UCF’s inaugural lecture series launches, supplements new nursing graduate program

UCF's College of Nursing will kick off its inaugural Distinguished Lecture Series today, Jan. 12, at 6 p.m. in University Tower, Room 602. The lecture will feature honorary guest, Senior Vice President/Administrator and Chief Nursing Officer for Martin Health Systems Donna M. Herrin-Griffith, and will discuss the need for improved healthcare administration, quality patient care and leadership and management roles within the healthcare field.

The lecture's topic, "Leading for the Future: Planning for the New Healthcare Environment," will discuss in-depth the executive aspects of a healthcare profession, such as the evaluation of practice changes, financial aspects and patient outcomes. The lecture series is hosted twice a year by the College of Nursing and is funded by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida Endowed Visiting Distinguished Professorship. Though seating is limited for the lecture presentation, more than ninety students are currently registered for this evening's lecture.

Sophomore Erin Berkhimer, a pre-nursing major, felt the lecture would discuss several aspects of healthcare administration that would be beneficial to UCF students.

"I don't hear anything more than what I hear in my classes, so unless they bring it up in class and people take the initiative, I don't [hear about it] unless it's brought to my attention," Berkhimer said. "I think nursing is important all around. Nurses always need to know how to improve their work in the healthcare field, and they should always be aware about what's wrong and how it can be fixed. I think anyone in pre-med or healthcare majors would benefit from [the lecture series]."

Assistant Professor Dr. Diane Andrews commented on the lecture's ability to provide a chance for students and the Orlando community to network with various professionals.

"We certainly have high hopes for our students to have a wonderful opportunity to network, but also a wonderful opportunity for those in the nursing community to join us on campus for this educational experience with distinguished nursing leaders," Andrews said. "[Students] want to go to the event because they are going to have educational content from someone who is leading the nursing profession on a national level, [and] to have perspective on issues that people in nursing leadership roles are engaged in on a national level."

The free two-hour event, while open to the public, is a supplement to the college's new Executive Doctor of Nursing Practice graduate degree track, a program recently instituted that combines practical experience through one-on-one lectures and group lectures with an online mode of instruction.

The three-year doctoral study is a formal academic program that will encompass a mandatory two-day lecture event each semester, involving meet-and-greets with leaders in the healthcare field and small class seminars. The course's first day of classes began this morning prior to the lecture kick-off taking place this evening.

After learning of a similar doctoral degree program located in Boston, College of Nursing's Associate Dean Dr. Susan Chase felt that this newly instituted track would give students access to experienced healthcare professionals as well as add on to their accumulated leadership skills they have received through the entirety of their nursing academic careers.

"We have [had] a doctorate of nursing practice program already for about five years that's really for nurses who are in advanced practice roles, like nurse practitioners or nurse anesthetists, to give them the next level of knowledge, skills and abilities, but we didn't have a space in that program for administrators," Chase said. "There was a lot of interest [for the program] based on our surveys, and that gave us more energy to move it forward. This program is enhanced a little bit by having those extra-intensive experiences."

For more information about the newly created D.N.P program, the featured lecture series and the College of Nursing's other academic degree tracks, students are encouraged to visit the college's main website at http://nursing.ucf.edu.