Dogwood Village of Orange County awards scholarship to Danielle Wallace

Dogwood Village of Orange County has awarded a major scholarship to Germanna Community College nursing student Danielle Wallace.


Wallace is a 2013 Orange County High School graduate.

Vernon M. Baker, administrator of Dogwood Village Health
 and Rehabilitation and Senior Living, Germanna student
 Danielle Wallace and GCC Dean of Nursing Patti Lisk

She works at DVOC as a certified nurse’s aide and is studying at Germanna toward her associate’s degree and her registered nurse’s license. Her ultimate goal is earning a master’s of science in nursing degree and working in a hospital.


The new scholarship was established by the Dogwood Village of Orange County Foundation to promote the nursing profession.


Scholarships are awarded for up to $3,000 per year towards the initial licensure and associate’s degree in nursing, either as an LPN or RN, including the transition from LPN to RN.


Once awarded, the scholarship automatically renews as long as the student remains in good standing in the program. Once the licensure is received, the recipient agrees to work for DVOC in at least a regular part-time position for two years. DVOC also has a traditional reimbursement program that will help towards advanced degrees if recipients are interested once they receive the initial license.


“Dogwood Village of Orange County’s generous and forward-thinking scholarship program will help keep local residents healthy for decades to come,” Germanna President David A. Sam said. “As more and more of us retire and need for health care increases, there will be more and more competition for good nurses. Dogwood Village understands that, as do we.”


Germanna Dean of Nursing Patti Lisk said Wallace is an outstanding student whose intelligence, commitment to patients and upbeat personality will make her a great nurse.

Germanna, UMW agreements provide new pathway to BSN degree

Germanna Community College and the University of Mary Washington have signed three transfer and co-enrollment agreements that provide a new, easier path to a BSN.
Click here for video from the signing, which took place Monday, Aug. 11 at UMW's Stafford Campus.

UMW President Rick Hurley and GCC President David Sam talk
after signing agreements to provide a new pathway to BSN degrees.

"It's a great day to be a nurse in the Fredericksburg area,” said Patti Lisk, Dean of Nursing at Germanna.   “These agreements are pivotal to meeting the Institute of Medicine’s 2020 goal of 80 percent of baccalaureate prepared nurses in our area.”--Fredericksburg Today

UMW-Germanna agreement to ease path to BSN

An agreement between the University of Mary Washington and Germanna will make it easier to earn a bachelor's degree in nursing: http://goo.gl/FtWKSO

A Germanna nursing student works with a human simulator
in GCC's Virtual Hospital,

Potomac Health Foundation Fellows program supports health sciences students

The deadline for applications to the Potomac Health Foundation Fellows program has been extended to Aug. 25.

The core mission of this scholarship program is to help promising, second-year, full-time associate degree health sciences students who attend Germanna or Northern Virginia Community College pursue their academic goals and strengthen their leadership skills. In addition to receiving full tuition, the Fellows participate in a unique curriculum of activities designed to expand their community involvement and cultivate a strong foundation for a successful future.

Applicants must excel academically, exhibit exceptional leadership potential, participate in community service activities and demonstrate financial need. The applicant must be a US citizen and reside in the specific zip codes served by the Potomac Health Foundation (see below).

Ten students will be designated as Potomac Health Foundation Fellows. They will receive an award of $6,000 to support tuition, books, fees and reasonable expenses such as clinical supplies inherent to the healthcare field. In addition, if the Fellows have successfully met the program requirements during the academic year, they are eligible to apply for a summer stipend of $3,000 to support a 9-week work internship or community service project.

The Potomac Health Foundation Fellows will be selected in the spring prior to their second year at Northern Virginia or Germanna Community College. Finalists will be invited to participate in a selection process in Richmond in May at the expense of the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education. Scholarship winners will be selected on the basis of their applications and interviews. Notification follows immediately.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

* Be currently enrolled full time at Germanna or Northern Virginia Community Colleges in a health sciences program with first year completed by end of spring semester 2014.

* Reside in the following zip code areas: 20112, 22025, 22026, 22079, 22125, 22134, 22172, 22191, 22192, 22193, 22554, 22556.

* Demonstrate ability and commitment to a health science profession with intent to transfer to a Virginia public college or university.

* Have unmet financial need as determined by an application that includes student and family income and student and family contributions to tuition, books and fees.

* Demonstrate evidence of academic excellence, leadership potential, and personal integrity.

* Demonstrate evidence of community service or faith-based endeavors.

* Be nominated by a faculty member and endorsed by the president of the college or campus provost.

Q&A

1. When is the application deadline: All applications and supporting materials should be postmarked by August 25, 2014.

2. Does a student need a specific GPA to apply for the Fellows program?

Yes. To apply, a student must have successfully earned 30 credit hours with a minimum 3.5 GPA.

3. Does the 3.5 GPA requirement for a Fellow apply for second year courses or overall GPA?

The Fellows scholar should maintain an overall 3.5 GPA.

4. When are the two letters of recommendation and school transcripts due? Can they be sent separately from my application?

Applications can be completed online and letters can be sent separately but they must also be postmarked by August 25, 2014. If you are having a teacher or supervisor send a recommendation letter for you, please make sure they clearly identify the applicant and which scholarship they are recommending him/her for.

