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IWU gets grant for gerontology course, internships

Pantagraph - 7/21/2018

July 21--BLOOMINGTON -- A new course in gerontology and end-of-life care plus paid summer internships for undergraduates interested in health science careers are part of a two-year, $150,000 grant recently awarded to Illinois Wesleyan University by the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations.

The course will be offered for the first time next year during the university's May term. Simulations and hands-on learning will be included in the course.

Those receiving internships will be part of health care teams and develop skills to provide compassionate direct patient care to older adults and their families, according to the university.

The course will be team taught to cover not only medical issues but also areas such as spirituality, family loss and psychology, explained Victoria Folse, director and professor of nursing and the Caroline F. Rupert endowed chair of nursing.

"We want to develop compassionate health care providers," she said.

The grant will enable IWU to offer 12 internships. The internships will be competitive and not everyone in the course will receive an internship, said Folse.

Using relationships the nursing program already has with health care organizations such as Advocate Health Care, OSF HealthCare and the Carle Foundation, the university will have interns work in hospice, acute care, long-term care and other settings, she said.

Although nursing students get experience with direct patient care early in their education, "often pre-med students don't get to deliver patient care until they have finished their undergraduate education," said Folse, and these internships will provide that opportunity.

The idea is to develop "interprofessional collaboration," said Folse, adding that the program is an opportunity to enhance all disciplines.

"The palliative care internship could serve as a signature experience for students across all disciplines," said Folse.

Palliative care is aimed at providing relief from symptoms and stress of serious, sometimes terminal, illnesses.

"We use palliative and end-of-life care almost in the same way," said Folse. "It's an opportunity to enhance the quality of life as a person's life nears the end."

The elderly are not the only ones who receive palliative care.

"Our focus will be on end-of-life care across the life span," Folse said, but "we'll put emphasis on geriatrics."

IWU is adding a geriatric mannequin to its nursing simulation lab for use in the gerontology course, she said.

In addition to Folse, the grant was awarded to Amy Funk, assistant professor in nursing; Will Jaeckle, professor of biology; and Loni Walker, associate professor and chair of biology.

"It's really an honor to have received this grant," said Folse, noting that these grants usually do not go to undergraduate institutions.

"They really put their trust in us," shes aid. "It's exciting. It's unique."

Contact Lenore Sobota at (309) 820-3240. Follow her on Twitter: @Pg_Sobota

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