frontier Nursing University (FNU) thoroughly enjoyed participating in several events in New York City celebrating and supporting the work of midwives in honor of National Midwifery Week, October 1-7. FNU aimed to bring attention to our country’s high rates of maternal death and injury and the vital role that nurse-midwives play in filling this healthcare gap.
Today Show Cameo
FNU RCF Dwynn Golden with Today Show Host Hoda Kotb
On Friday, Oct. 6, Frontier Nursing University (FNU) staff, students and faculty joined the outside audience at the “Today Show” in New York City to promote awareness of the rising U.S. maternal mortality rates and National
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Midwifery week. Faculty member and alumnus Dwynn Golden dressed in traditional FNS uniform while other attendees carried “babies” to draw attention to the issues.
New York Case Presentation Day
Later in the day, 10 participants, including both nurse-midwifery and nurse practitioner students, three alumni and one preceptor from Mt. Sinai/Beth Israel, took part in our New York Case Presentation Day. Case Management Days are seminars organized by the
Regional Clinical Faculty (RCF). They provide opportunities for group learning and networking within the region. Students completing their clinical practicum present cases to facilitate group discussion of management options and to promote the pathways of critical thinking.
Miles for Midwives 5K FNU Regional Clinical Faculty Dwynn Golden and Mary Jones, along with staff member Angela Bailey, attended the 2017 Miles for Midwives in Brooklyn, NY on October 7. The annual 5K Fun-Run and Birth Fair brings together midwives, families and the greater birth community for a day devoted to celebrating midwives and community wellness. This year, more than 200 attendees also raised money for those suffering in Puerto Rico. Several FNU students and alumni attended the event, including: Jocelyn Baker, Katie Sigler and Rebecca Feldman (Nurse-Midwifery Graduates). Current students Alexandra Moskaluk and Jessica Couper also attended, along with Jessica’s mother.
Operation FNS Nurse Gift Delivery
FNU Coat Drive Brings Warmth for the Winter FNU faculty and staff held a coat drive, collecting coats for donation in Leslie County. FNU also purchased 35 new coats to be distributed by the Leslie County Cabinet for Families to Leslie County children.
Thanks to the generosity of donors to the Frontier Christmas and Children’s Fund, Frontier was able to provide Christmas gifts and a celebration for the children of Leslie County Headstart. Operation FNS Nurse Gift Delivery was carried out on December 14 at Leslie County Headstart. Austyn Caudill, FNU VISTA Volunteer, dressed in the Frontier nursing uniform to deliver a gift and two books written by a former Courier to each child in the program. The event included cake, ice cream and reading time for the kids.
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Courier Corner and Spotlight She found through these visits and her other experiences that the people in Leslie County were some of the most genuine she had ever met. It was clear that many of them didn’t have much, but they always offered what they had, most often in the form of a delicious hot meal.
Celeste Lindahl Halcomb, PA
Celeste developed such strong relationships during the Courier Program that she requested to serve one of her clinical rotations during her Physician Assistant training in Leslie County. Still passionate about the rural community, she took a job with the Frontier Nursing Service after graduating and moved to Leslie County in the summer of 2008.
Celeste Halcomb, PA first found out about the Courier Program at Frontier Nursing University (FNU) through her health professions advisor while attending Allegheny College in Pennsylvania. She had an interest in rural medicine and working in an underserved area, ideas consistent with the values and opportunities that the Courier Program offered. With a desire to form partnerships between medical providers and the community, Celeste started the program in the summer of 2004.
During the four years Celeste lived and worked in Leslie County, she dedicated herself to improving the health of residents. Namely, she expanded upon “Campaign for Safe Kids” to create Child Health Day, an activity day held at each elementary school that encompassed a range of activities promoting healthy eating, fitness, hygiene, oral health and safe habits.
During her time in Southeastern Kentucky, Celeste shadowed numerous health care practitioners throughout Leslie and Clay Counties. She also accompanied nurses on their home health rounds, coached softball, and helped to create activities for kids that focused on health and safety through a program called, “Campaign for Safe Kids”.
