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Preparing Quality,Caring Nurses
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Today’s nursing hopefuls will not find
acceptance into The University of Texas at
Tyler’s College of Nursing an easy task.
Competition is fierce. Once accepted, they
won’t find the coursework, examinations
and clinical experiences a piece of cake either.
But what they will discover comes easy is
their growing desire and ability to help
others. And UT Tyler’s pool of committed
nursing students wouldn’t have it any
other way.
“I was deeply intrigued with the field of
nursing and the vast opportunities and
pathways available in the very diverse
field,” said Dawn Johnson, a 1996 bachelor
of science in nursing graduate. “I chose
UT Tyler because I wanted a bachelor’s
degree instead of an associate degree,” she
said. “I was also aware of the respected reputation
and credibility that the UT Tyler
College of Nursing has.”
Tara Patton, a 2005 BSN graduate, said,
“UT Tyler has a good reputation for graduating
well-prepared nurses. I felt comfortable
with the preparation I received.”
Dr. Pam Martin, associate dean for undergraduate
programs, said the nursing program
receives more than 500 applications
every semester and can only admit about
150 because of space. “We have a soughtafter
program, accredited by the Texas
Board of Nurse Examiners and the
Commission on Collegiate Nursing
Education, with a pass rate of 98 percent
for the licensure exam,” Dr. Martin said.
“We have a very high quality program with
a lot of rigor. It is hard to get in and it is a
hard program. We accept motivated
students and prepare quality nurses.”
Committed Faculty
Johnson, who currently serves as a registered
nurse for Tyler Independent School
District, said one of the strengths of the
program for her was the faculty. “The faculty
was very supportive and very willing
to offer encouragement or the extra nudge
to ‘get it together’ when we started to
waiver,” she said.
Members of the teaching staff have many
years of health care experience and many
hold national certification in their discipline,
Dr. Martin said. “We have a very
dedicated and caring faculty. They are here
for the students,” she said.
Patton said, “The staff made every effort to
be accessible to students. That’s what makes
it successful.” She works as a registered
nurse for The University of Texas Medical
Branch in Tennessee Colony. “When I
decided in midlife to make a second career
choice and pursue my goal, I really enjoyed
a great deal of support from faculty.”
Johnson said the faculty not only provided
an education in the practical skills for
nursing, they ignited a passion to help
others. “They taught us the value of being
able to impact the lives of others through
healing and caring,” she said. “They
taught us that we would get much more
from our patients than they would ever get
from us. I am so grateful for that because
they were right!”
The Element of Caring
The UT Tyler nursing family is serious
about helping people. It is their calling.
From traveling to the jungles of
Guatemala to walking for cures and
volunteering at clinics, to sending health
supplies to Iraq, Dr. Martin said the nursing
students are very active in their communities.
“They really step up. They get involved,”
Dr. Martin said. “We had 452 service
hours logged in, and that’s while going to
school. They are out there. Students learn
that as a nurse, you are not just taking care
of patients in the hospital, you represent
nursing wherever you are.”
Every year faculty members take students
to the Guatemalan village of San
Raymundo to work with Refuge
International volunteers at a remote health
clinic. The organization was founded
by UT Tyler instructor and former
student Deborah Bell.
“The clinic is only open about four times
a year when a medical team comes,” said
Dr. Susan Yarbrough, associate dean for
graduate programs. “The (villagers) learn
about it mostly by word of mouth. Some
travel or walk for hours to get there.
From the time we begin each day, there is
always a waiting line. They sit patiently all
day for their turn.”
UT Tyler nursing student Ericka Fabian
has been to Guatemala three times. She
said, “I absolutely love it. It made me realize
that nursing is what I am destined to
do. It filled my heart with so much love,
compassion and drive that I know without
a doubt that nursing is for me.
Helping the people of Guatemala and
seeing the difference that I have made in
their lives touches me in such a way that I
can’t imagine not helping people here in
the states on a daily basis.”
Emma Lamoc traveled to Guatemala with
the group this year. She said, “It was a lifechanging
experience and made me
stronger as a nurse.”
While Patton was working on her bachelor’s
degree, hurricanes Katrina and Rita
devastated New Orleans and the Gulf
Coast region. Patton and her fellow
students worked in local shelters that
housed families displaced by the storms.
She also organized a nationwide toy drive
that sent more than 600 pounds of toys to
victims of the hurricanes.
“The hurricanes created a once-in-a-lifetime
opportunity to serve people at the
most vulnerable time in their life,” Patton
said. “I think it’s important to make a
difference where you are and in your local
community. Nursing just doesn’t happen
in a hospital facility or in a clinic. It is
where there is a need.”
Real World Experience
Dr. Klotz said part of what makes UT
Tyler nursing programs so successful is the
real world experience. “If someone needs
healthcare, our faculty and graduates are
there,” she said.
After the second semester, students begin
working one-on-one with a registered
nurse mentor in area hospitals and clinics
through the UT Tyler Preceptor Program.
The Preceptor concept was created at UT
Tyler about eight years ago and is used
across the state and nation as a model,
Dr. Martin said.
Students study in the classroom two days
a week. The remainder of the time is
spent in a clinic environment with a
working nurse. Students set up their own
schedules to match that of the mentors.
“We have 500-600 active preceptors
across East Texas that help us,” Dr.
Martin said.
“Students work in doctor’s offices,
in-home care, area schools, dialysis, immunization
clinics, flu shot clinics,” Martin
said. “They follow their nurse in shift work
and get used to the real world very quickly.
They learn that nurses work long, 12-hour
shifts and it’s tiring. And they love it.”
Johnson said, “The clinical experiences
we had helped to fuel our passion for the
field of nursing. We were allowed to grow
as humans and learn at the same time
about helping others through skill,
knowledge and compassion.”
Patton said mentorship by licensed nurses
is a critical part of learning for students.
“It is important to recognize what your
role is prior to becoming a licensed nurse.
In the nursing environment with patients
and needs . . . that’s where the true
learning happens.”
An Open Door of Opportunities
“We have graduates working everywhere
– all over Texas, in other states and
around the world,” Dr. Klotz said. “The
nursing shortage is such that our
graduates have no problems in finding
positions anywhere, and have multiple
work opportunities to choose from.”
Dr. Martin said the College of Nursing
has a 60 percent rate of nursing students
who go on to graduate school to become
educators, nurse practitioners, administrators,
certified registered nurses and
more. “The baccalaureate degree is not a
stopping off point,” she said.
UT Tyler is also one of the programs of
choice for military admissions. She said
about 20 to 25 students in the BSN program
are active military. It is a very select
group that returns to the military as nurses
and officers. “Our military graduates are
sent all over the world – to the front lines
of the military, to tent hospitals, to
Baghdad, Japan and Afghanistan.”
No matter what their next challenge,
the nursing graduates of UT Tyler find
one thing comes very easy to them:
helping others.
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