5. How does an applicant get an endorsement from the college president or campus provost?

The applicant should work with a financial aid counselor at the college and/or the head of the college’s educational foundation to secure a letter from the president or provost.

6. What sort of evidence does an applicant need to provide for community service or faith-based endeavors?

One of the recommendation letters required with the application should be from a community services supervisor or someone other than a family member or friend who can attest to the applicant’s achievements and character from personal knowledge. In addition, the applicant should provide information about such service in the application (essay question III).

7. Which year of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) should be submitted with the application?

The most recent FAFSA should be submitted with the application.

8. How much financial assistance will a Fellow receive?

A Fellow will receive up to $6,000 to cover tuition, books, and fees for the second year at Germanna or Northern Virginia Community College. Fellows must complete a full second year at their college.

9. Can a second year student transfer to another college in Virginia?

No. To be eligible for the Potomac Health Foundation Fellows program, a student must be enrolled at either Germanna or Northern Virginia Community College and must continue his/her studies there for the full second year.

10. Does the scholarship recipient have to enroll in the fall term?

Yes. If accepted into the Fellows scholarship program, the student must be enrolled in the fall of 2014 at either Germanna or Northern Virginia Community College.

11. Will a check be sent to the student or the college?

Payment will be sent to a Fellow’s college once he/she has signed a letter of scholarship acceptance and enrolled in first semester classes. Fellows will be reimbursed for their book purchases and other supplies related to their studies.

12. How often will the Fellows meet?

The Fellows will meet initially for a summer orientation and to share plans for their community service projects. Participation is required in at least two other programs to hear from prominent speakers and engage in cultural and motivational activities.

13. When is the summer stipend available?

A stipend of $3,000 will be provided to the Fellows who successfully complete their scholarship year and who participate in a summer work internship or an approved community service project. The stipend will be paid in 2 installments.

Germanna nursing grads come through when it counts

            By PAT MONICAL

During a routine checkup our primary care physician asked my husband if he ever experienced shortness of breath.  He said no, only upon exertion, and it went away quickly.  He is physically active, is up and down stairs all day and never experiences pain or becomes winded.  He did say if he carried a box of copier paper up to the second floor he gets a little winded but it goes away immediately.  All blood work is good but he does take a statin for cholesterol.  Just to be safe the doctor ordered a stress test, EKG, and echocardiogram.

On June 26^th my husband went in for the tests at the Pratt medical center next to Mary Washington Hospital.  The EKG was fine.  The echocardiogram was fine.  The stress test showed a problem.  The technician came out and told us we would have to go to the hospital for evaluation.  She told us to wait, that she would be contacting the hospital, and would prepare papers and images for us to take with us.  When she came out she very firmly said, “Go to the hospital….NOW.” 

In the ER they looked at the images and scheduled a catheterization immediately.  The cath lab cardiologist came out and abruptly stated, “This is very bad.  Very bad.  We don’t know why he is still alive.”  He was sent to ICU and scheduled for a quadruple bypass first thing in the morning.   We went from a semi-routine test to crisis management in the matter of a few hours.  I was blown away and by myself in a hospital I’ve never been to before.  We moved here in 2010.  I still don’t know the names of the streets and I have no history of any medical facilities.  Now we were facing serious surgery.

This is where Germanna Community College’s nursing program comes in.  The people at Mary Washington hospital (from administrative staff, volunteers, housekeeping staff, food service, clerks, parking lot attendants, security to all medical personnel) were efficient, professional, KIND, helpful, eager to be of service, and basically acted as if they knew what they were doing and had done it before.   We were treated as if we had a brain, things were explained to us, and we were constantly asked if we had any questions.  We weren’t a number and we mattered.  That human touch and professionalism scored highly with me.  And you know what?  Most of the nurses we encountered were GCC grads. 

I work at Germanna and there were times before this that I’ve encountered some students who have made me wonder if they have what it takes to take care of others.  There were times they were too busy talking on their phone to notice a door held for them or to even hold a door for others and other similar events.  I’d wonder if they’d ever notice the needs of others.  What I found is that, somehow, the necessary skills and caring were imparted to them during the course of their training. 

The nursing staff was constantly on the go, yet their attention was to their patient and their family members.  They didn’t wait for someone to ask them for help.  They offered it without asking.  They anticipated the needs and acted as if it was a privilege to serve.  That made a difficult and stressful situation a whole lot easier to handle for the patient and family. My husband came home four days after his surgery.  His progress has been amazing and                     that’s a testament to the care he received.

Thanks to Dean Patti Lisk and the rest of the nursing department at GCC.  I could not be more appreciative or impressed and I no longer wonder if a student has what it takes.  If they are in Germanna’s program, they do.

Germanna names Dr. Patti Lisk Dean of Nursing and Health Technologies

Germanna Community College has named Dr. Patti Lisk RN to succeed Mary Gilkey as its Dean of Nursing and Health Technologies, effective July 25.

Dean Gilkey passed away June 25th at VCU Medical Center in Richmond as a result of heart failure after a long battle with an autoimmune disorder. She was 55.

