2001 Second Place Award

The University of the Virgin Islands
St. Thomas, Virgin Islands
Gloria B. Callwood, PhD, Chair
Edith M. Ramsay-Johnson, EdD (Faculty Contact)
Phone: (340) 693-1290 Fax: (340) 693-1285 E-mail: eramsay@uvi.edu

Abstract
        The Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program at the University of the Virgin Islands offers a curriculum that operationalizes the faculty's belief that "nursing is a humanistic and caring profession, the essence of which is commitment to service".
        At all clinical levels, sophomore through senior, our students are provided didactic content and clinical experiences that promote development of values and competencies needed to provide high-quality care to healthy and frail older adults and their families in a variety of settings. At the sophomore level, clinical experiences are gained at an assisted living site and a nursing and rehabilitation facility.
        The designated gerontologic nursing course, NUR 319, Care of Adults II, is a required junior-level course. Its stated focus is nursing care of the middle age and older adult with chronic health problems. A variety of active learning strategies are used, and clinical experiences are designed to enable students to care for older adults who are institutionalized, those who are hospitalized, and those who reside in the community.
        Student home-visiting caseloads in the senior-level Community Health course include families with older adults. Additionally, students may elect to use older adults and issues that affect older adults as the focus of their senior capstone leadership project.

Innovation
        In the designated gerontologic nursing course innovations include eliciting and reporting life stories, developing and implementing health promotion projects for older adult groups, using the radio and other media to increase the impact of student health promotion efforts, and exploring ethical and legal issues through formal debates.

Replication
        The learning experiences described can be easily replicated in any community because they do not require advanced technology or the purchase of additional resources. A committed faculty member who uses a variety of community settings to promote student interaction with older adults with varying levels of self-care ability will foster student acquisition of the essential values, competencies and knowledge. Creating a milieu in which students can operationalize the conceptual base presented in the didactic component of the curriculum will assure internalization of the desired attributes.