Barbara
Connell
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SCC
Instructor published
A manuscript by Southwestern
Community College nursing instructor,
Barbara E. Connell, MSN, RN, BSN, has
been accepted for publication in MEDSURG
Nursing, The Journal of Adult Health,
the official journal of the Academy of
Medical-Surgical Nurses.
Connell wrote the manuscript, "Advance
Directives: Curriculum Content and Preparation
of Student Nurses," as her Master's
thesis at Western Carolina University.
The subject for the thesis arose out of
a concern she had during her career as
a registered nurse.
"I found that nurses weren't comfortable
with dealing with end of life wishes,
Advance Directives," Connell said.
"I thought the reason might be that
they weren't getting the necessary preparation
for AD while in college. As part of my
research, I surveyed nursing programs
in 66 universities and community colleges.
I was very pleased when sixty responded."
From the responses, Connell found that
most programs provided student nurses
with some AD training but did not provide
it consistently throughout the programs.
"Most only gave AD training in a
short session and did not integrate it
into the entire curriculum," she
said.
Connell hopes that having her thesis published
will bring attention to the problem. "If
it does, then perhaps colleges and universities
will change the way they prepare student
nurses to provide patients with Advance
Directives information."
Connell recognized the contribution of
Judy Mallory, assistant professor and
nurse educator track coordinator at WCU,
who served as chair of the committee with
whom Connell worked on the thesis. "As
my committee chair, she receives co-authorship
on the manuscript," Connell said.
A resident of Cullowhee, Connell has served
as a registered nurse, primarily in intensive
care, for the past 14 years. She began
her teaching career at SCC with the fall
2006 semester.
"I've wanted to teach for a long
time," she said; "and I'm looking
forward to bringing my years of nursing
experience and my training in nursing
education together in working with SCC's
students."
For more information about the nursing
program at Southwestern Community College,
visit www.southwesterncc.edu.
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