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Ecumen and Minnesota State Mankato Team Up To Enhance Nursing Care for Minnesota Seniors

Ecumen and Minnesota State University, Mankato, are teaming up to help address the state’s acute shortage of nurses working in long-term geriatric care.

Nursing faculty from across the state will gather in Mankato August 7-9, 2018, for a grant-funded pilot workshop designed to help educators refresh their knowledge and skills in senior care and bring current best practices in geriatrics into their classrooms and clinical settings.

“Minnesota’s population is aging rapidly, and future nurses will be increasingly called on to meet the complex needs of older patients in both hospital and long-term care settings,” said Lynn Kuechle, Coordinator of the Glen Taylor Nursing Institute at Minnesota State Mankato. “The goal of this workshop is to work directly with faculty in shaping the future of senior care – which starts in the classroom.”

For the past four years, Ecumen has been collaborating with the Minnesota State system on its Ecumen Scholars program which offers fellowships, internships and clinical rotations at Ecumen sites to nursing students interested in senior care, especially in rural Minnesota. “As we worked with nursing students and faculty, we learned that faculty have a strong interest in enhancing both training and interest in senior care,” said Brett Anderson, Ecumen Vice President of Nursing Services. “Minnesota State Mankato’s School of Nursing is a leader in educating nurses in elder care and family care, and we’re very pleased to be partnering with them to meet this need and help improve the quality and accessibility of care for Minnesota’s seniors.”

The sessions, conducted by Ecumen’s nursing staff and Minnesota State Mankato nursing faculty, will be held at Ecumen Pathstone Living, an award-winning senior care campus in Mankato, and at the Minnesota State Mankato’s Maverick Family Nursing Simulation Center.  Topics include enhancing clinical skills, improving quality in long-term care, and promoting critical thinking. A day of training at the Simulation Center will focus on the difference between dementia and delirium as well as end of life, hospice and palliative care.

 


Ecumen Scholars Fellowship Program Graduates Its 2016 Class

Ten nursing students recently graduated from the Ecumen Scholars Fellowship Program after an intensive three-week program learning about senior care.

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Ecumen Scholars Internship Program for MnSCU Student Nurses Accepting Applications Through April

The Ecumen Scholars Internship Program is accepting applications through April, 2016, from Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) student nurses interested in working in senior health care. 

To be eligible, student nurses must be enrolled in a MnSCU nursing program (baccalaureate or two-year associate degree nursing program) and have completed the fundamental nursing course; be preparing for RN or LPN licensure; and have a satisfactory academic record.

Interns will have the opportunity to job-shadow an experienced nursing professional, who will provide the support and guidance needed to grow professionally.  The Ecumen Scholars Internship Program is designed to increase clinical and technical skills needed for senior care, develop organizational and interpersonal skills, critical thinking skills, and provide mentorship.

“These internships give students the opportunity to apply classroom learning to a senior care setting,” said Jody Bloemke, the Ecumen Scholars Program Manager. “Interns practice hands-on care and develop clinical skills under the supervision of a nurse preceptor.”

Up to 100 internships will be available from May through August at the following Ecumen sites:

—Ecumen Bethany Community, Alexandria, MN

—Ecumen Detroit Lakes, Detroit Lakes, MN

—Ecumen Evergreens, Fargo, ND

—Ecumen Oaks & Pines, Hutchinson, MN

—Ecumen of Litchfield, Litchfield, MN

—Ecumen Pathstone Living, Mankato, MN

—Ecumen Evergreens, Moorhead, MN

—Ecumen North Branch, North Branch, MN

—Ecumen Scenic Shores, Two Harbors, MN

—Ecumen Meadows, Worthington, MN

Participants in the internship program who successfully complete all requirements will receive a $1,000 stipend.  For more information and to apply go to www.EcumenScholars.org.  


Ecumen Bethany Nurse Awarded First Ecumen Scholars Hiring/Retention Incentive Program Payout

From The Echo Press in Alexandria

Ecumen Bethany Community in Alexandria recently handed out the first award through its Ecumen Scholars program. The program is a workforce development partnership between Ecumen and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) to help address a shortage of senior care nurses in rural areas.

Mary Moore, who recently celebrated her first-year anniversary as a nurse at Ecumen Bethany Community, received a $2,000 bonus as a participant in the Ecumen Scholar program. She was awarded her practical nursing diploma in December 2014 from Alexandria Technical and Community College, where she qualified as an Ecumen Scholar.

Ecumen Scholars are eligible for financial bonus payments when they complete their clinical rotations, fellowship or internship with Ecumen and are hired in a full-time LPN or RN position at an eligible Ecumen rural site within one year of graduation.

Bonus payments are awarded at the one-year, three-year, five-year and 10-year anniversaries of the start date. Amounts increase at each of these anniversary years, totaling up to $20,000.