In her current work as a Physician Assistant at a pediatric office in North Carolina, Celeste said the Couriers’ ideas continually motivate her. She works to “reach the unreached,” and encourages those now involved in the Courier Program to employ themselves with the same mission.
Celeste particularly liked going on home health rounds. “In a clinic atmosphere you can’t truly tell how people are living, and getting out into the community through home health rounds really helped give me a wider perspective of people’s lives,” Celeste said.
To say the Courier Program impacted Celeste’s life is an understatement.
At the heart of Frontier Nursing University is a talented and diverse community of students, alumni, faculty, staff, Couriers and preceptors. Spotlight blogs feature members of our FNU community that are focused on the mission of educating nursemidwives and nurse practitioners to deliver quality health care to underserved and rural populations.
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In 1928, Mary Breckinridge, founder of Frontier Nursing University established the Courier Program, recruiting young people to come work in the Kentucky Mountains and learn about service to humanity. Couriers escorted guests safely through remote terrain, delivered medical supplies to remote outpost clinics, and helped nursemidwives during home visits and births. Frontier has benefited tremendously from the 1,600 Couriers who have served since 1928.
Applications are currently being accepted for the summer FNU Courier Program. This eight-week, rural and public health service-learning program targets college students with interest in public health, health care or a related field. The program offers a unique opportunity for students to gain insight into the challenges and opportunities of providing healthcare in rural and underserved areas. Throughout the program, Couriers become immersed through their clinical site. During their time on site, Couriers shadow a variety of clinicians and provide leadership on special projects as well as other avenues of community participation. Couriers’ experiences help them to fully comprehend the complexities of rural and underserved communities, as well as grasp the compassionate and caring legacy established by our founder, Mary Breckinridge, which is carried on by FNU students, alumni, couriers and faculty. If you know of any college students who would be interested, please direct them to https://.portal.frontier.edu/web/fnu/ how-to-apply. Questions can be directed to courier.program@frontier.edu.
Wendover Report Wendover Bed & Breakfast Inn and Retreat Center Holiday Dinner On Sunday, December 7, guests were greeted with steaming cider and the cozy warmth of the fireplace as they gathered in the Wendover Bed & Breakfast Inn and Retreat Center for the Frontier Nursing University (FNU) community holiday dinner. Hosted at the historic headquarters of Frontier Nursing Service, 25 friends and members of the community attended the event. Guests were guided by FNU Development Officer Michael Claussen on tours throughout the Big House, the original log structure built by Mary Breckinridge in 1925. Then they were treated to fellowship and conversation over a meal of of ham, turkey, potatoes, roasted vegetables, salad, rolls, dessert, and hot tea in the tradition of Mrs. Breckinridge’s afternoon brew. Guests then gathered in the living room for Christmas carols led by the voice and piano accompaniment of Dean Osborne, an FNU Trustee and the Director of the Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music. Dr. Susan Stone, President of FNU, took the floor to welcome the guests and share recent FNU news.
Wendover Bed & Breakfast Inn and Retreat Center Enters Partnership with Snug Hollow Hand in Hand Consulting The notable Wendover Bed & Breakfast Inn and Retreat Center is adding a new chapter to its illustrious history. Seeking to revitalize its services, amenities and operations, Wendover has partnered with Barbara Napier and Rhonda Childers of Snug Hollow Hand in Hand Consulting. The Wendover Bed & Breakfast history dates back to 1925 when pioneer nursemidwife Mary Breckinridge, founder of Frontier Nursing Service (FNS), built the original log home known as the Big House. The historic headquarters of FNS, the Big House became a National Historic Landmark in 1991. With its serene mountain surroundings, Wendover offers comfortable accommodations and home-cooked meals. In addition to the Big House, Wendover offers housing in the Wendover Barn, the Garden House and the Cottage. The Livery is now a separate conference center well-equipped to host group meetings, retreats, and group celebrations. The total number of bedrooms at Wendover Bed & Breakfast Inn is 19, with 29 total beds and a total capacity of 35.
