Spring 2018: Eleanor Wade Custer School Of Nursing News

20th Annual Nursing Research And Scholarship Symposium Set For April 27

Shenandoah University’s Eleanor Wade Custer School of Nursing’s Rho Pi chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing will host the 20th Annual Research and Scholarship Symposium from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, April 27, in Halpin-Harrison Hall, Stimpson Auditorium. The event is open to all members of the local and regional communities, as well as students and university faculty and staff.

Catherine F. Kane, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, provides the morning keynote address on Rural Healthcare: Hopes and Challenges. Dr. Kane’s nursing career spans more than 40 years. As professor of nursing at the University of Virginia School of Nursing, she has shepherded hundreds of students through courses, original research and capstone projects. Through her publications and funded research, she has informed the larger nursing community on multiple avenues for partnering with the seriously mentally ill on their journey to recovery and has generated new knowledge for patients and families with serious mental health conditions.

Bonnie Sakallaris, Ph.D., RN, is the afternoon’s featured speaker. Dr. Sakallaris is TLI Foundation’s vice president for optimal healing environments. She leads a team of scientists and clinicians committed to the development and understanding of whole system approaches to health and healing and the environments that support them. Her work in research and development of holistic approaches to health creation produced the evaluation tools for the optimal healing environments framework, the optimal healthy workplace framework and evaluation survey, and the institute’s definition and framework for community wellness and resilience.

This daylong event features multiple breakout sessions, poster displays and research presentations.  Participants will be awarded 5.5 contact hours for full participation. For Shenandoah undergraduate students, registration is free; if requesting lunch, the cost is $15. For Shenandoah graduate students, registration is $50 (including lunch). Award presentations and door prize drawings are included. To register, please contact Rosalie Lewis at  rlewis3@su.edu or 540/665-5506, in the School of Nursing.

Christian Fellowship Group Established

A chapter of the Nurses Christian Fellowship has been started at Shenandoah University. The group has about 20 members and is one of only three NCF chapters in Virginia.

Nursing School Raises Funds For Children In Need

The Eleanor Wade Custer School of Nursing hosted a February fundraiser to support the local nonprofit Families Reaching Out Group, which benefits foster children, at-risk children and children in need in the community. Faculty and staff contributed gently used items such as belts, hats, scarves and jewelry, which were sold in a “Swap and Shop Boutique” set up in the Health & Life Sciences Building’s Halpin Rotunda. Through purchases and donations, a total of $800 was raised for FROG in just a few hours.