June 16, 2009
YORK, Pa. – The sluggish economy has not slowed down expansion for York College of Pennsylvania’s nursing program, which recently added a nurse practitioner certification track to its master’s program.
“Unlike the current economy, we find ourselves in an exciting time of expansion and growth,” said Jacquelin Harrington, DEd, chair of the Department of Nursing.
Created in 1977, nursing is the largest undergraduate major at York College, enrolling more than 500 students annually. In addition to providing an undergraduate nursing degree (with generic, LPN, and RN-to-BS tracks), the Nursing program expanded its offerings in 2001 to include a master of science in nursing with clinical nurse specialist and education tracks, followed by a certified registered nurse anesthetist track that graduated its first class in May. Most recently, the master’s program added a nurse practitioner (NP) certification track.
“NP is pretty hot right now,” Harrington said. That’s because nurse practitioners, who are capable of being primary care practitioners, offer a more cost-effective way to meeting patients’ needs, according to Harrington. In addition, Pennsylvania Gov. Edward Rendell’s strategy to address the shortage of health care workers calls for more nurse practitioners across the state.
“Several major health care organizations in the Central Pennsylvania area, including WellSpan and Pinnacle Health, told us they needed nurse practitioners,” Harrington said. “We listened to that community and responded to their need.”
Associate Professor of Nursing Andrea Wolf came on board in September as the new director of the Nurse Practitioner Program, which was approved by the Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing in April. Because the Program will heavily utilize simulation as students learn to assess and diagnose illnesses, an additional high-fidelity human patient simulator was purchased this summer.
The Nursing Department already owned a VitalSim manikin, which simulates heart, lung and bowel sounds, blood pressure and hearth rhythms. The new simulator, SimMan 3G, has those same attributes, but he is also wireless and has pulses, reacting pupils and intravenous access. In addition, faculty can speak through a microphone to give the manikin a voice.
“This simulator has all the bells and whistles,” Harrington said. “A lot of assessment skills can be learned on it. We can set up a scenario, then allow students to interact. The results are quickly apparent, so the students learn right then and there what they need to do differently. The simulators allow them to practice in situations where no harm is rendered.”
The Nurse Practitioner Program’s six new students will begin this fall and be joined by several current students who have been waiting for the Program. “Limiting the enrollment will allow us to maintain the quality of the program,” Harrington said. “We don’t want to just push a lot of people through and compromise that quality.”
Located in southcentral Pennsylvania, York College offers more than 50 baccalaureate majors in professional programs, the sciences and humanities to its 4,600 undergraduate students. The College also offers master's programs in business, education and nursing. A center of affordable academic excellence, York is dedicated to the intellectual, professional and social growth of its students. The College helps them develop a concrete plan to attain academic growth and career success; encourages them to try in the “real world” what they learn in the classroom; and prepares them to be professionals regardless of the career they pursue.
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