“Germanna is grateful for the steady leadership in our Nursing and Health Technology programs that has been provided by many good folks in that area during Dean Mary Gilkey's extended illness,”  GCC President David A. Sam said. ”Faculty and students have been through emotional upheavals and challenges. Meanwhile, reaccreditation of our nursing program is due next spring."

   Dr. Patti Lisk, Germanna's new Dean of Nursing and Health
Technologies, with 2013 graduate Kim Casey.

 

“Among those stepping forward during this difficult time has been Dr. Patti Lisk,” Dr. Sam said.

“While a full and open search process is vital to the integrity of our hiring process, there are times when an emergency appointment is warranted and appropriate.” he said.

“I am pleased to announce that Dr. Lisk has agreed to accept the position as Dean and maintain organizational continuity within our nursing team.,” Dr. Sam said.  [Vice President for Academic Affairs and Student Services]  Dr. Ann Woolford and I thought and the Virginia Community College System agree that this is a decision that makes sense at this time. We thank Dr. Lisk for her long service to Germanna and our students and congratulate her on her well-deserved appointment as Dean of Nursing and Health Technologies.”

Dr. Lisk has been a nursing faculty member at Germanna since 1983. She has taught full time since 1986.

Dr. Lisk wrote the original grant for the purchase of human patient simulators that began Germanna’s Virtual Hospital. She developed scenarios that address student learning needs throughout the nursing curriculum. In her work with nursing students , she has orchestrated increasingly complex and realistic Virtual Hospital’s experiences that allow students to think critically and make clinical decisions in a safe, controlled learning environment.

Among many honors Dr. Lisk  has received are the VCCS Technology in Education Award and the Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award, both in 2007.

Germanna mourns the passing of Dean Mary Gilkey

Germanna Community College Dean of Nursing and Health Technologies Mary Gilkey passed away Tuesday, June 25 at VCU Medical Center in Richmond of apparent heart failure. She had been battling an autoimmune disorder for some time. She was 55.

“With the passing of Dean Gilkey, Germanna has lost a leader whose boundless energy and enthusiasm helped the college double the size of its nursing program and graduate two classes a year,” said GCC President David A. Sam. “Our communities have lost a champion for quality health care for all their citizens.

  “Dean Gilkey worked diligently with area hospitals to anticipate and meet health care needs,” Dr. Sam said.

 “She loved her students and the College dearly.  The students she inspired will be her legacy. She will be missed.”
 Dr. Sam said the College’s deepest sympathy goes out to Dean Gilkey’s husband Charles and their three daughters, Claire, Caroline and Chelsea.

When Dean Gilkey, who came to Germanna in 2009, was 15, she began training as an aide in a nursing home. She said she was appalled by the inhumane "warehouse" approach in dealing with the elderly there. She decided to devote her life to improving care for patients.

 “It gave me a passion to take care of people,” she said.  “I’ve never stopped learning. And I’ve never stopped having that passion in my belly.”

Kim Casey, a 2013 Germanna nursing graduate, talked about Dean Gilkey coming to an awards ceremony in May despite being ill. "I went over and hugged her and told her daughter Chelsea how much it meant to us," Casey said, her voice filled with emotion.
In addition to working in hospitals and as a health insurance company in her native Hampton Roads area, she had a private practice as a psychotherapist.

Dean Gilkey had said her dream was to expand Germanna’s nursing and health technologies facilities at the College’s Locust Grove Campus.

 Dr. Patti Lisk is serving as Germanna’s Acting Dean of Nursing and Health Care Technologies.

Friday, June 28 7:30 p.m. Visitation 
Holloman-Brown Funeral Chapel
6568 Indian River Road
Virginia Beach, Va.

Saturday, June 29 11 a.m. Funeral Mass
Saint Matthew's Catholic Church
3314 Sandra Lane
Virginia Beach, Va. (this is just a few blocks from Holloman-Brown)

Interment following the Mass
Woodlawn Memorial Gardens
6309 E. Virginia Beach Blvd
Norfolk, Va,

Helping autistic Stafford teen changed Germanna nursing student's life

BY CATHY JETT
The Free Lance-Star

Getting hired as a personal-care attendant for a teen with autism changed Ann Marie Brown’s career path.


She was a sophomore majoring in history at the University of Mary Washington last year when she applied for a job helping 18-year-old Russell Cole practice such life skills as loading the dishwasher at his Stafford County home.


Two months after working with him, I had a revelation,” said Brown. “I’ve always been really interested in psychology, so finding a very practical way of using it was very exciting.”


Last fall she switched from UMW to Germanna Community College, where she’s enrolled in the nursing program. She plans to become a psychiatric nurse.


“Just observing behavior and trying to modify it is exciting to me,” Brown said. “There are a lot of people who need these services.”


She’s not alone in recognizing the demand. The disAbility Resource Center, 409 Progress St. in Fredericksburg, has been holding workshops for people who want to learn more about becoming consumer-directed, or personal-care, assistants.


The next one will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Smoot Library, 8562 Dahlgren Road in King George County. Registration is required, and can be made by contacting Kim Lett at 540/373-2559 or klett@cildrc.org.


