Creating a Health Care Workforce
If you’re considering a career in nursing, check out this array of flexible programs.
Students interested in pursuing careers in nursing have many options to consider in the Milwaukee area – with multiple paths to follow to associate, bachelor’s and graduate degrees. Here are some of those options.
UWM COLLEGE OF NURSING
The College of Nursing at UW-Milwaukee is the state’s largest nursing school, and it’s dedicated to playing a crucial role in southeastern Wisconsin. “We stay true to our mission of being a major, urban doctoral research university meeting the diverse needs of Wisconsin’s largest metropolitan area,” says Kim Litwack, dean and professor at the college.
The college offers undergraduate, master’s, DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice, which produces nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists) and PhD programs in nursing to prepare health care providers and nurse scientists. The college also offers a unique RN-to-BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) program delivered in three modes to meet the needs of nurses prepared at the associate degree level. Over 35 percent of nurses working in Wisconsin have an associate degree. The Institute of Medicine’s 2010 Future of Nursing Report suggests that 80 percent of nurses should be prepared with a bachelor’s degree or higher by 2020. Multiple studies have confirmed that patient outcomes are better when an organization has a higher percentage of nurses at the baccalaureate level or higher. The most frequently cited barriers to pursuing additional nursing education are costs, family commitments and work time.
The UWM RN-to-BSN program offers classes online and on site at several area hospitals. The program also offers a unique online competency-based UW-FLEX Option that is an innovative way to meet the needs of busy working nurses. The FLEX Option offers flexibility in an economical independent-learning mode. Students in this self-paced option can start on the first day of any month and can earn credit for knowledge they have obtained through work and other learning experiences.
CARDINAL STRITCH UNIVERSITY
Cardinal Stritch University’s Ruth S. Coleman College of Nursing and Health Sciences offers multiple pathways to highly sought-after nursing degrees. To meet the call for more bachelor’s degree nurses, Stritch has partnered with area technical colleges to offer concurrent enrollment for associate degree nursing students who are also interested in pursuing a bachelor’s degree in nursing.
“Stritch is the only institution in Wisconsin to offer a program that allows associate degree nursing students to enroll in a bachelor’s in nursing program during the same semesters. This expedites the student’s completion of the BSN and expands employment opportunities” says Dr. Kelly J. Dries, dean and professor at Stritch.
Stritch President Kathleen A. Rinehart comments: “Our concurrent enrollment initiative not only enhances already-strong relationships with the state’s technical colleges, it also reflects the type of timely, agile and innovative approach to nursing education in the 21st century that is necessary to prepare leaders in the field.”
Direct program entry is a feature of the traditional bachelor’s degree program, which provides students the opportunity to begin nursing program courses in their second semester at Stritch. Students can earn a degree in four years or less and begin their health care career more expeditiously.
Creating a future workforce is very top-of-mind for our health care systems.
– JANET WESSEL KREJCI, DEAN, MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF NURSING
Opportunities for nursing program admission also exist for transfer students.
Cardinal Stritch University also offers an online RN-to-BSN and a master’s degree program with educator or leader emphasis.
MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF NURSING
Marquette’s nursing school is an exciting place to be these days, says its dean, Janet Wessel Krejci.
“We work very, very hard to prepare people to become not only clinical experts and exquisite technicians,” Krejci says, “but our focus is on preparing what we like to call the Marquette nurse, who is someone who really takes in the whole person, understands the particular context of that person’s situation.”
Marquette offers a wide range of programs for nurses, and has almost 1,200 nursing students on campus this semester, from freshmen to grad students in programs for MSN (Master of Science in Nursing), PhD or Doctor of Nursing Practice degrees. There are a number of specialties available, including a new graduate program in nurse anesthesia. The faculty includes an innovator in the use of probiotics to prevent infections in pregnant women; the president of an international group focused on best practices in the use of simulation; and a national health policy expert fresh from five years on the staff of the House Ways and Means Committee.
The College of Nursing is helping the health care industry deal with an ongoing shortage of nurses, caused in large part by the retirements of many nurses from the baby boom generation. “Creating a future workforce is very top-of-mind for our health care systems,” says Krejci. “We are creating the workforce of tomorrow for them.”
“Our Marquette grads are really in high demand,” she adds. “People really love to hire that Marquette nurse. [These nurses] come in with a very high level of professionalism, highest quality of preparation, an amazing work ethic, and an astute understanding of the complexity of health care and what it means to work as a team.”
MILWAUKEE AREA TECHNICAL COLLEGE
Another local institution is dealing with the national nursing shortage felt by hospitals and other care providers. Thanks to a $2.3 million capacity-building grant from the United Health Foundation in early 2017, Milwaukee Area Technical College continues to be an important part of the solution. Through 2019, the grant will boost MATC’s ability to identify, recruit, develop and educate the next generation of nurses.
The college’s high-quality program is key to meeting the region’s needs. MATC’s Nursing Associate Degree students currently boast a 95 percent pass rate for the exam required to begin working as a registered nurse. This is known as the National Council Licensure Examination.
As a student, Emily Treuthardt knew she wanted to serve the health needs of the community. She started in pre-veterinary
sciences and then earned a certified nursing assistant (CNA) certificate and worked as a nursing assistant to support herself.
She began studies at a four-year university but soon transferred to MATC. “I did some research and decided to switch,” she says. “Every clinical site I have been to expresses how much they enjoy having MATC students working on their floor – that we are always so prepared.” Treuthardt graduated from the Registered Nursing Associate Degree program last December.
To help fulfill the dreams of students like Treuthardt and meet the needs of the community, the United Health Foundation grant will increase program capacity.
Another key objective is to increase the diversity of the state nursing workforce. MATC, the largest majority-minority college in the state, is uniquely suited to increase the number of nurses representing underserved populations and meet the United Health Foundation’s goal to increase the number of primary care health providers to meet the needs of future populations.
The college offers the Registered Nursing Associate Degree program at the Downtown Milwaukee and Mequon campuses and a practical nursing technical diploma program at the Downtown Milwaukee and Oak Creek campuses.
MOUNT MARY UNIVERSITY
A new partner of MATC’s RN program is Mount Mary University, which just this year is starting what it calls Nursing 1-2-1. The program is aimed at producing nurses with bachelor’s degrees.
The 1-2-1 refers to the years spent training at Mount Mary and at technical colleges. Both MATC and Waukesha County Technical College are partnering with the university. Chief Nurse Administrator Kara Groom explains that students spend their freshman year on the Mount Mary campus, taking liberal arts and pre-nursing courses, and getting to know their classmates. Then they spend their second and third years training for an associate degree in nursing at one of the technical colleges – though they can still live on the Mount Mary campus these years. At the end of those two years, students can take the licensure exam to be registered nurses.
In the fourth year, they’re able to work as an RN while taking online courses at Mount Mary, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. During that time, the students will focus on what it takes to become a nurse leader.
“One of the reasons that hospitals are interested in nurses obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Nursing,” says Cheryl Bailey, Mount Mary’s dean of natural and health sciences and education, “is that nurses can move into leadership positions, and that’s very much valued.” Often employers will help students pay for that extra training for a BSN because it’s so valued, says Groom.
The partnership is just starting this fall, with 51 students involved – 34 of them new freshmen. ◆