ANA Nursing Profession Support Program

Thanks to Reed Elsevier and their RE Cares Program for their generous support.

Program History

In 1993, ANA established the Nurse Mentor Program in conjunction with the Reohoboth McKinley Christian Hospital in Gallup, New Mexico, the University of New Mexico, Doylestown Hospital in Pennsylvania, and the Zuni Nation to improve the delivery system for health care to the remote areas of the reservations.

This program was structured with the concept of a "mentor" who was the single instructor for the nurses' studies at the University of New Mexico, and also accompanied the student nurses to Pennsylvania for two weeks twice a year for clinical experience at Doylestown Hospital.

Our Current Activities and Goals

Healthcare and Native Americans
There is a great need for improvements in health care for Native Americans who have numerous health problems. Native Americans suffer from twice the incidence of alcohol abuse, a higher incidence of nasopharyngeal cancer, an increased incidence of hypertension and diabetes, and a higher incidence of renal (kidney) disease than the general U.S. population. There also exist disparities in receiving health care and access to health care practitioners is additionally a concern.

Native American Nursing Students
Native Americans interested in becoming nurses face many barriers, including disparities in educational opportunities K-12, a lack of tools for learning such as computers, general poverty, and poor nutrition. Some students come from homes that have no running water or electricity. Governments funding makes attending nursing school a possibility for some, but their families feel the burden of school related expenses as well as lost wages as the students work hours are reduced or eliminated. Many of these students provide key financial support to their families so attending school and not working is a hardship. Students travel very far for clinical rotations and must have a car. Some need to sleep in motels so that they can spend two days in a distant area for required clinical experiences. Earning a two year associate�s degree is an extraordinary accomplishment for those in this situation, but the profession also needs Native American nurses with advanced degrees to teach incoming students and to work in the community in advanced nursing roles. Support through scholarships can help ease the burden facing some Native American students who already face obstacles in getting into competitive nursing school environments.

When some disadvantaged Native American nursing students graduate they can�t pay for their board NCLEX exam test to become a nurse. They wait and their chances of passing the exam may decrease. Students should take the test within three months before they start to lose content knowledge. These students who are not taking the test are not working in healthcare helping those in need and they are losing their skills and knowledge base.

ANA Funding for Nursing Students
Funding in the Americans for Native Americans nursing program currently goes to scholarships and NCLEX entrance exams (licensing test to become a registered nurse with fees of $350) for disadvantaged Native American Nursing students. School scholarships of $500 pay for one quarter of the cost of tuition and this funding makes a tremendous difference to whether or not they can attend school. Payment goes directly to a school fund used for tuition and other essentials and NCLEX exam fees go directly to payment for the fee. No donation percent/dollars go to support the ANA or its administration.

Our Goals
We provide scholarships on an annual basis to the University of New Mexico Gallup for students in the ADN program and we are providing NCLEX testing fees.  We received support from an Elsevier grant program from J and J. We hope to expand our program to support students seeking undergraduate (BSN) and graduate degrees (MSN and Nurse Practitioners) as nurses with these degrees are needed in community/public health settings and as Nurse Practitioners providing primary care.

To read about out scholarship recipients click here http://buckscoana.org/nursing%20scholarships.htm

For more information write to Cheryl Mee at cherylmeern@gmail.com.

Accomplishments

• Numerous scholarships are awarded each year for students pursuing both ADN and BSN degrees in Nursing.
• Each year many nursing students also have the costs for taking the NCLEX test (nursing board test) covered by ANA. These fees can range from $350 to $550 (varies depending on the state where student is seeking the license).
• Undergraduate and graduate students from Catholic University visited the School of Nursing in Gallup and spent some time in clinical settings in the area. They were hosted by faculty of the Gallup school. This launched the new student exchange program in March 2005.
• The University of Pennsylvania residents' program rotated some of the resident students through Gallup Hospital.
• Increased skill level of nurses trained in the program
• More Native American nurses stayed to work in and around the reservations in the Southwest.

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Date this page was last edited: 09/02/2010