Anesthesia students present doctoral projects at KyANA
Seven senior nursing students presented their doctoral projects at the 2020 KyANA Virtual Fall Meeting held Oct. 9-11 via video submission. Students prepared an electronic PDF version of their poster and pre-recorded a discussion of their projects to be available throughout the three-day event. Additionally, they were available to answer questions in a chat room during the breaks throughout the meeting.
Students presenters and their projects include:
- Meghan Sims, “Medication Safety in the Operating Room”
- Jared Hughes, “Implementation of A Craniotomy Simulation Lab”
- Michael Goss, “Implanting STOP-Bang Screening in Preanesthesia Assessment Among Adults of Eastern Kentucky”
- Kevin Marcus, “TAP (Transversus Abdominal Plane) Block for Post-Op Cesarean Section Pain Control”
- Leah Harpring, “Educating on the Implementation of Family Presence During Resuscitation in the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU)”
- Dani Hoskins, “Music Therapy to Aid in Anxiety Reduction During Cesarean Delivery"
- Shannon Weiss: Implementation of a Pediatric Intubation Kit in the Post-Anesthesia Care Unit”
Students are on track to graduate in August of 2021.
Pictured right is Meghan Sims. Pictured first row from left to right are Jared Hughes, Michael Goss and Kevin Marcus. Second row from left to right are Leah Harpring, Dani Hoskins and Shannon Weiss.
Kaci Westrich receives Foundation’s Frances Carr Parker award
The nutrition facility, the Applied Health Sciences department and the School of Nursing and Health Professions would like to take a moment to congratulate Kaci Westrich on being named the recipient of the prestigious Foundation’s Frances Carr Parker award as part of the School Nutrition Services Dietetic Practice Group from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. This highly competitive award recognizes leadership and dedication in promoting health among school-age children and adolescents.
Westrich is a student in the Master of Science in Nutrition program non-internship track at Murray State University and is on track to graduate in May 2021. She completed her undergraduate degree at Missouri State University in 2011 and her dietetic internship at Bradley University in 2012. Westrich accepted her first job as a dietitian with Hy-Vee, a Midwest based grocery store, at their Peoria and Canton, Illinois store locations where she became a certified pharmacy technician and was later promoted to human resources manager. In 2018 Westrich moved back to her hometown of Cape Girardeau, Missouri where she served as the registered dietitian for the Cape Girardeau Public School District.
In late 2019, a little after starting in the Master of Science in Nutrition program, Westrich got engaged. This year she has been busy building a house with her fiancé in Columbia, Missouri. She has also recently started a new job as dietitian for Communique, Inc, a public relations firm located in Jefferson City, Missouri that focuses on agriculture, health and nutrition. Westrich and her fiancé, Ross Vohland, plan to marry in January 2021.
Kelsey Mika
Kelsey Mika graduated from Murray State University in May of 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in public and community health and currently works as the nursing home administrator for Willow Rose Rehab & Health Care in Jerseyville, Illinois. Within a few months of starting her current position Mika received the leadership award for her service. Mika was chosen from a variety of candidates from all of Willow Rose’s sister nursing homes in the area. Before her current position Mika worked at Brookdale Senior Living in St. Louis, Missouri as a concierge.
“Coming straight out of college this was not the kind of job I thought I would be getting,” said Mika. “Looking back, my experiences at Brookdale were very helpful in preparing me for my current position. I was able to see first hand what happened on the floor, with residents and their family members, and at the administrative level. My major also helped prepare me for my career by exposing me to the different aspects of the health care field. I started my position at Willow Rose two weeks before COVID shut everything down, which made everything even more difficult, but thanks to my experiences at Murray State and learning to think independently I was prepared.”
Nursing home administration is an often-unexplored career path for many students. It is an important path, however at it is expected to grow significantly in the coming years.
When asked what advice she would offer to incoming students Mika said, “My advice for incoming students is that it is ok to not know what you want to do right away. Take different classes that interest you during your freshman year to see if that is what you want to end up doing with your career.”
Mika plans on starting her masters of health care administration at Purdue University soon. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her family and friends, exploring the outdoors with her dog, horseback riding and going on new adventures.
Fall 2020 virtual commencement
For the health and safety of our campus and broader community, the fall 2020 commencement will be held virtually on Nov. 21. The virtual commencement will also recognize our spring and summer 2020 graduates. All earned degrees at the end of the current fall semester will be conferred. We look forward to celebrating the achievements of all of our graduates through a special virtual experience!
Additional details can be found at murraystate.edu/commencement.
Pictured are fall 2019 graduates.
