Paper
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
667
Starting at the Beginning: A University-Hospital Partnership
Jacqueline A. Dienemann, PhD, CNAA, FAAN, School of Nursing, UNC Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, USA and Deborah Myers, BSN, CDE, Nursing, Lake Norman Regional Medical Center, Mooresville, NC, USA.
| Learning Objective #1: 1. Describe the steps to establish a mutually productive School of Nursing and community hospital parternship. |
| Learning Objective #2: 2. Explore mechanisms to involve administrative and staff nurses and nursing students in Evidence Based Practice in a community hospital environment. |
The partnership between Lake Norman Regional Hospital (LNRMC), a community hospital, and the School of Nursing (SON) at UNC Charlotte began in 2003. Step one emphasized student education with clinical experiences for BSN students and the CNO serving on the Advisory Committee for the SON.
Step two began to have an evidence based practice (EBP) focus through having a MSN - CNS student do a EBP project. Simultaneously, an adjunct faculty appointment for the CNO who co-taught a MSN Health Policy course and a faculty member reviewed LNRMC’s first Magnet Hospital Application.
Step 3 focused on increasing EBP in education and practice. We had an exchange: a hospital NP taught one clinical course and a faculty member joined the new Shared Governance Research Council (RC). The RC is open to all interested RNs (Diploma to PhD). The first goals were: develop a research review structure, increase awareness of the value of research for EBP and differentiate EBP from Research. EBP activities included posters, a journal club, an internet searching workshop by AHEC and a pilot EBP project on smoking cessation education. To expand EBP education, the CNS and NP MSN students partnered with RNs/PT/MDs to do 6 EBP synthesis projects resulting in 1 publication and 5 presentations.
Step 4 focused on sustaining and deepening the partnership. The RC activities included a second Magnet application, the “great cookie experiment” to teach the research process, one research study and a second EBP project, Late Term Baby Protocol. The synthesis student partnerships continued. BSN precepted Senior experiences were added. The SON and LNRMC/HMA with two other health systems have submitted a grant to 1) provide all clinical training for a cohort of 10 students at each system and 2) add care of diverse populations training for the students, preceptors, and clinical faculty.