What’s Happening
Special Projects
The HPEC is currently involved in a number of unique and innovative projects which involve collaborating with faculty at the Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing and the Hunter College School of Health Professions. In line with its mission, the HPEC is committed to bringing Hunter students and faculty to the forefront of cutting-edge technology by spearheading the acquisition and development of new instructional programs and academic initiatives. The following are just a sample of our current and recently completed collaborative projects
HPEC Beta Testing BioDigital: 3D Human Visualization Platform
The HPEC is excited to be BETA testing BioDigital, an educational software with the most complete, scientifically accurate, interactive 3D body ever assembled. With both male and female anatomy, each system is fully segmented, labeled and dissectable for easy configuration to meet any educational need. For the first time students can see human disease and health conditions in interactive 3D, and over 500 health conditions including heart disease, breast cancer, diabetes and more. Optimized for active learning, 3D technology is proven to be a more engaging and accessible way of communicating complex science. Hunter faculty and students interested in viewing this software should schedule an appointment with our office.
The HPEC
Is Thrilled To Have Helped Produced
THE POWER TO HEAL
As Seen On National PBS
POWER TO HEAL is an hour-long public television documentary that tells a poignant chapter in the historic struggle to secure equal and adequate access to healthcare for all Americans. Central to the story is the tale of how a new national program, Medicare, was used to mount a dramatic, coordinated effort that desegregated thousands of hospitals across the country in a matter of months.
Before Medicare, disparities in access to hospital care were dramatic. Less than half the nation's hospitals served black and white patients equally, and in the South, 1/3 of hospitals would not admit African-Americans even for emergencies.
Using the carrot of Medicare dollars, the federal government virtually ended the practice of racially segregating patients, doctors, medical staffs, blood supplies and linens. POWER TO HEAL illustrates how Movement leaders and grass-roots volunteers pressed and worked with the federal government to achieve justice and fairness for African-Americans.
Through the voices of the men and women who experienced disparities and fought against them, POWER TO HEAL will introduce a broad, prime-time national audience on PBS to a missing link in the Civil Rights Movement -- a struggle over healthcare from a half-century ago, that raises questions that resonate today: is healthcare a human right? Must the federal government intervene to ensure equality?
Tutoring
The HPEC currently offers tutoring in Pharmacology, Maternity, A&P Genetics, Nursing Fundamentals, and NCLEX Review.
Physical Therapy's Dr. Nicki Silberman Develops New, Simulation-Based Course
The acute care setting presents unique challenges to physical therapy (PT) students including: interprofessional communication, safety, discharge planning, and managing unstable patients in a complex environment. Students often lack confidence and struggle with the advanced skills required in this setting. The Hunter PT program and the HPEC are developing a new simulation-based PT course aimed at improving student confidence and competence for acute care clinical practice.
The HPEC Unveils Mobile Sim Lab
The HPEC and Dr. Gail McCain, Dean of Hunter-Bellevue's School of Nursing, are proud to announce the development of a new, portable simulation lab at the Brookdale campus. The lab features mounted cameras, microphones, and DVD recorders for detailed observation and assessment of students' skills. Simulation technology offers future nurses the opportunity to practice clinical skills in a low-risk environment by using high-fidelity mannequins in place of actual patients. The lab, located on the 7th floor, includes a debriefing area where faculty can discuss students' strengths and weaknesses observed during the recorded sessions. The HPEC staff, together with the Nursing Lab and Campus Facilities staff, worked together to create this new, mobile teaching/learning space.
ITEACH Developing New E-Learning Modules
In the three years since its inception, the ITEACH team has worked tirelessly to find new and creative ways to educate health professions students in interprofessional education and practice (IPE). ITEACH brings together Nursing, Public Health, and Social Work students from Hunter College and Medical students from the Weill Cornell College of Medicine. ITEACH focuses on integrating IPE in the curriculum to develop student competencies in teamwork and communication. HPEC staff are working with ITEACH Program Director, Barbara Glickstein and Project Manager, Shawn McGinniss, on the design and development of interactive e-learning modules to support these aims.
The modules developed by ITEACH can now be found here.
Telepractice
The HPEC and the Hunter College Center for Communication Disorders are are bringing Telepractice to Hunter College. In the face of budget cuts and a national shortage of speech-language clinicians, medical practices and schools are struggling to meet the expressive and receptive communication needs of their clients and patients.
