3 minute read
From the Dean
Adapting and transforming — We fulfill our North Star mission
Dear Friends,
It feels as if years rather than months have passed since the spring issue. In that time span our school and the world has adapted to a global pandemic and we face head on being the epicenter of racial inequities that remain within our society, health care, education, and, yes, our school, that were brought to light by the killing of George Floyd.
In this issue of Minnesota Nursing, we explore how changes in the world have transformed many of the ways we deliver on our mission. Nursing research at the school quickly adapted with our faculty using their expertise in informatics, gerontology and wellness, among others, to improve the understanding of the virus and its impact, and needed nursing care.
The inability to conduct our classes in person has led to incredible innovation in virtual learning, including exquisite transformation in simulation. The shift to online education parallels the rise of telehealth, which has provided invaluable new clinical patient experiences and, consequently, new experiences for our students. Some of our students responded to health challenges by developing a video series to help reduce barriers to prenatal education exacerbated by a reduction in in-person visits. The cover story of Minnesota Nursing shares another example of our school leading the way, this time in addressing climate change. It introduces us to Nurses Drawdown, a global movement to activate 28 million nurses to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the School of Nursing students, alumni and faculty who were key in launching it.
Speaking of alumni, this issue profiles a DNP grad who is using informatics to build the tools that make us smarter and quicker in measuring the quality of nursing, a master’s alumna who is supporting African American women in Minnesota to overcome barriers to breastfeeding, and a PhD alum who is using her research skills in the clinical setting to inform care.
We invite you to enjoy these stories and the rest of Minnesota Nursing. We encourage you to celebrate transformation and to stay connected with us. We look forward to hearing from you and always appreciate your feedback.
Connie White Delaney Professor and Dean
PARTNERING FOR HEALTH
by Brett Stursa
A new mobile health initiative, funded by a $1 million philanthropic investment from the Otto Bremer Trust, brings together University of Minnesota health professionals from
dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, medicine and veterinary medicine to provide a range of services, including COVID-19 testing (both viral and antibody) and education, enhanced access to health care for populations at higher-thanaverage risk for COVID-19 infection and poor outcomes as well as needed vaccinations for individuals and their companion animals. The overarching goal is to address health care disparities occurring in neighborhoods that are segregated and have inadequate access to community health services because of long-standing racial and social injustices.
“We are very interested in providing mobile health care to gap populations, where people don’t typically have health care come to them. We’re trying to increase access and overcome barriers to health care,” says M Health Nurse Practitioner Clinics Director Jane Anderson, DNP, APRN, FNP-C, ANP-C.
Initially, the program will serve the Broadway Family Medicine Clinic in
University of Minnesota Community-University Health Care Center and Volunteers of America Minnesota conducted coronavirus testing in Minneapolis’ Cedar-Riverside neighborhood in June. Photo: CUHCC
North Minneapolis and the CommunityUniversity Health Care Center (CUHCC) in South Minneapolis’ Phillips neighborhood, with geographical expansion to come.
“Our goal is to address community needs related to inequities or disparities in access to care by helping communities build on what they themselves identify as needs and reasonable approaches,” says Bobbi Daniels, MD, associate vice president for clinical affairs, who will oversee implementation. “We have already conducted mobile testing in COVID hotspot areas, including the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood in Minneapolis and assisted the Minnesota Department of Health in Mower County, which saw cases spike. We will continue to grow and expand this initiative, working with our community partners throughout the state.”