Thank you to the following individuals who have recently sent items to Wendover: Barbara Bane Marilyn Daniel Susan Johnson Harriet Palmer
Barbara Napier and Rhonda Childers own and operate Snug Hollow Farm Bed & Breakfast in Irvine, Ky. Snug Hollow, offering a 300-acre mountain retreat with gourmet dining in the heart of Kentucky, has operated as a highly successful B&B for the past seventeen years. Barbara and Rhonda will bring their extensive expertise to Wendover, enhancing the overall operation in a variety of ways to deliver a complete guest experience honoring the Mary Breckinridge legacy. “We know what a treasure we have at Wendover and are very proud of its history,” said FNU President Dr. Susan Stone. “It is important to us that we continue to cherish that history and share it with others. We need to let people know it’s here and invite them to enjoy a first-class, unforgettable experience at Wendover Bed & Breakfast Inn and Retreat Center.”
Special Knit Items Homemade baby caps, blankets, and scarves continue to be very needed for our FNU Students. Frontier nurse-midwifery students present a baby cap to the family of a baby whose birth they attend, and our nurse practitioner students present lap quilts or scarves to their patients. As our university continues to grow, we will need more and more of these wonderful items. The size needed for lap quilts is approximately 40 by 42 inches. Yarn should be worsted weight. We greatly appreciate the many knitting groups and friends who send items to us. These baby caps, scarves and blankets are circling the globe as our students pass them on to women and families and share the story of Mary Breckinridge and the Frontier Nursing Service. It’s such a special way to pass on the vision and mission of Frontier!
Mary C. Stites
Frontier Nursing University • Quarterly Bulletin 11
In Memoriam Joan Lambert McPhee Joan Lambert McPhee died on December 29, just a few days before her 90th birthday, following a brief illness. She died in Potomac, Maryland, in the company of extended family, including children Roemer, Joan, and Larkin McPhee and their spouses, daughter-inlaw Petra McPhee, her former husband, Henry Roemer McPhee, and two grandchildren. Mrs. McPhee was born January 9, 1928, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and grew up in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, the daughter of Charles and Dorothy Millen Lambert. The senior Lamberts moved to Louisville, Kentucky, in the 1940s, and resided there until their deaths. After attending boarding school, Mrs. McPhee graduated from Connecticut College in 1949, then pursued further study at the Universite de Geneve Faculte des Lettres, where she earned a Certificat d’etudes Francaises in 1950. After a year in New York, Mrs. McPhee moved to Washington, D.C., where she served as an aide to Congressman John Robsion of Kentucky. She married Henry Roemer McPhee in 1956. Together they had four children: Roemer McPhee III and Joan McPhee of New York, NY, Larkin McPhee Perese of Minneapolis, MN, and Charles McPhee, who died of ALS at home in Woodland Hills, CA, in 2011. Survivors include, in addition to her three surviving children, two sonsin- law, Michael Gilson, MD ( Joan), and Deniz Perese, MD (Larkin), two daughters-in-law, Constance McPhee (Roemer III), Petra McPhee (Charles), nine grandchildren, and her former husband, Roemer McPhee. A longtime
resident of Potomac, for much of the last 25 years, she worked as a real estate agent for Long & Foster Realty in Potomac. Joan McPhee served for many years on the Washington Committee of the Frontier Nursing Service and Frontier Nursing University in Kentucky. She was a trustee of the university until her death. The Frontier Nursing Service has since 1926 been providing healthcare services to rural, underserved populations. In the early years, the service sent nurses up mountain trails on horseback to reach patients in the Appalachian Mountains. In 1939, the service opened a Graduate School of Midwifery, now Frontier Nursing University in Hyden, Kentucky, which uses distance learning to train nurse midwives and family nurses who continue to serve rural populations. Mrs. McPhee joined the Smithsonian Women’s Committee in 1982, where she was an active volunteer for more than 30 years. She was for many years an active and valued member of the Country Gardeners in Potomac, Maryland. A service in Joan McPhee’s memory was held at Potomac Presbyterian Church on Saturday, January 13, at 2 pm. In lieu of flowers, friends are encouraged to make contributions to Frontier Nursing University (www.frontier.edu) or the Smithsonian Women’s Committee in her name (www.si.edu), or to the charity of your choice. Gifts to Frontier Nursing University should be addressed to 132 FNS Drive, Wendover, KY 41775. Gifts to the Smithsonian Women’s Committee may be addressed c/o Heidi Austreng, Smithsonian Women’s Committee, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 037, Washington, DC 20013.
