Change Agents for the Underserved: Service Education (CAUSE)

As health care changes and shifts increasingly towards prevention, it is important that nursing education move in accordance with that shift. At Mennonite College of Nursing, we believe that delivering an excellent education to our students means that we stay on the leading edge of where health care is going. 

The CAUSE project aims to:

• Increase the number of nurses working in primary care at the full scope of their license.
• Improve the health and well-being of patients outside the hospital.
• Prevent hospital readmission.
• Coordinate care and management of chronic illness, mental health, and substance use issues.

Twenty-six percent of McLean County residents living below 200 percent of poverty are uninsured and the county faces a rapidly growing 65 and older population. At Mennonite College of Nursing, we believe that it is critical that nursing, and nursing education, continue to shift to a more preventative model if we want to keep people healthy and out of the hospital.

Progress through partnership

In order to accomplish this, MCN has partnered with three area organizations:

• McLean County Health Department (MCHD)
• Community Health Care Clinic (CHCC)
• Chestnut Family Health Center

RNs will be embedded at each location. These RNs will serve as preceptors to MCN nursing student participants, allowing students new experiences in diverse clinical settings.

Goals

1. Hire, educate, and retain four RNs to practice evidence based primary care at the full scope of their license and to serve as preceptors to RN students in the three Clinic Partners.
2. Recruit and retain a minimum of 72 baccalaureate nursing students committed to practicing in non-institutional settings to improve access to primary care health care in medically underserved communities.
3. Educate at least 60 RNs and 30 other healthcare providers by disseminating evidence based content on Team Based Primary Care.

Research Objectives

1. Assessing the impact of the RN within Primary Care settings on patient outcomes.
2. Develop curriculum enhancements that provide comprehensive primary care, population health, care coordination, inter-professional education, and simulation into the curriculum for the CAUSE student Participants.

Grant Team & Advisory Board

Learn more about the CAUSE Grant Team and Advisory Board.

Contact

Susan Watkins, PhD, MSN, RN 
Project Director

Michelle L. Woodburn, MPSA, EMT-B
Project Coordinator