Development News

Answering the what if questions

There is a lot to be proud of at the School of Nursing. As an alum or friend who cares about our mission, you might know that the school:

• Awarded $2 million in scholarships for the 2017-2018 academic year • Instituted a two year financial aid commitment to all full-time PhD students guaranteeing full tuition support • Shared its research discoveries in 127 scholarly articles, six books and 11 chapters last year

These are a few of the many things that set our school apart. Did you know that the School of Nursing’s research discoveries are improving lives? Whether we are testing new interventions or educational programs, our findings drive the implementation of more effective, evidence-based practices. Childhood obesity, Parkinson’s disease, preventing falls in seniors, Alzheimer’s disease and refugee trauma are examples of the health challenges that our nurse scientists address.

As the school looks ahead, we know our research and discovery can lead to less invasive, more effective and less costly health care. At a time when National Institutes of Health funding for research has decreased, thanks to our outstanding faculty and students, we have grown our privately-funded research efforts to impact health care. Together, we are addressing health care’s largest questions. The School of Nursing is known for asking—and answering—the question what if. What if we developed an obesity prevention program for preventing and managing type 2 diabetes? What if we developed an exercise intervention to reduce symptoms of distress in children undergoing cancer treatment? What if we developed an arm exercise intervention for patients with peripheral artery disease? I am proud of the work that our school is doing to turn these what if questions into solutions. Discovering what works in health—it’s what nursing does and it’s what the School of Nursing is doing.

Associate Professor Casey Hooke, PhD, APRN, PCNS-BC, received foundation support to conduct a pilot study with nurse practitioners to help them coach their pediatric cancer patients to move more.

John Kilbride Director of Development kilbride@umn.edu

Fueling nursing leadership

Joanne Disch, Jane Barnsteiner establish Leadership and Innovation Fund to support new initiatives

by Meleah Maynard

Joanne Disch, PhD, RN, FAAN, and her wife Jane Barnsteiner, PhD, RN, FAAN, have both been nurses for nearly 50 years and have worked together many times on initiatives to advance nursing and nursing education. While nurses have played a vital role in health care, both believe that in these turbulent times, nurses are needed now more than ever. “We bring a perspective to health care that I call the ‘nursing lens’ because it’s relationship-based, peoplefocused and pragmatic,” said Disch, professor ad honorem at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing and former interim dean. “Nurses are on the ground, so we know what the issues are, and we understand how to provide care that meets people’s needs.” These abilities, and many more, make nurses uniquely poised to influence the design of 21st-century health care models as innovators, advocates and leaders. And both Disch, who has held many academic and policy-making positions, including director of the Katharine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership, and Barnsteiner, professor emerita of pediatric nursing at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, want to help make that a reality. That’s why the two of them recently established the Joanne Disch and Jane Barnsteiner Leadership and Innovation Fund. Included as a part of their will, the fund is intended to support initiatives deemed important by School of Nursing Dean Connie White Delaney, PhD, RN, FAAN, FACMI, FNAP. “We set it up the way we did because we trust the judgment of the current dean,” Disch said. “She is an incredible leader and we want her to be able to use her discretion to seed projects and initiatives as they come up. Obviously, when a successor dean is eventually named, we anticipate that the University will select an equally outstanding leader.” Disch is already proud of the many ways the School of Nursing is walking the talk through cutting-edge research; innovative Doctor of Nursing Practice programs in informatics, integrative health and healing, and others; and new approaches to person- and familycentered care. Disch and Barnsteiner are looking forward to seeing the school find new ways to equip nurses with the skills they need to help today’s patients. “Health care is changing,” Disch said. “When we began our careers, most nursing was practiced in hospitals. Today we see nurses giving flu shots at gas stations in southern Minnesota, and talks are going on now about ways to offer health care at truck stops. We have to design care to fit people’s lifestyles, and nurses are especially equipped to do this well and with people and their families in mind.”

Joanne Disch, PhD, RN, FAAN, right, and her wife Jane Barnsteiner, PhD, RN, FAAN.

Meleah Maynard is a writer and editor in Minneapolis.