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Marguerite Pike Marguerite Pike, 78, of Union, Oregon died Tuesday December 20, 2017 at her home in Union with her sister by her side. Marguerite was born in Manchester, New Hampshire to parents Victor and Hope Pike on March 22, 1939. During her youth, she was educated in New York, Indiana and Wisconsin. She loved photography, especially when it came to taking pictures of wildlife. Marguerite also had an interest in the medical field which she pursued with great zest. She attained her RN in Hinsdale, Illinois and her received Masters in Medical Surgical Nursing from the University of Maryland in Baltimore, Maryland. Marguerite went on to achieve a Doctorate in Medical Science from Loma Linda University in California. She then worked as a teacher in Maryland, Michigan, Illinois and Oregon. In 1988 she went to Frontier School of Nursing in Hyden, Kentucky for her Family Nurse Practitioner Degree. Working with people in the hills of Kentucky was considered a great highlight of her life. As an educator she presented papers at nursing societies in both the USA and Australia. In 1994, she founded the Family Heath Clinic in Union, Oregon. She was dedicated, loyal, had a strong work ethic, and was truly compassionate.
Tributes Beth Monohan Beth Monohan, age 76, died on December 17, 2017 at Episcopal Church Home. Born March 26, 1941 to Charles O’Ferrall Monohan and Melvina Ralph Monohan, Beth treasured the memories of her happy childhood on the Monohan family farm in Louisville. Her late aunt Mary Ellen Monohan Houston was a Courier in 1935. In lieu of flowers, Beth listed FNU among the preferred charities for donations in her memory.
Contact the QB Have comments, suggestions for upcoming issues or a story to share with the FNU community? We would love to hear from you! Simply email Jim Kelsey, External Affairs Coordinator, at james.kelsey@ frontier.edu. Thank you!
The following people gave contributions to Frontier in memory of their friends or loved ones. The names in bold are the deceased. Harriette Sherman Barnes Mary Ann Barnes
Gertrude and Ed Longstreth Stephen and Linda Longstreth
Ruth Beeman Barbara Thompson
Joan McPhee Martha Elliott Kathyn Michel Hoyt and Kitzie Nye Dogan Perese
Sharon Burdick Danny Webb Mary Rodes Leaphart Carter Carlyle Carter Sally Dyrcz Lance Piecoro Kate Ireland William Leach M. Elizabeth Culbreth Lida Henderson Ann Henderson Johnny Houston Jane Houston Mary Ellen Houston John McDougall Jane H Hope Bruce and Barbara Haldeman Barbara Ann Grady Margaret Nagorski
Beth Monohan William and LIbba Blodgett David Monohan and Kathryn Quesenberry Cecile Oseasohn Sylvia Duby Barbara Atwood Price Catherine Price Bass Helen Payne Ray Whitney Ray-Dawson Robert Livingston Steele Peggy Beaty Larry Stone Susan Stone Cathy Szudy Tamara Szudy Michel McGettigan
The following people gave contributions to Frontier in honor of their friends or loved ones. The names in bold are the honorees. Ellen Bayard Josephine Linder Du Pont Bayard
Beverly and Bill Friel Stephen and Linda Longstreth
Back Cove Midwives Jerri Walker
Patsy Lawrence Elise Wallace
Kitty Ernst Richard and Abby Geyer Karen Gordon
Kathleen Lewis Jeffrey Feltner Elizabeth Leggett
Faye Feltner Jeffrey Feltner
Patricia Nachowicz Gregory Gutgsell Susan Stone Peter Schwartz
Jean Feltner Jeffrey Feltner Jeff Feltner Wanda Feltner Peggy Foiles Stephen and Linda Longstreth
Marilyn Wright Stephen and Linda Longstreth Lees Yunits Laurene Frederick
Frontier Nursing University • Quarterly Bulletin 13
Trustees Trustee Profile:
Carlyle Carter Evanston, Illinois and Versailles, Kentucky What is your affiliation to Frontier Nursing University? My affiliation with FNU dates back to 1954, when I was 11 years old, and Mary Breckinridge, my grandmother’s first cousin, invited me to visit her in Wendover. It was a life-changing experience. I had heard stories about the Frontier Nursing Service from my father, Joe Carter, who had been one of the first, and more rambunctious, couriers. I was excited to get to know Mary Breckinridge, the nurses, the couriers, the mountain people, and the horses. In those days, nurses were still doing home visits on horseback. After visiting Mary Breckinridge and the FNS several more times as a child, I served as a courier in 1962 and 1965. In the 1980s and 1990s, I was an active member of the Boston Committee and became a trustee. In recent years I have been involved with the Courier Advisory Council and continue as a trustee.