“We want to enlarge,,,  MORE

GCC's Mittura named VCCS Faculty Fellow

Congratulations to Germanna Community College Professor of Nursing Karen Mittura for being selected a Virginia Community College System Chancellor's Faculty Fellow for 2012-13. Prof. Mittura is one of three faculty members in the VCCS to receive this award. In addition to being recognized for her outstanding work as a faculty member, Prof. Mittura has been awarded a one-year fellowship to continue her studies. She will pursue a Doctorate of Nursing Practice in Educational Leadership at Case Western University

Lee Kirk, Culpeper Regional Health Care and Culpeper Regional Hospital Foundation boost GCC nursing

Lee Kirk, President and CEO of Culpeper Regional Health Care, presents Dr. David A. Sam, president of Germanna Community College, with a check for $35,000 in support of the college's nursing and Allied Health program Friday at a scholarship reception at Fawn Lake. From left, Mike Catell, director of the GCC Educational Foundation, Tiffany Bell, Culpeper Regional Hospital emergency department director, Butch Davies of the GCC Educational Foundation, Dr. Sam, and Cindy Colson, executive director of the Culpeper Hospital Foundation.
Kirk said CRHC and the hospital foundation have been enthusiastic supporters of GCC because of the quality of the nurses and other health care professionals it produces for the community. Germanna President Sam thanked Kirk, saying that the support of CRHC and the foundation has helped make it possible for the college to double the size of its nursing program and will make a difference for the Culpeper area for decades to come.

GERMANNA’S MITTURA CHOSEN AS ONE OF 20 NURSING PROFESSORS ACROSS AMERICA TO HELP GUIDE DEVELOPMENT OF ‘VIRTUAL HOSPITAL’ APPROACH IN NATION'S COLLEGES

A human simulator in Germanna's Virtual Hospital. The high-tech devices mimic symptoms and human reaction to treatment--or lack of proper treatment allowing nursing students to learn and gain confidence in a risk-free environment.

Germanna Community College Prof. Karen Mittura, RN, is one of 20 nurse educators selected from across the nation for a year-long Leadership Development Program for Simulation Educators. The National League for Nursing faculty development initiative is designed for those assuming leadership roles in the field of using human simulators in nursing education.

Those selected from institutions around the U.S, will study for a year under Dr. Pamela Jeffries, associate dean for academic affairs at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. She nationally known for her research and work in developing simulations and online teaching and learning.

The concept of a "Virtual Hospital" was a result of a collaborative effort by Prof. Mittura and GCC’s Dr. Patti Lisk, who have been trailblazers in the field. It was their vision to use of high fidelity simulation in the nursing program at Germanna. Working on the original grant for the purchase of high fidelity simulators, Prof. Mittura teamed with Dr. Lisk to create realistic experiences in a lab setting for the nursing students.

A group of educators and healthcare leaders from the Netherlands toured Germanna's Virtual Hospital last week.

Prof. Mittura works to combine simulation scenarios that fit various types of patients to ensure student exposure to situations they will encounter in real-life hospital settings. Prof. Mittura received the Technology in Education award with Dr. Lisk for their 2007 presentation “The Virtual Hospital: A New World of Independent Thinking, Leading and Learning.”

National League for Nursing program participants recently began their experience with two days in Orlando prior to the NLN's 2011 Education Summit. The group will participate in leadership development webinars, exchange ideas and best practices in simulation in private forums, review existing research, visit simulation centers around the country to evaluate resources and operations, consult with companies on technological innovations and attend conferences.

###

Germanna student realizes dream of becoming a registered nurse; sets goal for 4-year-old daughter

Mary Washington Hospital registered nurse Tiffany Henderson, above, credits Germanna with getting her where she wanted to go, career-wise.

Fredericksburg resident Tiffany Henderson, 26, had more than her own career in mind when she entered the Registered Nursing Program at Germanna Community College.
She wanted to be a good role model for her 4-year-old daughter, Aleah.
Henderson completed the RN program at Germanna in May, passed her state board exam, and is now a critical care nurse at Mary Washington Hospital.
She was in the Licensed Practical Nursing program at GCC she became pregnant with her daughter and left college. When her daughter was a couple of months old, she returned, entering the RN program.
For the past six years, she had worked as a registrar in the Mary Washington Hospital emergency room, watching others perform the job she longed to do herself.
“I definitely wanted to finish before Aleah started school—to focus on her studies and not my own.
“She asks me: ‘Mommy, are you going to work to make people feel better? Are you going to take people’s temperature?’ “
Henderson said she’d like Aleah to become a nurse, too.
“I wanted to set an example for her,” Henderson said, “to do something that will help her take care of herself in the future. She saw me go through the process. Children follow your example.”
Henderson said the GCC Nursing program: “gave me what I needed to reach my goal of becoming a registered nurse. I was ready when I took the state board exam. There were no surprises in the questions because of the way Germanna prepared us. I feel like I got what I paid for. I’m satisfied.”
She is one of nine critical care nurses at Mary Washington Hospital, all from the same class at Germanna.
GCC Assistant Professor of Nursing Debbie VanNortwick taught Tiffany in both clinical and classroom settings. “She consistently sought to understand the whole picture in order to develop critical thinking skills,” VanNortwick said. “In clinicals [live hospital settings], she was always kind to the patients and her coworkers. She demonstrated the ability to be a strong member of the health care team. She will be an asset to any organization.”
Dean of Nursing Mary Gilkey said: “Accounts like Tiffany’s are typical, especially in today's economy where many moms, dads, sons and daughters of all ages are working very hard to find a means to support their families.”
She said Germanna Nursing, and other programs, including GCC Workforce and career and technical studies: “are challenged to meet the ever-growing workforce needs of our region. It’s our hope that if families have not looked to Germanna to prepare them to fill job openings in growing fields that they take a second look and see just how we can be a means to affordably provide an education for career and lifetime educational choices.”

