accounts for all manner of “what-ifs”
across the state.
A mobile simulator allows the college
to extend its resources and training to
the broader community.
“A lot of places have simulators in
their allied health programs; we brought
those simulators to the community to
train people, something no one was doing
at the time,” says Joy Spellman, center
director.
The center is responsible for training as many as 22,000 first responders
throughout New Jersey. Though the CDC
stopped funding the project in 2006, a
subsequent grant from the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation enabled Spellman
and her crew to take the simulators into
nursing homes and other places in need
of urgent care. “We call it ‘helping those
who can’t help themselves,’ ” she says of
the outreach effort. When the grant ran
out in 2009, the center began charging
for its mobile simulation service; it is
now a revenue generator for the college.
The center uses the simulators for
several community programs, including
Saturdays for Kids, during which children
of all ages learn about human physiology. One of the goals of the program is to
encourage children to enter the science,
technology, engineering, and math, or
so-called STEM, fields. The simulators are
also used by schools, faith-based organizations, and senior centers to educate people
about health issues, such as the difference
between the common cold and flu.
Nurses Take the Lead
LEWIS & CLARK COMMUNITY
COLLEGE (LCCC), ILLINOIS
LCCC is the only community college
in the country with a Nurse-Managed
Health Center. The Lewis & Clark Family
Health Clinic serves citizens age 2 and
older. On-campus nurses provide preventive care, health education, and primary
care services.
Donna Meyer, LCCC’s dean of health
sciences and project director of the
Nurse-Managed Center, says that in less
than three years of existence, the center
has recorded 33,584 patient encounters.
In addition to the clinic, there’s a
mobile health unit equipped with a
dental chair, where aspiring dental
hygienists can clean teeth, apply sealants,
and perform other preventive services.
“Essentially, we’ve developed our own
clinical site for nursing students,” says
Meyer. The clinic accepts Medicare,
Medicaid, private insurance, and the
uninsured. Fees are reasonable: school
physicals run $25; a sick visit costs $35.
“The nurse-managed concept is an
excellent method of health care deliv-
ery,” says Meyer. “On average, our nurse
practitioners spend 15 to 16 minutes per
patient and provide a very thorough
assessment. It’s an excellent health care
delivery system.”
Meyer has fielded several phone calls
from other community colleges interested
in starting similar centers on campus. “It’s
a huge project with an extreme amount
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