What are your thoughts about FNU and its impact on education and healthcare? When Mary Breckinridge founded the FNS, she had a vision that her work could be replicated throughout the country and the world. She would be proud, and perhaps amazed, to see how Frontier Nursing University has continued her far-thinking vision, expanding it to meet the needs of the changing world. Offering distance education to nurses and nurse practitioners in nurse-midwifery, family health, and women’s health would have blown her mind. Susan Stone, FNU president, and Kitty Ernst, FNS graduate and renowned visionary in the field of midwifery, believe you have to “Think big,” and FNU certainly has. The Versailles, Kentucky, campus is an ideal place for FNU to serve as a national model of excellence for distance learning in nursing education and to hold national and regional meetings for leaders in the field. I am so glad, too, that the organization has not lost sight of its history, tradition, and connection to Wendover and Hyden.
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Trustees: Mrs. Tia Andrew, Hamilton Parish Ms. Sarah Bacon, Brooklyn, NY Mrs. Andrea Begley, Hyden, KY Mrs. Heather Bernard, Hamilton, NY Gov. Steven Beshear, Lexington, KY Mrs. Betty Brown, Louisville, KY Dr. Timothy Bukowski, Chapel Hill, NC Dr. Wallace Campbell, Berea, KY Miss Anna Carey, Hyden, KY Ms. Carlyle Carter, Evanston, IL Mrs. Jean Chapin, Oldwick, NJ Dr. Holly Cheever, Voorheesville, NY Mrs. Lois Cheston, Topsfield, MA Mrs. Julia Breckinridge Davis, Winston-Salem, NC Mrs. John Dete, West Liberty, OH Mrs. Selby Ehrlich, Bedford, NY Mrs. Robert Estill, Raleigh, NC Mrs. Angela Feltner, Hyden, KY Mrs. Noel Smith Fernandez, Pomona, NY Mr. John Grandin, Chestnut Hill, MA Dr. Joyce Fortney Hamberg, Southgate, KY Dr. Horace Henriques, Lyme, NH Mr. & Mrs. John Hodge, Berwyn, PA Mrs. Robin Frentz Isaacs, Lincoln, MA Mrs. Mary Carol Joseph, Mayor, City of Hyden Ms. Deborah M. King, Westport, MA Mrs. Patricia Lawrence, Westwood, MA Mrs. Henry Ledford, Big Creek, KY Mrs. Marian Leibold, Cincinnati, OH Dr. Ruth Lubic, Washington, DC Mr. William Lubic, Washington DC Mrs. Joan Lambert McPhee, Potomac, MD Mr. Wade Mountz, Louisville, KY Mr. Robert Montague, Urbanna, VA Mrs. Barbara Napier, Hyden, KY Dr. Spencer Noe, Lexington, KY Mrs. Frank O’Brien, Boston, MA Mr. Dean Osborne, Hyden, KY Mrs. Helen Rentch, Midway, KY Mrs. John Richardson, Washington, DC Mrs. Linda Roach, Lexington, KY Mrs. Georgia Rodes, Lexington, KY Mrs. Sandra Schreiber, Louisville, KY Mrs. Sherrie Rice Smith, Franklin, WI Mrs. Austin Smithers, Lyme, NH Mrs. Robert Steck, Arlington, MA Mrs. Mary Clay Stites, Louisville, KY Mr. Richard Sturgill, Paris, KY Ms. Mary Frazier Vaughan, Lexington, KY Mrs. LouAnne Roberts Verrier, Austin, TX Dr. Patience White, Bethesda, MD Mr. Harvie Wilkinson, Lexington, KY
Board of Directors Chair Michael Carter, DNSc, DNP, FAAN, FNP, GNP-BC, Tumbling Shoals, AR
Vice Chair Michael T. Rust, Louisville, KY
Secretary Wallace Campbell, PhD, Berea, KY
Treasurer Della Deerfield, CPA, Richmond, KY
Board Members Peter Coffin, Chair, Frontier Nursing Service, Inc. Foundation Chestnut Hill, MA Eunice (Kitty) Ernst, CNM, MPH, Perkiomenville, PA
Front row (l-r): May Wykle, Kitty Ernst, Susan Stone, Phyllis Leppert, Wallace Campbell. Back Row (l-r): Peter Schwartz, Kerri Schuiling, Michael Carter, Jean Johnson, Robert Montague. Not pictured: Della Deerfield, Nancy Hines, Marcus Osborne, Mike Rust, Nancy Fugate Woods.
