Nursing Department Celebrates Accreditation and Grant

Trinity’s nursing department will be continuing to build on its exceptional program as it enters another 10-year re-accreditation period, recently granted by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).

The CCNE, which ensures the quality and integrity of baccalaureate programs like Trinity’s, determined that the College met all standards for accreditation. Reviewers commented on the camaraderie of the faculty and staff and the congeniality of Trinity students, said nursing department Chair Joyce Azzaline.

“The department would like to thank the Trinity family–faculty, staff, and students, because everyone contributed to our great nursing program and a great CCNE visit,” Azzaline said.

Reviewers commented on the appropriateness of the clinical experiences and the collaboration that is encouraged by the clinical institutions and the nursing faculty. Trinity nursing faculty, including those who teach the general education courses, support courses, and sciences, work well together to support the students’ professional development.

Reviewers also observed that the healthcare agencies and the nursing department chair work together to assist the formation of the nursing students. 

Additional good news! Department uses grant for lab upgrades

Nursing students at Trinity will now have even more tools for enhancing their education and gaining hands-on training in health care.

Thanks to a 2012-13 Illinois Board of Higher Education Nursing School Improvement Grant, the nursing department has added a medication administration system and is creating a remote simulation area to the Cynthia Sander Nursing Lab. The lab, expanded in fall 2011, also contains standard nursing equipment as well as high-fidelity simulation manikins that exhibit symptoms and automatically respond to interventions from students. This allows students to practice nursing care prior to going into the clinical settings with actual patients.

The medication administration system is a simulation of the computerized systems used in hospitals to assist nurses in administering medication to patients. The remote simulation room will allow students not directly involved in the simulation to observe the experience and analyze the care given, calculate drug dosages, and provide feedback to fellow students. Students then exchange roles, and following both simulations, all the students will debrief with the instructor.

Word from a nursing alumna

Kimberly Wittmayer ’05, an advance practice nurse at Advocate Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn spoke of her nursing education at Trinity in a recent interview.

“Trinity gave me a very strong foundation for my nursing career. I gained real world nursing experience during my clinical rotations and capstone rotation,” she said. “Learning to care for my patients from the perspective of a Christian world view has made me a more caring and compassionate nurse.”