The Hunter College Center for Communication Disorders is exploring the use Telepractice as part of the graduate student curriculum. The spectrum of speech-language pathology practice is continually changing, and Telepractice is coming to the forefront. With the use of Telepractice, a speech-language pathologist is able to connect remotely with clients while working towards improving their communication skills. All of healthcare is in a dynamic age of electronics, and Telepractice is one of the ways in which Hunter College seeks to serve its mission in training tomorrow's healthcare professionals.
iPad Pedagogy Learners' User Group (iPLUG)
The HPEC along with the Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing have created an iPad Pedagogy Learners' User Group (iPLUG) as a forum for the exploration and review of healthcare applications available for the iPad. Centered around nursing education, iPLUG is a community comprised of faculty and staff that encourages members to discover, share, test and evaluate medical applications for future integration into the Hunter College nursing curriculum.
The vision of the iPLUG program is to create a repository of knowledge of the emerging healthcare technologies and applications for use in classrooms and clinical settings. With knowledge gathered from the user group, faculty will learn to incorporate iPads in their teaching and will provide students with the hands-on, interactive tools necessary to develop critical skills required for nursing practice.
"The Near Miss," An Electronic Learning Module
The HPEC is developing a series of Computer-Assisted Instructional Packages (CAIs) for student use and study. "The Near Miss," produced by Shawn McGinniss and HPEC Director Martin Dornbaum, features Ms. Alla Vasilenko in a highly probable and potentially life-threatening situation between patient and nurse. Using animations and audio cues, the program encourages nursing students to begin thinking about medication errors in the workplace and ways to prevent them. "The Near Miss," along with other new electronic learning modules, will soon be available on all HPEC workstations for student and faculty viewing.
New York Simulation Center for the Health Sciences (NYSIM)
The New York Simulation Center for the Health Sciences, created through a partnership between The City University of New York and NYU Langone Medical Center, is one of the nation's largest, urban-health science simulation training facilities. This state-of-the-art, 25,000-square foot Center, is located within Bellevue Hospital. The facility's primary mission is training students from the affiliated nursing, medical, dental and allied health schools of CUNY and NYU, as well as the residents, practicing physicians, and nurses from the NYU Langone Medical Center. Also part of the Center's mission is the training of those who will become the first responders during New York City's natural disasters.
The HPEC works closely with NYSIM staff to coordinate educational opportunities for Hunter students and faculty.
For more information about the NYSIM please visit their website.
Johnson & Johnson's Campaign for Nursing's Future with Dr. Donna Nickitas
The HPEC is happy to be working with Dr. Donna Nickitas and Johnson & Johnson's Campaign for Nursing's Future.
To learn more about Johnson & Johnson's Campaign for Nursing's Future, please visit their website.
Update: Congratulations to Dr. Donna Nickitas on being featured in Nurses: If Florence Could See Us Now, a new film by Kathy Douglas. The film offers viewers a glimpse into the intricate, exciting and demanding world of being a nurse. Nurses from all over the country were interviewed for the film to share their moving stories.
NYC Nursing Education Consortium in Technology (NYCNECT)
NYCNECT was a 5-year, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-funded mechanism for the Faculty Development: Integrated Technology into Nursing Education and Practice Initiative (Faculty Development: ITNEP). CUNY faculty received hands-on instruction in innovative pedagogy, healthcare simulation, informatics, and telehealth. By creating a consortium of all CUNY nursing schools and increasing faculty expertise in these areas, NYCNECT prepared nursing students for 21st century healthcare practices, contributed to the reduction of health disparities in under-served populations, and prepared a diverse, culturally competent nursing workforce.
Martin Dornbaum was the Technology Director and served on the internal advisory board for NYCNECT. Additionally, he was a content author for online learning modules about mobile devices and the integration of instructional technology into nursing curricula. The HPEC assisted project staff in hosting interactive seminars for NYCNECT faculty trainees. HPEC also assisted NYCNECT in setting up video conferencing spaces for interacting with nursing faculty at other CUNY sites.
Clinical and Translational Science Center (CTSC)
Located in the Weill Cornell Medical College, the Clinical and Translational Science Center (CTSC) set out to move translational research from the bench, to the bedside, and to the community seamlessly. The CTSC acts as a conduit through which essential resources, technological tools, and education programs for all partners can be efficiently shared and managed.
