JUNE 2001

Table of Contents

College of Nursing

Web-based Rural B.S.N. Completion Program
YOUniversal Wellness
Nursing Program at the University of Arkansas Community College at Hope
Rural Nurse Practitioner Program
Program against Teen Chewing

Web-based Rural B.S.N. Completion Program

Because of family and travel restrictions, many of Arkansas's registered nurses have not been able to complete a B.S.N. degree. This educational program allows participants to complete their degree with clinical practicums arranged in their hometown area. Registered nurses living at least 75 miles from Little Rock are eligible to enroll in the program. Those who live fewer than 75 miles from Little Rock may take on-line courses with the understanding that some services will not be available. Currently, theory courses are offered via the Internet with all courses expected to available by the year 2002. The program is funded by a grant from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration.

YOUniversal Wellness

YOUniversal Wellness provides quality wellness and disease prevention programs, screenings and assessments for major industries and individual companies throughout central Arkansas. Other programs include corporate reports, consultations, health fairs and physical or fitness evaluations, all designed to reduce company health care costs. Participants include UALR, Arkansas and Alabama VA Systems, and the City of North Little Rock.

Nursing Program at the University of Arkansas Community College at Hope

Begun in June 1999, the program represents a partnership among the UAMS College of Nursing, the University of Arkansas Community College at Hope (UACCH) and the AHEC Program. It is designed to meet the needs for baccalaureate nursing graduates in the southwest quadrant of the state and UACCH service area. It is scheduled specifically to accommodate working licensed practical and psychiatric nurses who wish to advance their careers by obtaining the baccalaureate in nursing (B.S.N.) degree. It is also available for individuals interested in a professional career in nursing but are unable to commute long distances to a baccalaureate program within Arkansas or the surrounding states. Qualified graduates are eligible for admission to master's level nursing education programs.

Rural Nurse Practitioner Program

All but 21 cities in Arkansas meet the definition of a “rural community;” i.e., having a population of less than 15,000 people. Thus the need for nurse practitioners is essentially statewide.

The General Assembly recently established an educational assistance program to increase the number of primary care nurse practitioners working in rural communities in Arkansas, nurse educators teaching in nursing schools in Arkansas, or advance practice nurses working in the Arkansas Department of Health.

With funds from Act 787 of 2001, graduate-level nursing students may be awarded significant financial assistance as an educational loan to pursue advanced practice nursing degrees at the UAMS College of Nursing and at three other programs that offer the master's degree. In return for this assistance, after graduation, the nurses agree to practice full-time as a primary care nurse practitioner in a rural community, teach at a school of nursing in Arkansas, or work full-time as an advanced practice nurse or a manager of nurses at ADH. The loan is converted to a scholarship grant by “working it off” as a full-time advance practice nurse for a period of time equal to the time frame of financial assistance.

This program is open to any state resident enrolled in an accredited Arkansas graduate nursing program leading to a master's degree in nursing. Graduates may enter gateways to become a primary care nurse practitioner, an advance practice nurse in the field of public health, or a teacher on the nursing faculty of an educational institution. The program is also open to advance practice nurses enrolled in the doctoral program at the UAMS College of Nursing.

Program Against Teen Chewing

The Program Against Teen Chewing (PATCH) is a research study funded by the National Cancer Institute through the UAMS College of Nursing and the Arkansas Cancer Research Center (ACRC) at UAMS. The goal is to help adolescent males quit using spit tobacco – snuff or chewing tobacco. The research effort is focused on determining whether classes and the nicotine patch are more effective than counseling. To be eligible for the PATCH project, a subject must be:

• 14-18 years old or in the 9-12 grade range
• Living within a 100-mile radius of Little Rock
• A current user of spit tobacco for at least a year
• Ready to quit

Begun in 1997, Craig Stotts, Dr.P.H., R.N., principal investigator, and the research team, is now following-up on the progress of the young participants to determine and publish the results. The report will help point the way to developing successful model programs for replication across the nation.

© 2001 University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Division of Institutional Advancement
4301 W. Markham St., Slot 716
Little Rock, AR 72205
501-686-5685

06/25/01