Jefferson School of Nursing faculty receive record amount of federal grants

“Jefferson School of Nursing (JSN) faculty members have been awarded several grants this summer—more than any previous season. It is not exaggeration to say that this is an incredible event,” says Mary G. Schaal, RN, EdD, Professor and Dean, Jefferson School of Nursing. “The seven proposals funded by NIH and HRSA support the research agenda of the PIs and JSN’s commitment to advancing the goals established in the University’s Strategic Plan.” Over $3.5 million was funded to projects focused on promoting nursing workforce diversity, oncology education, reaching underserved populations, and delirium screening.

“This fall we submitted 11 grants to federal and state opportunities, and so far, seven have been funded,” Beth Ann Swan, PhD, CRNP, FAAN, Associate Professor and Associate Dean of the Graduate Program of the Jefferson School of Nursing shares. “The grants recognize the talent of many different faculty members. We’re thrilled! And now the work begins.”
                        
Mary Powell, PhD, CRNP, Assistant Professor and Coordinator of the Adult Nurse Practitioner Program, received funding for a three year, $653,797 grant from Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Bureau of Health Professions, Division of Nursing for “Project ESL: Enhancing Student Learning for ESL Nursing Students.” This collaboration between Thomas Jefferson, Holy Family and La Salle Universities responds to the need to recruit and educate diverse students to enter the field of nursing and meet the needs of the increasingly diverse population. The project will provide resources for 30 students a year to succeed in professional nursing practice by first assessing needs and offering training in communication skills and language proficiency before the school year starts, and then integrating retention strategies throughout the entire program. Faculty members will benefit from training to provide an optimal learning environment for students.

Three other HRSA-funded projects focus on advanced education in nursing. “Having three funded grants in one call is incredible!” says Dr. Swan. “This is an opportunity for us to shine.” The three grants are described below.

Theresa Yeo, PhD, CRNP, adjunct assistant professor, was funded $273,202 for a three-year project, “Advanced Oncology Nursing for Diverse and Underserved Populations.” The project focuses on the influence of racial/ethnic influences on screening, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of cancer patients. By educating health professionals about cultural beliefs, practices, language needs, racial awareness and communication skills, it is hoped that disparities among cancer patients in diverse populations can be eliminated. The project includes expanding the master’s degree curriculum to include an emphasis on caring for diverse patients, procuring a broad range of clinical sites, recruiting and retaining a diverse student body, educating students about racial and ethnic factors, and engaging in strategic planning.

The “Tri-state Nurse Anesthesia Program (TNAP) for Diverse and Underserved Populations” aims to increase the number of master’s prepared certified registered nurses anesthetists (CRNA) in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. This project for which Mary Bowen, CRNP, DNS, JD, CNAA, Associate Professor and Associate Dean of Research and Faculty Development, was awarded $1.14 million over three years This project has three foci: offer access to quality health care for underserved populations; educate diverse, culturally competent CRNAs; and eliminate health disparities by reducing barriers to access to specialists.

With the third advanced education in nursing project, “Promoting Health Access: Online Graduate Programs for Rural Underserved Communities,” Dr. Beth Ann Swan plans to expand the existing nurse practitioner and doctor of nursing practice programs to Jefferson’s Geisinger Campus in central Pennsylvania. The three-year, $1,284,529 program will recruit diverse and disadvantaged students to the programs as it provides care for rural, underserved populations including the growing Hispanic population in northern and central Pennsylvania. Increasing the number of master’s and doctoral prepared students from disadvantaged populations will increase access to care from a diverse, culturally competent nurse workforce and build a critical mass of nursing experts.

Dr. Swan also received funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research (AHRQ). She was awarded $100,000 for a two-year R03 project, “Delirium Screening: From Research to Point of Care.” This project will look at the application of technology in clinical care, posing the question, how are nurses and patients impacted as the profession moves from paper and pencil documentation to using computers? The study focuses on older adults having hip and knee surgery at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and considers the feasibility of including the “Confusion Assessment Method,” developed by Sharon Inouye, MD, MPH, in the electronic medical record. The study will look at the effect of screening on nurses’ ability to recognize delirium. It will also track how many evidence-based interventions are used and how many clinically adverse events occur when a nurse recognizes delirium.

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