The CTSC provides a multi-institutional collection of resources and service providers to assist researchers from the creation of interdisciplinary research teams, to protocol design and development, through implementation, compliance, and finally, the publication of results. Their multi-institutional consortium includes: Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing, Cornell University Hospital for Special Surgery, Hunter Center for the Study of Gene Structure and Function, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York Presbyterian Hospital, and the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences.
Working closely with faculty on their research initiatives, Mr. Martin Dornbaum, (HPEC Director) serves as Technology Consultant between the Hunter College Schools of the Health Professions and the CTSC.
For more information about the CTSC please visit their website.
Integrating Transdisciplinary Education at Cornell Hunter (ITEACH)
The ITEACH grant, a collaboration between Weill Cornell College of Medicine and Hunter College (Nursing, Public Health, and Social Work), aimed to create an innovative transdisciplinary, experiential educational program in simulated and community-based settings that:
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(1) Provided regularly scheduled service-learning activities.
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(2) Exposed students from each of the participating health professions to experiential learning in high-quality healthcare team collaboration.
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(3) Identified opportunities to develop multi-level interventions that can address environmental influences on patient health and the health of communities.
Students from these health professions schools were immersed in community-based learning environments which included working with public health practitioners, physicians, nurses, and social workers in order to shape their professional identities and learn the norms and values of behaviors in their own field of health professions, as well as in others.
High Speed Access to Communication Sciences Clinical Evaluation Tapes
The HPEC is working with the Communication Sciences Program to provide students with new resources for their studies. Over 100 clinical observation videos are now available for viewing on a high-speed media carousel at the HPEC.
These videos will allow students to gain a broad exposure to various communication disorders and disabilities, as well as cover many topics including but not limited to: language, articulation, fluency, swallowing, voice, hearing, cognition, social skills, and augmentative communication.
Partnerships to Enhance Nursing Education in Haiti
Eighty-seven percent of the healthcare provided in rural Haiti is done so by nurses or nursing aides who do not have the requisite training to provide the care they are called on to give. The Partnerships Conference aims to develop nursing education programs which can be implemented and expedited, allowing the residents of Haiti to receive the care they need. The goals of the program include: creating effective partnerships between North American schools of nursing and Haitian schools of nursing, coordinating the efforts of the North American schools of nursing which are working in Haiti by standardizing curriculum and developing expedited programs, and formalizing the accreditation process so that minimum requirements for all schools are uniform.
The HPEC is working with The Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing, the Haitian Nursing Association, and Promoting Health in Haiti, to provide support for Haitian schools of nursing. Promoting Health in Haiti was founded to provide support and create collaborations between North American and Haitian schools, in order to develop Bachelor's and Master's level nursing education in Haiti, ensuring that nurses will have the training necessary to provide the complex care they are called on to deliver in hospitals and outpatient settings.
Over the past few years, Hunter faculty members have traveled to Haiti to gain a better understanding of the current status of Haitian nursing schools, and to further develop the program. For information on these trips, please visit the Promoting Health in Haiti website.
Being Excellent Scholars in Transition to Nursing (BESt 4.0)
The BESt 4.0 Program, an HRSA funded Workforce Diversity grant, offered pre-entry preparation and retention activities for students interested in nursing and health professions careers.
The mission of the BESt 4.0 program was to facilitate the transition of financially and educationally disadvantaged students into and through the Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing (HBSON). Students focused on achieving careers as baccalaureate nurses in service to New York City's neediest communities. Students from the Manhattan Hunter Science High School (MHSHS), Hunter College, and HBSON participated in educational activities which prepared them for careers in the nursing profession. Participants were exposed to fundamental resources and coursework vital to their success. Workshops geared towards improving academic performance, and culturally competent healthcare practices, were part of the eight-week high school academy and college pre-entry preparatory programs. Students engaged in mentoring relationships in preparation for the rigorous collegiate experience, as well as learned foundational skills crucial to career preparation. Stipends and scholarships were awarded to students who demonstrate determination, dedication, and commitment to academic success. Pre-entry preparation, retention activities, tutoring and counseling were other components implemented by the BESt 4.0 program.
The HPEC assisted the School of Nursing in determining appropriate learning resources for BESt students. The HPEC computer lab has MathMedia educational software which provided BESt students with a comprehensive review of mathematics. Additional instructional DVD series were also available in our media collection through the BESt 4.0 program.
The HPEC works with Instructional Computing and Information Technology (ICIT) to install computers, projectors, and other audiovisual equipment throughout the Brookdale campus.