Jodi Hanneman
We’d like to welcome Jodi Hanneman as the new administrative assistant for the School of Nursing & Health Professions (SONHP). Hanneman comes to us from within the SONHP from Applied Health Sciences (AHS). Before coming to Murray State University Hanneman started her career working for a bank. She shared with us an exciting story involving her first job when she noticed someone suspicious while working at one of the bank’s branches.
“Two weeks after I finished training I was robbed at gunpoint by one of the people I had seen in our teller training class’ example photos,” said Hanneman. “I followed procedures and tripped the alarm and gave him the dye pack. He proceeded to take the money and the dye pack and placed everything inside a large paper supermarket grocery bag, which he slipped down his pants as he was leaving the branch. Someone locked the doors as soon as he exited the building, just before the dye pack exploded in his pants. Several weeks later he was apprehended and eventually sentenced to prison based upon our description and the bank’s photos.”
After working for the bank Hanneman worked for a military contractor in New Jersey, and as a civil service person in the Republic of Panama and at Fort Huachuca in Arizona. She held a variety of mostly finance related positions.
“While working with the 513th Signal Battalion at Fort Huachuca I received one of my greatest honors,” said Hanneman. “I led a recorded demonstration that was sent all over the world showing soldiers in the U.S. Army how to effectively and efficiently file travel vouchers, do it yourself moves, and permanent change of station, to allow for maximum reimbursement.”
After working for the military as a civil service person Hanneman moved to Georgia and started working for AARP in their regional office. During her time there she served as a meeting planner for the 13-state region and won several awards for a planning format she created. Hanneman’s planning format simplified how meetings were planned throughout the U.S. and its territories. When AARP moved to state based offices, she started working for Cap Gemini, and later for Ernst & Young, LLP, sister companies with responsibilities in computer graphics for software, and in audits and accounting respectively.
“I worked on sales teams in both cases,” said Hanneman. “My job was to keep teams organized, and research prospective clients before they moved into the area or before we started to ‘court’ them.”
Hanneman relocated to Kentucky to be near family and started her career at Murray State around the same time. Her first position was with the department of Journalism and Mass Communications in August 2004 for the department’s chair, Dr. Jeanne Scafella. Hanneman also started college under the encouragement of Dr. Scafella.
“I started my bachelor’s degree in business administration thanks to Dr. Scafella,” said Hanneman. “She encouraged me and convinced me that I was indeed ‘college material.’ Since then, I have had spent many years learning about the University system and about healthcare.”
Hanneman finished her bachelor’s degree through Mid-Continent University in May 2011 after completing most of her classes through Murray State, and her master’s in public administration with a focus on healthcare at Murray State in 2018. In 2008 Hanneman transferred to the college of Health Sciences and Human Services until it was reformed in 2014. At that time, she started working for Applied Health Sciences which had been integrated into the School of Nursing and Health Professions.
“I was able to complete my master’s in public administration at Murray State by taking one or two classes a semester, mostly during nights and weekends,” said Hanneman. “After working with Dr. Terry in AHS for so long, I opted to focus my degree on healthcare, and was even able to complete some research with Dr. Brenda Reeves and Dr. Priscilla Maghrabi. It is not common for MPA students to have firsthand data, but I collected information for more than a year, and with the assistance of Dr. Maghrabi was able to synthesize the results to show that ROI is only beneficial if the employee sees it as a benefit. This was based upon a Michigan study.”
She is happily married to her husband, Joe. They have three grown children, Sara, 31, Christina 27, and Ben, 23, and a beagle named Bailey May. Hanneman currently serves on the Hazel City Council and is running for re-election in November. A, perhaps not so, fun fact she shared with us is that she has been robbed three times in her life; once at gunpoint as mentioned previously, once at knife point and once during a snatch and grab.
Gina Piscatelle on the AHEC Scholars program
“I was initially unsure what to expect when joining the AHEC Scholars program. I have been surprised and impressed with the quality of content we have covered and the value I believe it adds to my nursing education. There is a strong focus on the needs of rural healthcare. Mental and behavioral health issues, understanding and providing care for substance abuse patients as well as being culturally competent are also emphasized. Becoming more proficient in these areas has definitely helped prepare me to provide superior care for my future patients.
“One of the assignments that stands out as being extremely beneficial was working with Four Rivers Behavioral Health in Paducah, Kentucky to become certified in youth mental health first aid. Mental health is such a vital aspect of overall health. We will also attain a certification for adult mental health first aid as part of the program in January. I believe that both certifications will be valuable assets I can use in my nursing career. We have also covered significant content that focuses on the opioid epidemic within the state. This education should prove to be valuable as well in meeting the needs of the residents of Kentucky.