“Ecumen believes in hiring and investing in dedicated, passionate people like Mary Moore who make our communities great places to live and work,” said Deb Buker, Director of Nursing at Ecumen Bethany Community. “The Ecumen Scholars program is a great way for students to learn about long-term care while advancing their careers.” 

For more information about the Ecumen Scholars go to ecumenscholars.org.

 

 

 


Ecumen Scholars Rural Nursing Program Accepting Applications

Ecumen Scholars, a workforce development initiative created to address the nursing shortage in rural Minnesota, is now accepting applicants to its fellowship and internship programs for Summer 2015. The program is a collaboration of Ecumen and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU).

For Ecumen Scholar Fellowship and Internship Program information, visit www.ecumenscholars.org, where online applications are being accepted until Midnight on February 28, 2015.

The Ecumen Scholars Fellowship Program is a premier leadership program that builds an extensive clinical and leadership foundation through rotational experiences for nursing students in a geriatric setting. Fellows will build general leadership capability through a breadth and depth of experiences, while gaining well-rounded knowledge of the healthcare business. The three-week fellowship program is held in Mankato, Minn., and provides 8-10 students an opportunity to apply classroom learning to a senior care setting.

The Ecumen Scholars Internship Program is for student nurses who are currently enrolled in a MnSCU Nursing Program (baccalaureate or two-year associate degree) and have an interest in working in senior health care. The internship program provides up to 100 internships to RN and LPN students (ten at each of the ten grant sites) for the opportunity to apply what is learned in the classroom to a senior care setting.  Under the direction of a Nurse Preceptor, the intern will further their understanding of professional nursing to include the passing of medications. The student will gain experience and confidence working with seniors, while developing their clinical skills. Internships are available May through August, dependent on sites scheduling availability and require a minimum of 80 hours.

The following Ecumen senior communities, located in outstate regional hub cities, participate in the Ecumen Scholars internship program:

  • Ecumen Bethany Community, Alexandria, MN
  • Ecumen Detroit Lakes, Detroit Lakes, MN
  • Ecumen Evergreens of Fargo, Fargo, ND
  • Ecumen Evergreens of Moorhead, Moorhead, MN
  • Ecumen of Litchfield, Litchfield, MN
  • Ecumen Meadows, Worthington, MN
  • Ecumen North Branch, North Branch, MN
  • Ecumen Oaks & Pines, Hutchinson, MN
  • Ecumen Pathstone Living, Mankato, MN
  • Ecumen Scenic Shores, Two Harbors, MN

Top 5 Blog Posts — February 9

Did you miss last week's most-read Changing Aging blog posts? Ecumen's online visitors found these articles most interesting:

Ecumen Bethany Dining Director Val Jerzak Serves Up a Menu for Changing Tastes
Val Jerzak has the high-stress job of pleasing a hundred or so experts every day, three times a day.  She’s the dining director at Ecumen Bethany Community in Alexandria, Minn., and when it comes to food, everyone has an opinion that matters.

Ecumen Detroit Lakes Opens Its New Rehab Unit
Ecumen Detroit Lakes has opened its new state-of-the-art rehabilitation therapy unit.  Detroit Lakes Online reporter Pippi Mayfield takes a tour and interviews a short-stay resident who used to work at Ecumen Detroit Lakes.

Ecumen Seasons at Apple Valley Voted “Best Assisted Living” Community
Ecumen Seasons at Apple Valley was named “Best Assisted Living” community in the Sun Thisweek newspaper’s Readers’ Choice Awards.

TheSeniorList.com: The Two Best Exercises for Seniors
Regular exercise is one of the best ways for seniors to improve their quality of life, and TheSeniorsList.com offers advice on the two best exercises to get the job done.

Ecumen Detroit Lakes Charity Benefit Previews New Wellness Center
More than 200 people filled the halls at Ecumen Detroit Lakes last Saturday for the community’s annual charity benefit, which also served as a sneak preview of the newly remodeled campus and a screening of the critically acclaimed documentary on singer Glen Campbell’s experience with Alzheimer’s disease. 

You can read these articles and more at www.ecumen.org. 


Ecumen Scholars Program To Train Nurses Featured in Mankato Free Press

In today’s Mankato Free Press, Jessica Bies reports on Ecumen’s initiative to address the critical shortage of nurses being trained to care for Minnesota’s rapidly aging population.

Working with Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU), Ecumen is creating the Ecumen Scholars program to provide educational, vocational and financial opportunities for nursing students to pursue careers in senior health care.

The program is supported by a $1.9 million grant from the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation.


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If we can build railroads, airplanes and highways, our country should be able to build new, viable solutions for long-term services and supports that help millions of Americans with Alzheimer's and other long-term care needs.

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