Recruitment and Marketing of Tri-state Nurse Anesthesia Clinical Education Model for Underserved and Diverse Populations

The recruitment and marketing of the tri-state nurse anesthesia clinical education model will facilitate the education of nurse anesthetist students in a tri-state graduate educational clinical education model. Learning Objectives for the attendees of this symposium will be: 1) identify strategies to increase the number of ethnically diverse and culturally competent nurse anesthesia students and increase access to underserved populations, and 2) increase facilitation of the education of master's prepared nurse anesthetists in a tri-state region. This education model facilitates the achievement of Healthy People 2010 Objectives that focuses on increasing the quality and years of healthy life, and eliminating health disparities. The Recruitment and Marketing Plan include short and long term recruitment at community colleges, Kids in Health Care, critical care units, and campus office of minority affairs. The planned Activities in Year 1 (7/1/2007-6/30/2008) are: Marketing Plan Developed, Designed and Produced support Materials, Advertisements and Press releases, outreach by program site coordinators. Year one Focused Activities of the recruitment and marketing plan were: Web Site creation, press Releases, Local and Student Papers, Advertisements in Minority Nurse Magazine, Brochures for recruitment activities, and Posters with “tear-offs”. The director and assistant director of the nurse anesthesia program scheduled personal Meetings with all potential applicants. This interview and screening process assures that the applicants will succeed in the rigorous 74 credit program and that there is a good fit with potential students in the nurse anesthesia field. Recruitment Activities at Thomas Jefferson University (TJU) are: Outreach to hospital staff, Outreach to TJU undergraduate students, Poster Presentations, Recruitment of clinical sites and preceptors, Met with director of anesthesia departments throughout New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania. Fourteen clinical education sites were recruited throughout the state of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania with a focus on access to care in underserved and diverse populations.