“Caring for people has always been important to me and I have known since I was in my early twenties that I wanted to work in the nursing field. In 2004 I wrote in a journal that my goal was to attend Murray State’s nursing program. Life circumstances prevented me from pursuing my education for many years. In 2019 I was finally able to begin the nursing program at Murray State and start to work toward fulfilling that goal. I feel grateful and blessed to be where I am today, and I look forward to being able to use my time, energy and education to care for my patients.”
Gina Piscatelle, nursing major
You can learn more about the AHEC Scholars program at Murray State here.
Faith Oliver on the Kentucky Rural Health Association Committee
“Like many students, I thought I knew what I wanted to do leaving high school. However, after entering my freshman year of college in nursing I found out that I was very wrong. So, I hit the restart button and tried to find my new path. After much trial and error, I settled on going to medical school upon graduation, but I had another problem. I needed a major. I didn’t want to major in biology or chemistry, I wanted a degree that would interest me and help me in the long run when it was time to care for patients. I happened upon public and community health which met all of my requirements for a major. I’m very thankful I found an advisor as great as Dr. Terry. She reaffirmed that I could achieve my goals of completing a public and community health degree and still apply to medical school.
“I first got involved with the Kentucky Rural Health Association (KRHA) this past summer. Despite a crazy ending to a semester, I managed to secure a spot in a great local program for pre-med students. During a particular Zoom meeting we were introduced to the KRHA and their goals, specifically those involving us as students. For those who don’t know, Kentucky is facing a massive physician shortage. One of KRHA’s goals is to recruit pre-med students to work in rural areas. I was amazed to see the extreme crisis rural areas were facing. Coming from a rural area, I knew that we didn’t always have access to the specialty physicians we needed, but I had no idea that some counties had no physicians at all. The KRHA also focuses on many public health issues facing Kentucky, such as the opioid epidemic and the spread of Hepatitis C Virus. This is another reason I wanted to get involved with this organization, it would allow me to pursue both of my passions in medicine and public health.
“The committee I’m a part of is the KRHA’s Student Rural Health Association Committee. The goal of the committee is ‘to promote the interest and involvement of higher education students in Kentucky with a concern for health care in rural Kentucky.’ As a student representative from Murray State I am able to add any ideas I may have to the committee’s meetings.
“Being a part of this committee has been great for my undergraduate experience and in preparing me for medical school. I am able to be involved with an organization that encourages rural healthcare, one of my passions, and I have been able to grow as a student. I have learned a lot about leadership as well as voicing my opinion about things I am passionate about. I was also given the opportunity to compete for an even higher position on the board of directors. Although I didn’t get this position, I was honored to have been thought of so highly and to have the chance to grow. KRHA has also allowed me to form numerous connections which have helped me in planning for my future career.
“It feels great to be a part of a professional organization as a student. You are able to learn and grow in so many ways outside of your everyday school life, and when you become a professional, employers are often glad to hear that you’ve had this experience. I hope all of my fellow students take this opportunity to do some soul searching and find their passion. Once you’ve found that passion, join a club, professional organization, etc. Just get involved and change the world!”
Faith Oliver, public and community health major
You can learn more about the Kentucky Rural Health Association committees here.
Terror in Transylvania
Occupational therapy students participated in the third annual Terror in Transylvania murder mystery on Oct. 27. This experiential learning activity within the occupational therapy program is a fun way for students to explore culture with a twist and use professional reasoning to determine “who dunnit,” all while exploring the diverse makeup of the community of Transylvania. During the event students explored the socioeconomic and sociocultural effects individual lifestyles might have on the community.
Although the festivities included characters from the world of fantasy and horror, students were asked to research actual conditions that present as vampire-like symptoms (Renfield’s syndrome), a werewolf-like appearance (congenital hypertrichosis) and zombie-like delusions (Cotard’s syndrome). Their research included finding the location of the brain affected by the condition as well as how various occupations might be affected. Students were then asked to develop an occupational therapy plan of care for someone with one of the conditions using models of occupation and frames of reference to guide their care plan.
“No humans or animals were hurt in this learning experience,” said Dr. Candace Alvey, assistant professor in occupational therapy, and the event’s coordinator. “Only fun for all. All are welcome to join us next year.”
Pictured right is Dr. Candace Alvey. Pictured below are students at the event.
School of Nursing & Health Professions
Our school offers many different health careers that offer you the opportunity to influence the well-being of individuals, families, and communities.
Website: http://www.murraystate.edu/sonhp
Location: 120 Mason Hall, Murray, KY 42071
Phone: 270-809-2193
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MSU-School-of-Nursing-Health-Professions-100228168258965
Twitter: @MsuSonhp