Veteran driven to integrate health systems

Scholarship makes school, life balance possible

by Brett Stursa

After serving in the Army Medical Corp, Ian Wolfe went on to pursue a biology degree. “I quickly decided that I did not like looking through microscopes and that I wanted to be in a profession that had a bit more hands-on patient work rather than lab science,” said Wolfe. The decision led to a nursing degree and a career as a pediatric intensive care unit nurse. As a nurse, Wolfe became frustrated by dysfunctional systems issues that led to poor patient outcomes. “This is partly because we don’t really have a health care system, more of a hospital system, loosely connected,” said Wolfe. “No matter what care issues I helped tackle in the hospital, I always seemed to come up against this larger issue.” Wolfe researched different programs of graduate study and eventually decided to pursue a PhD in Nursing. After learning he was accepted into the program at the University of Minnesota, Wolfe learned he received a Katharine Densford Dreves Scholarship. “When I found out I was getting a scholarship, I was humbled that I would be deserving of such an award in honor of many great nurses who have come before me and from among many great nurses around me,” said Wolfe. Since that first scholarship, he has been awarded seven different scholarships, totaling over $20,000. Receiving the scholarships allowed him more flexibility with work, life and school balance. “It takes a load of stress off and allows me to focus on my degree. It allowed me to be full time and complete my program more timely,” said Wolfe. He is currently working on his dissertation and plans to graduate in 2019. “I hope to use my degree and experience to build better health care systems,” said Wolfe. “An equitable health care system is also one that is efficient and economical. We can better care for people.”

Ian Wolfe

SCHOOL OF NURSING FOUNDATION BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SPRING 2018

Jeannine Bayard, MPH, BSN ’71 United Health Care, Retired Dawn Bazarko, DNP ’10, MPH, RN, FAAN Secretary Founder and Senior Vice President, Center for Nursing Advancement, UnitedHealth Group Connie White Delaney, PhD, RN, FAAN, FACMI, FNAP Professor and Dean, University of Minnesota School of Nursing Susan Forstrom, MSN ’79 Treasurer Consultant, Creative Health Care Management Cynthia Jurgensen, MSN, RN Clinical Review Director, UnitedHealth Group Carol Kelsey, BSN ’60 Co-Chair North Memorial Foundation, Retired John Kilbride, MA Director of Development, University of Minnesota School of Nursing Mary Nyquist Koons, BSN ‘76 June Lapidus, MS’82, MSN ’78, CS Co-Chair Southdale Psychology Associates, Retired

Lisa Moon, PhD ‘17, RN Consultant, Advocate Consulting Christine Mueller, PhD, RN, FGSA, FAAN Professor and Associate Dean for Academic Programs, University of Minnesota School of Nursing Interim Associate Vice President for Education, University of Minnesota Academic Health Center Nancy Olson, MPH, BSN ‘61 Abbott Northwestern Hospital, Retired John Spillane Founder and Board Chair, National Purity Kathleen Ziegler, DHA, MHSA, BSN, RN, FACHE, CPXP Principal, Lifeline to Healthcare Quality Ex-Officio Member Marjorie Page, DNP ‘09 Trustee Emeriti Sandra J. Anderson Mary Lou Christensen, MPH, BSN ‘60 Patricia Kane, MSN ‘77 Marilee Miller, PhD Carolyn I. Schroeder, BSN ‘55

The Dean’s Scholarship Reception brought together more than 500 grateful students, including Holly Osborne and Alyssa O’Donnell, and generous benefactors at McNamara Alumni Center. The school celebrated fall commencement, with Master of Nursing and doctoral students graduating. Jennifer Lundblad, PhD, MBA, president and chief executive officer of Stratis Health, gave the commencement address.

The third-annual Planting Seeds of Innovation Conference gave nurses the insights and resources they need to bring to scale new ideas for products and processes that will improve health.

These future nurses took time for some sightseeing during a study abroad course in Ireland. Students explored the history of Irish nursing and health care as well as visited several clinical and community health settings during their visit in January.

Bioethics leader and scholar Ann Hamric, PhD, RN, led a rich discussion with Doctor of Nursing Practice students about instilling moral conversations into team-based care.

The newest inductees to Sigma Theta Tau Zeta Chapter were welcomed into the honor society in the fall.

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Thursday, April 5 2018 All School Reunion Friday, April 6 Nursing Research Day Friday, April 6 Cardiac Arrhythmias Sunday, April 8 The Benefits of Narrative Medicine Thursday, April 19 Doctoral Information Session Thursday, April 26 Child Abuse Summit: Tips from the Team Friday, April 27 Integrated Behavioral Healthcare: Tough Issues in Integrating Care Friday, May 11 Commencement Ceremony Friday, May 18 University of Minnesota Health Geriatric Trauma Conference Thursday, May 24 Bariatric Education Days Saturday, June 2 Caring for a Person with Memory Loss Conference Saturday, June 9 Nurse Anesthetists Respond: Addressing the Opioid Epidemic June 13-15 Nursing Knowledge: Big Data Science Conference Wednesday, June 20 Doctoral Information Session July 30-Aug. 1 Adolescent Health Summer Institute