Nancy Hines, Shepherdsville, KY Jean Johnson, PhD, RN, FAAN, Cabin John, MD Phyllis Leppert, RN, CNM, MD, PhD, FACNM, Salt Lake City, UT Marcus Osborne, MBA, Bentonville, AR Kerri Schuiling, PhD, CNM, FAAN, FACNM, Marquette, MI Peter A. Schwartz, MD, Wyomissing, PA Nancy Fugate Woods, PhD, RN, FAAN, Seattle, WA May Wykle, PhD, Cleveland, OH
Board Members Emeritus John Foley, Lexington, KY Marion McCartney, CNM, FACNM, Washington, D.C. Kenneth J. Tuggle, JD, Louisville, KY
Frontier Nursing University • Quarterly Bulletin 15
Your Gifts at Work Thank you to everyone who donated to the #GivingTuesday scholarship campaign. We raised nearly $7,000 for this new scholarship! FNU Leadership Council member Susan Graham (pictured) generously pledged to match each dollar raised up to $25,000 and we are happy to report she will designate the full amount to this new scholarship fund.
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Ways to Give: A Lasting Investment Your investment in Frontier Nursing University is an investment in quality healthcare for all. There are many ways you can support FNU. Gifts ranging from donations for operations to trust instruments to testamentary gifts each provide much-needed support for our work. Some of the more common methods are:
Annual Fund Donation Gifts may be made by check or credit card and can support the general operations of FNU, or be restricted to particular programs. You can use the enclosed remittance envelope or make a gift online at www.frontier.edu/ online-giving.
Charitable Remainder Trusts These gift instruments allow you and/or your loved ones to benefit from monies placed in the trust during your/their lifetime. Upon the death of the named beneficiary, the remaining balance in the trust is transferred to FNU.
Stock Gifts You can donate your appreciated stock directly to FNU. Please call the Office of Development for instructions.
Perpetual Income Trusts These gift instruments allow the income from monies you place in trust to benefit FNU in perpetuity. The principal of your gift remains intact for the life of the trust, and the income it generates is transferred periodically to FNU.
Life Insurance You can name FNU as the beneficiary of your life insurance policy, or transfer ownership of the policy directly to FNU. Charitable Gift Annuity You can give a one-time gift to FNU in exchange for fixed, recurring payments over the balance of your life. Upon your death, the balance of your original gift is maintained by FNU for its general use.
Testamentary Gifts You may make provision in your will to provide a specific bequest to FNU, or provide for some or all of your remaining estate to be given to FNU upon your death.
Each of these gifts has specific tax implications. Please contact your attorney or financial advisor for further information. For additional information on making a gift to FNU, please call 859-899-2828 or email Denise Barrett, Chief Advancement Officer, at denise.barrett@frontier.edu.
Frontier Nursing University • Quarterly Bulletin 17
P.O. Box 528 • 195 School Street Hyden, KY 41749 FNU@frontier.edu • 606.672.2312
Frontier.edu
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