Four Graduate St. Mary?s Nurse Refresher Course
by January 21, 2002 12:00 am 85 views
In an effort to bring inactive nurses back into service, St. Mary’s Hospital in Rogers established a three-month nursing program. The first class began in October, and graduates include licensed practical nurses Jone Bohl and Maxine Fain and registered nurses Cindra Henry and Terrie Wilkey.
St. Mary’s Director of Education Martha Barnes said that while nurses pay no fees for the refresher course, they work for lower wages during the sessions. Participants also sign a contract that binds them to work with Mercy Health System for six months after the course ends.
Barnes said St. Mary’s budgeted $2,400 per person for the course, bringing the total cost of the first class to $9,600.
The course included classic and clinical studies designed to acquaint nurses with today’s healthcare operations, Barnes said.
“Nursing is not an easy field to reenter,” Barnes said, “no health care position is because of the rapidity with which things change.”
Department directors at St. Mary’s gave lectures to introduce the nurses to changes in the industry, and they used clinical studies for hands-on learning. The second course will begin April 1, and Barnes said she wants 6-8 nurses to enroll.