Gov. McDonnell appoints former Germanna Dean Jane Ingalls to Virginia State Board of Nursing

The three deans who have overseen GCC's nursing program: Dr. Jane Ingalls, (left), the late Dale Featherston (center) and current Dean Mary Gilkey. Dr. Ingalls has been appointed to the State Board of Nursing.

Gov. Bob McDonnell has appointed a former Dean of Nursing at Germanna Community College to the Virginia State Board of Nursing.
Dr. Jane R. Ingalls of Fredericksburg is a registered nurse and Professor Emeritus at Germanna Community College, where she retired as Dean of Nursing in 2009.
"I have so much respect for the Board of Nursing staff and the members of the Board," Dr. Ingalls said.
She did an internship with the Board of Nursing in 1993, when she was working toward her doctorate.
Dr. Ingalls said the function of the board is "to protect the health, safety and well being of the citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia," through both practices and the education of future nurses. "That's a pretty important task. I'm just really honored to be appointed. It's a real opportunity for me to serve."
GCC Dean of Nursing Mary Gilkey R.N. said the Board's mission of assuring "quality patient care delivery by caring and competent caregivers" is dear to Dr. Ingalls' heart. Gilkey said Dr. Ingalls' experience as a nurse educator and care advocate "will serve all Virginians well ... and, most assuredly, assist us all to best define the future of nursing."
Along with Dr. Ingalls, Gov. McDonnell appointed Evelyn A. Lindsay of Richmond, an LPN at Virginia Commonwealth University Health System, and
Trula E. Minton of Richmond, Chief Nursing Officer at CJW Medical Center.

Germanna Dean of Nursing completes mental health first aid training program

Germanna Dean of Nursing Mary Gilkey has graduated from a Mental Health First Aid trainer program offered in Boston. She is now certified to teach Mental Health First Aid.
According to mentalhealthfirstaid.org:
Mental Health First Aid is a groundbreaking public education program that helps the public identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders.
It's offered as an interactive 12-hour course that presents an overview of mental illness and substance use disorders in the U.S. and introduces participants to risk factors and warning signs of mental health problems, builds understanding of their impact, and overviews common treatments.
Upon class completion, participants are certified as Mental Health First Aiders. The claas provides skills, resources and knowledge to help an individual in crisis connect with appropriate professional, peer, social, and self-help care.
The course can benefit a variety of audiences and key professions, including: primary care professionals, employers and business leaders, faith communities, school personnel and educators, state police and corrections officers, nursing home staff, mental health authorities, state policymakers, volunteers, young people, families and the general public.

DALE FEATHERSTON, ICONIC 'FORCE OF NATURE' WHO GAVE LIFE TO THE GERMANNA COMMUNITY COLLEGE NURSING PROGRAM, WILL BE MISSED

This photo was taken one of the last times that all three Germanna deans of nursing had lunch together. Left to right, Jane Ingalls, Dale Featherston and Mary Gilkey. “That meal was most enjoyable as it was peppered with her very wry sense of humor-- she had a contagious giggle,” current GCC Dean of Nursing & Health Technologies Mary Gilkey said.

Dale Featherston was a nurse in a M.A.S.H. unit in Korea. She once snuck an injured dog into the Mary Washington Hospital emergency room for treatment. And her revolutionarily proactive, intelligent and caring approach to teaching nursing made Germanna Community College’s program something special from the beginning.

Featherston, who was director of nursing when Germanna opened its doors at Locust Grove in 1970, passed away on Feb. 28, 2011. She was far ahead of her time, teaching nursing 30 years ago the way it's being taught today, with an emphasis on preventing illness rather than waiting to treat it after it develops, and working to create a healthy community as a whole to prevent the spread of disease and reduce health care costs.

“She called waiting for people to become ill ‘sick care,’ not ‘health care,’ said Dr. Jane Ingalls, R.N., who succeeded Featherston as dean of nursing at Germanna Commmunity College in 1992. Dr. Ingalls said it required courage for Featherston to take what was then considered a radical approach.

"She would present ideas to the Board of Nursing that they did not particularly approve of - but within a few years, those ideas became models for other nursing programs and the Board wanted her to share them all the time," said Sandy Demotses, who worked with Featherstone.

“Dale Featherston pioneered Germanna Community College's nursing program,” said GCC President David A. Sam. “She was a force of nature and a loved presence. We at Germanna will miss her deeply and extend our deepest condolences to her family.

