FEB. 11, 2005 | Students at Chicot Elementary School in Little Rock and North Heights Elementary in North Little Rock see the nurse a lot – in the library, in the classroom, on the playground.

In fact there are few places the students don’t see nurses, and that is just what the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Nursing wants.

An elementary school might not seem like the ideal recruiting spot, but through a unique partnership, the UAMS College of Nursing is inspiring young minds to see themselves as future health professionals. About 200 nursing students visit the schools each year, helping with registration, reading to students, giving presentations on safety and being mentors.

“I’m not sure who gets more out of it, their students or ours,” said Patricia Thompson, Ed.D., R.N., associate dean for baccalaureate education in the College of Nursing. “This has been a heartwarming and enlightening partnership that allows our students to work with children outside the clinical setting and educate them on the best ways to stay healthy and safe.”

Both Chicot and North Heights have high minority enrollments, which makes them even more valuable to the future of nursing. Of the 2.6 million registered nurses in the United States, only 4.9 percent are black and 2.0 percent are Hispanic.

“A higher percentage of minority nurses will lead to a more culturally competent and sensitive work force,” Thompson explained, adding that bilingual nurses are extremely valuable. By being introduced to a career path where they are truly valued, she said, the children may be motivated to work harder in school and stay away from negative influences.

The College of Nursing was approved as a business partner by both school boards and works with the schools to address their needs. One year, during an outbreak of pertussis (whooping cough), the college worked with the teachers to help them understand the health risks associated with the disease.

“This is a partnership in every sense of the word,” said Jane Harkey, principal of Chicot Elementary. “They (the UAMS nursing students) are very willing to do anything that we ask. Many of our children have medical needs and they have been a tremendous help in getting them the attention they deserve.” Harkey said the nursing students also provide health education, vaccinations and mentoring to her students.

Doug Harrison, the school nurse at Chicot Elementary, said the student nurses have made a positive impression on many of the children.

“If you ask them what they want to be when they grow up, tons of the children say they want to be a doctor or a nurse.” He said the experience also has opened the student nurses’ eyes to the medical needs of children in the community that often go unmet unless a school nurse intervenes.

Because many of the children at the schools have unmet needs, the College of Nursing faculty raises funds each year to buy school supplies. This school year, the faculty provided socks, underwear, clear backpacks and other supplies.