UF College of Nursing to address health-care disparities with new grant
The University of Florida College of Nursing has received an $831,000 federal grant to expand its nurse-midwifery program with the goal of reducing disparities in health care for minorities and others from underserved areas.
Nursing faculty, based on the campus of the UF Health Science Center at Jacksonville, will use the grant funds to significantly increase the nurse-midwifery work force by recruiting students from disadvantaged backgrounds, medically underserved areas and underrepresented minorities.
“Nurse-midwives from such populations often have a special sensitivity and awareness of the needs of patients from these populations and are more likely to seek employment serving these populations,” said Alice H. Poe, an assistant professor and coordinator of the UF nurse-midwifery program.
Numerous studies have shown nurse-midwives are highly skilled in assessing and addressing the health-care needs of these vulnerable populations, and have helped to lower infant mortality and improve birth-weight, Poe said.
Nationwide there is a high disparity in infant mortality rates between white and nonwhite populations; the problem is especially acute in Florida.
In 1999, the National Center for Health Statistics reported the white infant mortality rate at 6 deaths per 1,000 live births nationwide, while nonwhite infant mortality was 13.7 deaths per 1,000 live births.
“The infant mortality rate at our program sites ranges between 8.3 and 16.8 deaths per thousand live births for whites and between 12.2 and 28.7 for nonwhites,” said Poe, a certified nurse-midwife and fellow in the American College of Nurse Midwives. “By increasing the number of nurse-midwives, we can increase access to care and reduce the rate of adverse outcomes for mothers and babies.”
The three-year Advanced Nursing Education grant, awarded by the Division of Nursing, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Bureau of Health Professions, will expand the UF midwifery program through its traditional master’s degree program, the accelerated RN-to-BSN/MSN program and a cooperative degree program with the University of South Florida in Tampa.
The UF Master’s of Science in Nursing degree program prepares nurses for advanced practice and leadership roles in nurse-midwifery, nursing and health-care management or in one of several other advanced practice nursing roles.
An accelerated RN-to-BSN/MSN program started in 1998 enables registered nurses with associate degrees or diplomas to obtain a bachelor’s degree in nursing as well as a master’s degree. The accelerated program, designed to address the shortage of well-educated nurses, enables qualified students to complete a master’s degree program about two semesters sooner than the traditional bachelor’s and master’s degree programs.
The cooperative degree program, started in 1999, offers UF’s nurse-midwifery graduate program to University of South Florida students through the transfer of designated USF courses, and UF courses taught using interactive video technology and the Internet. The new UF nurse-midwifery grant will provide an educator/recruiter, who will visit culturally diverse and medically underserved areas; elementary, middle and high schools; and colleges with large enrollments of black, Hispanic or Native American students, to encourage them to pursue nurse-midwifery as a career. The new nurse/recruiter also will match minority students with faculty mentors.
Nurse-midwifery care focuses on the needs of the individual and family. Nurse-midwives provide physical care, emotional and social support, and interact with others according to the patients’ cultural values and personal preferences. The practice of nurse-midwifery encourages continuity of care; emphasizes safe, competent patient care; focuses on non-intervention in normal processes; and promotes health education for women throughout the childbearing cycle.
Nurse-midwives practice in hospitals, birth centers and homes, and are affiliated with physicians for consultation and referral.