“She provided visionary and entrepreneurial leadership---without her, Germanna's nursing program would not be the world-class program that it has become," Dr. Sam said. "Through her leadership, her sense of humor, her ethic of compassionate care, and her spirit of challenge, Dale Featherstone served not only as a great teacher and a powerful leader, but lived a life of service that is the model of the nurse who ministers to the body, the mind and the spirit.”

“Dale was the conscience of the college, always loving, always caring, and always giving. Mother Teresa now has company,” said Dr. Rich Gossweiler, a professor of history at GCC who was Dean of Instruction and Student Services during Featherstone's time at at Germanna.

Alice Doeppe MSN, RN, an assistant professor of nursing at GCC, was one of Featherston’s students during the 1980s.

Doeppe said that after retirement from Germanna, Featherston helped organize nursing programs in Alaska and Russia and worked with Indian reservations to improve nursing there. She also developed the nursing program at Blue Ridge Community College.

“Dale was a M.A.S.H. Army nurse during the Korean War and loved to tell her students stories about her adventures,” Doeppe said. “She loved animals as much as people, and I think my favorite story was the one she told about when she was a nurse at Mary Washington Hospital. Apparently she or a friend had an ailing dog that they smuggled into the E.R. in the middle of the night for treatment.

“Dale influenced me in so many ways, but perhaps the biggest impact on me was the example she set, Doeppe said. “Her honesty, fairness, love of mankind, and passion for teaching ignited the spark in me that has led me to where I am today. Just to have known Dale Featherston was a privilege and an honor.”

Featherston, who lived in Fredericksburg, was devoted to her family and cared for her parents, a sister with disabilities, and her ailing brother.

“She had a gruff voice and a most contagious laugh that made you feel happy just to be around her,” Doeppe said.

“Dale Featherston was a nurse’s nurse,” said Mary Gilkey, who is now GCC’s Dean of Nursing & Health Technologies. “She was known for her advanced vision for the role of nursing. She was committed to making sure students were prepared to serve and provide the best health care for their patients. Even in her final days she was urging us at Germanna to petition a way to bring baccalaureate education to Germanna so all ‘her’ graduates would return to school and get that degree. In the short time I interacted with her she clearly shared with me the importance of believing that ‘each one of us can make a difference.’”

“I urge all those who were impacted by her to continue her mission,” Dean Gilkey said. “Provide the best patient care you can.”

“She walked in the room and took over --- in an exciting and positive way,” said GCC’s Locust Grove Campus Coordinator of Counseling Sarah Somerville. “She very frequently wore black leather pants and and a jacket and she was so striking.  Her hoarse- toned voice was mesmerizing....she had been a heavy smoker and in those days you could smoke anywhere in the building.  She cared so much for the students -- I can genuinely say I learned some of my passion and compassion for students from her.  She would come into Counseling and tell you the entire life story of a student and what they needed in way of help.  She many times confided that she had ‘taken them under her wing’ and if I am not mistaken, even probably put some of the most desperate in her basement when the need was at that level.  She would do absolutely anything for a student.  She wanted them to succeed and she knew them all--each and every one...  She was aggressive in making sure they got all the support and resources they needed to have a chance at success.
 
'There is no exaggeration in what you hear about the extent of Dale Featherston's graciousness and charity towards all she came in contact with -- but especially and particularly Germanna nursing students," Somerville said. "She was tough, though....She didn't put up with nonsense. She expected the students to step up and meet the bar she set for them.  She knew what they had to face as nurses and she did not sugar coat anything.”
 


Survivors include her daughter, Susie Kilian and husband, Jim; three granddaughters, Rachel, Rebecca and Olivia; and her sister, Mary F. Ball.

A rosary service will be held at 6 p.m. on Thursday, March 3, 2011, with visitation following until 8 p.m. at Covenant Funeral Service, Fredericksburg.

A funeral Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, March 4, 2011 at St. Mary Catholic Church in Fredericksburg with Rev. Donald Rooney officiating. Interment will follow in Sunset Memorial Gardens.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Germanna Community College Educational Foundation, Dale Featherston Endowment for Nursing Scholarships, 2130 Germanna Highway, Locust Grove, VA 22508.

Dean Gilkey added: “We can all honor her when we recommitment ourselves to our roles as nurses and as a further tribute please consider sending a small donation in her memory to the school she loved, Germanna Community College Nursing Program. She believed that nursing gave people the means to feed, clothe and take care of their family as they care for others. We need to continue this legacy. RIP Dale, you will be missed.”



Michael Zitz
Director of Media & Community Relations
Germanna Community College
540/846-5163

HCA donates $100,000 to Germanna Community College

Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center donates $100,000 to Germanna Community College
Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center has given the nursing program at Germanna Community College extra reason to celebrate the New Year. The hospital’s Chief Executive Officer, Tim Tobin, presented the college with a check for $100,000 Friday.

“Nursing schools are the lifeblood of a hospital’s workforce,” said Tobin. “This donation recognizes the vital work being done by Germanna Community College, and it represents the beginning of what will surely be a strong and collaborative working relationship between our two organizations.”

