Purdue Nurse - Summer 2004 - School of Nursing - Purdue University

The Alaska cruise group included nursing and pharmacy alumni, faculty, and friends interested in nature and continuing education.Cruise Adds New Dimension to LearningBy Colleen Schultz (BS’71)Before the morning mist burned off, the top of MountDenali seemed a world away from Purdue University’s maincampus in West Lafayette, Ind.As heavy mist veiled the closer Alaskan mountain ranges, agroup of Purdue alumni gathered June 6-13 to learn currentnursing and pharmacy issues.The classroom? A 1,200-passenger ship sailing fromVancouver, British Columbia, to Seward, Alaska, where 22participants from the Purdue Schools of Pharmacy and Nursinggathered to earn Continuing Education Units. The off-site CEUopportunity was the first to be launched together by the twoschools.Facilitated jointly by Purdue University Professors JulieNovak and Steven Abel, the shipboard continuing educationclasses addressed technological advances affecting current andfuture professional roles for nurses and pharmacists. Workingtogether as a collaborative team, Novak and Abel helped create avision for future practices of nurses and pharmacists.Women’s health played an important role in the discussions.By age 65, one-third of the female population will have avertebral or hip fracture, and by the year 2020, more than 50million people will be 65 or older. Prevention is key, Novak andAbel stressed.Taking a break from the surreal universe of Alaskanscenery and wildlife, the group also explored healthy aging, careof the culturally diverse, and weighed the benefits and risks ofapplying informational technology to professional practice.The classes supplemented trips ashore at ports along theInside Passage – Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway, The enchantmentof these quaint towns captured the group’s adventurousspirit. The bald eagles, brown bear, caribou and elk wereplentiful.Novak presented a comprehensive view of cultural diversitythat included a Native Alaskan scholar’s study. In order todevelop cultural competence, healthcare providers need to assesspersonal beliefs and values and respond appropriately, respectfullyand sensitively to those who differ. She highlighted thediverse international experiences currently provided for Purduenursing and pharmacy students.Sailing into the turquoise waters of College Fjord andGlacier Bay, the Purdue group heard the boom and crack ofcalving glaciers and watched sea lions playing on a chunk of ice.Several people spotted whales, harbor seals, otters, and porpoisesfrom the ship’s deck.Purdue’s continuing education/ travel venture promptednumerous positive comments. “It’s been great to have a smallgroup to interact with,” said Abel. “Some participants have toldme our continuing education is better than a whole year’s worthof coursework in terms of content,” he added.Novak’s enthusiasm was contagious. “People are alreadyasking what we’re going to do next year. We’re talking aboutpotential sites such as the Greek Isles, the Galapagos, Scotland,and Ireland.”Colleen Schultz is a 1971 (AD) Purdue UniversitySchool of Nursing graduate. She went on to earn a BS fromthe University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has worked as anurse-educator in clinical psychiatric nursing and as apublic health and school nurse in acommunity health nursing agency.Most recently, she has worked as ajournalist and communicationsspecialist in public relations at theUniversity of Wisconsin-Platteville.“I was motivated to go on thiscruise because of the continuingeducation opportunity,” she says.“The cruise/CEU offering is anincredibly innovative venue for continuing education,and I truly appreciated meeting and connecting withPurdue alumni and academic staff.”30