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____________________
The Office
of communications and marketing
Boise State University
1910 University Drive
Education Building, #726
Boise Idaho 83725-1030
208-426-1577
(fax)208-426-4001
email newsservices@boisestate.edu
webmaster
bmcdiarm@boisestate.edu
September 23, 2003
Nursing Students Launch Sticker Campaign To Thank Clinical Sites
Note to media: The nursing department can arrange visits and interviews with community partners at clinical settings in Ada, Gem and Canyon counties.
Nursing students at Boise State University are unveiling a campaign to recognize community partners at more than 200 clinical sites around the area where nursing students gain essential real-world experience. The students will give specially designed lapel stickers to community professionals at medical centers, doctor�s offices, assisted living facilities, schools and many other locations where Boise State nursing students work in clinical sites as part of their nursing education.
�To meet the future health-care needs of Idaho residents, community partners have opened their doors to nursing students to provide real-life clinical settings and hands-on experiences essential to a nurse�s education,� said Boise State nursing professor and clinical site coordinator Vivian Schrader. �In light of the nursing shortage, educating an adequate numbers of nurses and providing enough clinical sites is vital.�
To recognize the important role of clinical sites, nursing students will wear special lapel buttons and give stickers to their community partners. The stickers and buttons were designed by Lisa Brown, a student in the bachelor of science nursing program. Brown won a design contest in the nursing department with a patchwork quilt-style motif featuring two hands together holding a heart and the sayings �Guide Our Hands, Mold Our Hearts� and �I helped educate a nurse today!�
�I was inspired to create the design after thinking about all the preceptors and patients who help educate us,� Brown said. �By offering their hands to us, they help mold our minds about the nursing profession. My design also reflects the diversity of these caring people who are willing to help students. My design [and the campaign] is a way to recognize and honor them.�
Clinical experiences benefit not only the nursing students but also the health-care providers and community members they serve, said Schrader.
Some examples of work done by nursing students at clinical sites includes
* Students taught elementary school children about hand washing, bicycle safety and healthy eating.
* Students have assessed the health needs of a local church parish and made recommendations for health teaching.
* Students have developed an employee orientation manual for a local long-term care facility.
In addition to placements in traditional medical settings, the nursing department has arranged clinical assignments for students in shelters, prisons, day cares, youth clubs, schools, churches, migrant farm health services and other settings that will help prepare them for the broad range of work nurses perform.
�I would encourage area residents to ask their health care providers to support nursing education by providing nursing students with clinical sites,� said Schrader. As other health-care educational programs have recently expanded in the Treasure Valley, there has been increased competition for student placements at these invaluable clinical sites, she said.
�Now, more than ever, we need all types of clinical partners to support nursing education by opening their doors and hearts to our students,� said Schrader. �It truly takes a community to educate a nurse.�
The nursing department welcomes calls from medical providers and community agencies interested in providing clinical experiences for nursing students. Call 426-4032 for information.
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Contact
Margaret Kemp
Nursing department
208 426-2671
Pam Springer
Nursing chair
208 426-3600
Vivian Schrader
Nursing department
208 426-4032
Media contact
Pat Pyke
communications and marketing
208 426-1987
Last reviewed on Thursday, July 21, 2005