"We at Germanna Community College value and appreciate this second donation from HCA as further testimony of our growing and mutually beneficial partnership," Germanna President David Sam said. "Their support for and trust in our nursing program will be a vital factor in our ability to produce the increasing numbers of nurses and other health professionals desperately needed in our area, especially as the new Spotsylvania Medical Center opens its doors across the street from our campus entrance. This is a promising start for the New Year for Germanna, and those in our community who need our help, thanks to HCA."

HCA has donated a total of $150,000 to GCC. Medicorp has donated $1.4 million to Germanna over the years.

Construction activity on the hospital and the adjacent Pogonia Medical Arts office building continue on schedule. The office building is expected to open its doors in March (confirm?), with the hospital to follow in June. SRMC will add some 375 full-time jobs to the economy at that time, with more to follow as the hospital grows. “The countdown is on,” said Tobin. “Building a new enterprise from the ground up is a challenging but exhilarating experience, and our entire team is grateful for the ongoing support we’re receiving from physicians, the business community, county officials and others.”

About Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center: This technologically advanced, 126-bed hospital will open June 2010 on a 75-acre campus near Fredericksburg, just south of Exit 126 of Interstate 95 and adjacent to GCC's Fredericksburg Campus. It will have all private rooms and provide a wide range of in- and outpatient services, including 24-hour emergency care, obstetrics, advanced diagnostic imaging, intensive care, cardiac catheterization, orthopedics, and behavioral health services. Adjoining the hospital will be the Pogonia Medical Arts office building, an 80,000-square-foot complex that will house physician offices.

About HCA Virginia: HCA Virginia is the state’s most comprehensive healthcare network with two dozen locally managed hospitals and outpatient centers in Central, Southwestern, and Northern Virginia. With a workforce of more than 10,000, it is one of the state's largest employers and healthcare providers. Each year HCA Virginia facilities provide approximately $100 million in free charity care to needy patients and pays $100 million in taxes that support vital community services.

AS CRITICAL SHORTAGE OF NURSES GROWS, REP. ROB J. WITTMAN PUSHES THROUGH FEDERAL FUNDING FOR GERMANNA NURSING PROGRAM

Federal omnibus spending bill will help GCC Nursing Program in part through expansion of Virtual Hospital.
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The Culpeper Star-Exponent reports that Germanna's nursing program will be getting a boost from Washington:

RICHMOND — Germanna Community College will receive $285,000 in federal money thanks to Rep. Rob J. Wittman, R-1st.

The Westmoreland native requested the funds through the omnibus spending bill signed into law by President Barack Obama on Wednesday, granting $155.1 million to 186 projects into Virginia localities, university and nonprofit groups.

That spending amounts to $19.97 per capita for Virginia, less than the national per capita figure of $22.39, according to the government watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense.

The GCC money would help pay for a nurse training initiative and state-of-the-art equipment.


The spending bill allocates $287,000 for upgrades to the combined sewer overflow system in Richmond, $400,000 for security upgrades at the Oliver Hill Courts Building and $617,500 for GRTC buses.

While pet projects continue to benefit, Virginia’s congressional delegation varies on the view of earmarks and the method for doling them out.

Rep. Eric I. Cantor, R-7th, didn’t put in for any. He favors a freeze on earmarks because he thinks they contribute to the federal deficit.

Sen. Jim Webb, on the other hand, sent out news releases Wednesday about project money he secured.


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GERMANNA SURGICAL SCRUB NURSE CLASS READY TO OPERATE AT DTC

Surgical Scrub Nurse class consisting of Kaliefah Vickers, Lauren Przepiora, Elsy Hernandez, Nancy Beebe, Mae Brock and Shavonda Johnson, is taught by Jennifer Corwin.

The GCC Surgical Scrub Nurse class, taught by Jennifer Corwin, is growing fast because of the increasing need for scrub nurses that will be created when Culpeper Regional Hospital expands and new hospitals are constructed in Spotsylvania and Stafford counties

The Surgical Scrub Nurse class practices in a simulated operating room at the Daniel Technical Center in Culpeper

For Germanna, Culpeper Regional Hospital partnership in preparing a new generation of nurses helps meet critical health care need

Germanna student Jillian Witkowski, right, works with, from left, Culpeper Regional Hospital Case Manager Deb Griffith and VP Janice Suter in this Star-Exponent photo.
By NATE DELESLINE III

The Culpeper Star-Exponent

Germanna Community College students are applying their emerging nursing skills hands-on at Culpeper Regional Hospital.

All of the students are part of the school’s two-year registered nurse program and will officially earn the title after passing a state exam after their two years of academic and clinical work.

In addition to lightening the load on the regular full-time staff, the new nurses will help to reverse a nationwide shortage of nurses.

“We’re very thankful to have students,” said Janice Suter, CRH’s vice president of nursing services.

Industry experts point to many factors that have contributed to the nursing shortage. One is an increase in the volume of health-care services delivered to an aging population of baby boomers. Add to that shift work, long working hours and pay that isn’t always equal to the responsibilities and stress of the job and analysts say that it’s difficult to recruit young people and keep experienced personnel in the industry.

But student Shanon Fleming said working toward being a registered nurse is the right path for her.

