Northwestern nursing department awarded $130,000 grant

The Carver Charitable Trust is awarding Northwestern College’s nursing department $130,000. The grant will be used to purchase a high-fidelity pediatric simulator and a virtual reality simulation system.

The pediatric simulator replicates the bodily functions, vital signs and behaviors of a real child. It can blink, interact with the nursing students, and present common pediatric conditions such as asthma, dehydration, seizures or respiratory distress, which are sometimes difficult to simulate with real patients.

The simulator, says Dr. Karie Stamer, chair of the nursing department, provides the opportunity to practice high-stakes pediatric care in a controlled low-risk environment.

“This reduces the anxiety and pressure nursing students may feel when performing procedures on real children for the first time,” she says. “It will ensure they can hone their skills with confidence before working with actual patients.”

The other simulation system makes use of virtual reality to allow students to experience—virtually—high-risk or invasive procedures, such as IV insertions or administering injections. The VR simulator also provides the opportunity to practice skills even if a lab, human patient simulator, or professor aren’t available.

The grant from the Carver Charitable Trust helps Northwestern continue to meet a growing need for nurses. For the past 10 years, the college’s completion rate for students accepted into its nursing program during their sophomore year ranged from 82% to 93%. During the past five years, 100% of nursing graduates have passed the NCLEX licensure exam. Northwestern nursing graduates are employed by both local hospitals and such top medical centers as the Mayo Clinic, Duke University Hospital, and Sanford Health.

The Carver Charitable Trust is one of the largest philanthropic foundations in Iowa. Its grant programs focus primarily on biomedical and scientific research, education at all levels, and other issues related to the needs of youth.

“We’re so appreciative of this investment by the Carver Charitable Trust,” says Stamer. “Advances in medicine are moving at such a fast pace that it’s hard for educational institutions to keep up. These funds will help us prepare students to practice health care with both excellence and compassion.”

Northwestern’s BSN program will prepare you to be a healer in a hurting world. With more than 700 hours of clinical experience in both rural and urban healthcare settings, multiple opportunities to learn by serving through healthcare-related mission trips, and a state-of-the-art nursing laboratory in the DeWitt Family Science Center, Northwestern’s program is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education and approved by the Iowa Board of Nursing.