Dear College of Nursing community,
As we near the end of our first full academic year in David A. Straz, Jr., Hall, I find myself reflecting on the people we serve as nurses. We are here to provide clinical expertise, a skilled hand and healing presence for all patients, particularly for the vulnerable. It is a mission I’ve been proud to support as a nurse, a professor and now as dean, and I see countless examples of our community members doing the same each day.
In this newsletter, you will read about how Marquette trains its students for this mission through highly realistic nursing simulation. Our expanded simulation center allows student nurses to gain hands-on experience with common scenarios before they ever set foot in the hospital. Faculty sit with students in debriefing sessions afterward, teaching them not just what to think but how to think. This process stresses seeing the uniqueness of each patient, a practice they will carry into the hospital when they join the profession.
Our future nurses are carrying forward the Marquette mission in numerous ways. This newsletter highlights two of them. Firstly, students who majored in other disciplines as Marquette undergraduates are joining our Direct Entry Master of Nursing program. They will carry on the Marquette legacy through courageous, caring practice. Secondly, undergraduates gain insight into public health by working with Dr. Kameela Jackson in the Milwaukee Academy of Sciences, providing vital services to a school in our own neighborhood.
I’m surrounded by people committed to making a difference within our communities and health care systems. I see my job as providing them with the tools and education they need to be effective. Alumni have been magnificent partners in that work, and I am deeply appreciative of their support.
Sincerely,
Jill Guttormson
College of Nursing Dean