“I enjoy talking with the patients, I like the fast pace,” she said. And after working as a nursing assistant for more than a decade, Fleming said that she wanted to take the next step in her career and education.

For first-year students, who do clinical work four days each week, a typical day begins around 7 a.m. After arriving, students meet with instructors and find out which patients they’ll be responsible for that day. The students normally see a different patient each day, and their work varies depending on the needs of the patient.

The students work in the hospital’s medical-surgical unit, an intermediate area that is one step below intensive care. They assist with many aspects of patient care including monitoring and documenting vital signs, giving medications, changing IVs, helping patients get dressed and groom themselves and most often, providing a willing and sympathetic ear. Each student’s work is monitored by the school instructors and experienced nurses.

“A lot of people just want to talk,” said Jillian Witkowski, another first-year nursing student. “I’ve really enjoyed it,” she said. “I had no idea what to expect.” Although seeing someone different each day is difficult, she said it adds a unique challenge and appeal to the job.

Clinical work continues for two years, throughout the RN program. During their second year, students begin working six days each week and may care for several patients at once.

According to a 2005 report from the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association, the state will need more than 22,000 new nurses by 2020.

To augment the ranks, the Virginia Community College System challenged its 23 schools to produce 80 percent more nursing graduates. About 70 nursing students graduated from the program in 2007, twice the size of the 2005 graduating class, according to school statement.

“We celebrate this accomplishment,” Germanna President David A. Sam said, “but we could not have done this without the support of Culpeper Regional Hospital and other health care providers who work with us in public-private partnerships. In return for their support, we’re excited to be able to send nursing graduates to the hospitals in our communities, where there is such a critical need.”

SURGE IN GRADUATION RATE PUSHES GERMANNA TO THE FOREFRONT AS STATE, NATION TRY TO COPE WITH CRITICAL SHORTAGE OF NURSES

A Germanna surgical scrub nursing class is preparing to work in operating rooms at area hospitals.

BY KAREN BOLIPATA

The Free Lance-Star


Meaghan Gallagher inserted a syringe into a vial of medicine, careful not to withdraw more than she needed.



"Now you see the difference between giving babies medicine [compared] to adults," nursing instructor Judy Hampton told her.



Gallagher, 22, approached her patient, a toddler who wasn't particularly happy to see her.



"Can I see your arm, buddy?" Gallagher asked the squealing child.



It was Gallagher's first time doing the procedure, and Hampton, a registered nurse, stayed by her side.



In the halls of the pediatric ward of Mary Washington Hospital, Gallagher's classmates--all nursing students at Germanna Community College--had their own patients to worry about.



When they finish the two-year program, they'll help offset the nationwide nursing shortage.



"That is a crisis that surrounds us in our community," said Jane Ingalls, director of Germanna's Nursing and Allied Health Programs.



By 2020, Virginia will need an additional 22,600 nurses, according to a 2005 report released by the Virginia Community College System and the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association.



The VCCS challenged its schools to produce 80 percent more nursing graduates to meet that need, Ingalls said.



With an 88 percent success rate in graduating nurses, Germanna is at the forefront of those efforts, followed by Lord Fairfax Community College with 85 percent.



Overall, the VCCS has a 70 productivity rate in turning out nursing graduates.



"We are so excited about the success that our efforts of enrollment and expansion and student retention" have brought, Ingalls said.



In 2002 to 2003, 817 students graduated from VCCS nursing programs, according to a press release. Last year, the number rose to 1,365.



At Germanna, about 70 nursing students graduated from the program in 2007, nearly doubling the 2005 graduating class.



The majority of Germanna nursing graduates work in area hospitals, and two new hospitals--Stafford Hospital Center and Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center--are opening in the next few years.



"In order to meet the increasing demand, we're going to need more qualified teachers, and we need space," Ingalls said.



When Gallagher graduates in May, she hopes to work at a hospital in the Fredericksburg area before finding a job at a children's hospital.



She said she's not worried about the nursing shortage.



"I think having a degree in nursing, you'll be able to find a job," she said. "There's always going to be someone needed."

Posted by Publications at 2:52 PM
Labels: Culpeper, Fredericksburg, Germanna Community College, higher education, Jane Ingalls, nursing, Orange, Spotsylvania, Stafford
3 comments:
Nurse Jen Doll said...
Nurse Jen Doll said...
The shortage of nurses is a big time problem. the problem is because of education. they put too many people on the wait list in schools. its very frustrating.

November 12, 2008 8:15 PM
Dr. Jane Ingalls, RN, GCC Director of Nursing and Allied Health said...
We admit as many qualified nursing students as we have qualified teachers, seats in classes, and spaces in assigned clinical settings. We do not keep waiting lists, but ask qualified applicants who are not offered admission to reapply for the next appropriate admission cycle.

November 12, 2008 8:17 PM
MikeZ said...
Germanna is currently engaged in an effort to raise funds for much needed expansion and renovation of our nursing facility and for the hiring of additional faculty members.
If we can find community backing for this, it will increase our capacity for providing learning opportunities for students, increase the number of nursing graduates we produce even further and will help offset the local shortage of nurses.

November 13, 2008 8:45 PM
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