On September 1, 2009, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation/Northwest Health Foundation Partners Investing in Nursing’s Future awarded $250,000 to UNMC College of Nursing and Vetter Foundation for a project designed to improve the quality of nursing care in long-term care facilities in the Midwest. The grant project was entitled, Midwest Partner for Geriatric Nursing and was led by Dr. Mary Cramer, Associate Professor and Chair at UNMC CON and Mr. Glenn Van Ekeren, President of Vetter Health Services. The RWJF/NWHF monies were matched by 15 regional businesses and foundations who partnered on the project and committed $250,000 bringing the total grant award to $500,000. These important regional partners represented over 60 long-term care facilities and included the following:

• Vetter Foundation
• UNMC College of Nursing
• Nebraska Methodist College
• Vetter Health Facilities
• NYE Senior Services
• Nebraska Health Care Foundation
• Tabitha Health Care
• Nebraska Health Care Association
• Golden Living
• Iowa West Foundation
• UNMC Center for Geriatric Education
• Nebraska Center for Nursing
• Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Nebraska
• University of Nebraska Foundation
• Hitchcock Foundation
• St. Jane de Chantal Long Term Care, Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital
• UNMC CON Class of 1960

The project included three components: EDUCATION, LEADERSHIP ACADEMY, CAREER LADDER.

Over the course of two years, 125 registered nurses employed in long-term care facilities participated in a web-based, 10-week course on geriatric nursing. The education was innovative and used state of the art technology and learner-centered strategies to keep nurses engaged. The results have been outstanding. To date, 96% of RNs have successfully passed the ANCC certification exam as Gerontological Nurses. Research has shown that there has been a statistically significant improvement in empowerment, knowledge, competence, collaboration, satisfaction, and intent to remain. The project’s certified Gerontological Nurses were invited to join the Nurse Leadership Academy, which was developed by the project in order to promote on-going competence, provide mentoring and resources, and serve as a social networking forum for nurses in long-term care. Our Nurse Leadership Academy has merged with the National Gerontological Nurses Association to become a Special Interest Group for Long Term Care.

Finally, the project worked with owners and administrators of long-term care to develop Best Practices for LTC Administration. This document serves as a guide for how to recognize RN educational achievement that promotes quality care , improves RN job satisfaction, and leads to increased retention.

The University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Nursing Continuing Nursing Education is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

This activity is provided for 30.0 contact hours under ANCC criteria.

Mission

Consistent with the Mission and Vision of the College of Nursing, the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Nursing Continuing Nursing Education (UNMC CON CNE) Program is committed to provision of the highest quality continuing education to nurses with basic and advanced nursing degrees in Nebraska and beyond and to those who may not have convenient access to traditional continuing education offerings.

Our continuing nursing education activities are learner-centered, based on adult learning principles, and meet the needs of a diverse local, regional, national and international audience of professional nurses. We create activities that use a variety of learning options in addition to those that are offered in traditional time frames and locations. These include distance learning options and self-paced activities delivered by computer and other modalities that the learner can complete in his/her own time and place.

Continuing nursing education provides systematic, planned learning experiences designed to enhance the knowledge, skills, competencies, and attitudes of nurses by addressing advances in the field of nursing and health care, new roles and functions for nurses, and state-of-the-art, evidence-based nursing knowledge and skills.

History

The UNMC CON CNE is well positioned to meet the continuing education needs of nurses throughout Nebraska and the nation. The UNMC is the only public, state-supported, health sciences center in the state of Nebraska. Its mission is to improve the health and quality of life of persons in Nebraska and beyond through leadership in education, research, clinical services, community services, and professional activities. The College of Nursing is integral to the academic health sciences center and is comprised of five campuses that span the 500 miles of Nebraska, across both urban and rural environments. The College of Nursing provides distance and online education opportunities to persons seeking academic degrees in nursing at the baccalaureate, master’s, doctoral (DNP) and PhD levels as well as continuing education in nursing.

Reflecting the mission of UNMC and the CON, the UNMC CON CNE has developed and maintained a sophisticated and highly functional online learning and evaluation system designed to meet the continuing education needs of nurses in Nebraska and beyond. Since 2006, more than 10,000 nurses from every state in the U.S., mostly NPs, have accessed the UNMC CON CNE online system and earned certificates of completion.

The UNMC CON CNE program is one of two American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) accredited providers of continuing nursing education in the state of Nebraska. We have maintained full accreditation for 30 years, and our current accreditation extends through 2012. In addition, we are accredited by the California State Board of Nursing.