TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Advanced nursing degrees are within easier reach for local registered nurses through separate Internet-based partnerships between two health care entities and The University of Alabama’s Capstone College of Nursing.
The Tuscaloosa VA Medical Center and Amedisys Home Health Care and Hospice, both in Tuscaloosa, are each formalizing partnerships between their entities and the College. The agreements provide registered nurses with a flexible avenue for continued education, including specific opportunities for the nurses to obtain a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and/or a Master of Science in Nursing degree.
Representatives from the VA and UA will formalize an agreement today at 2 p.m. during a partnership signing ceremony in the VA’s Bldg. 3 conference room, while representatives from Amedisys and UA will sign their agreement, also in Tuscaloosa, at 3:30 p.m. April 23 in Amedisys’ 1300 McFarland Boulevard, NE Suite 320, location.
Management representatives from both the VA and Amedisys will attend their respective ceremonies.
Attending the ceremonies from UA will be Dr. Sara Barger, dean of UA’s Capstone College of Nursing, and Dr. Jeanette VanderMeer, assistant professor in the Capstone College of Nursing and coordinator of the program, known as RN Mobility.
Through the use of the Internet, participants can complete the required nursing courses for the BSN degree in one year, without facing the restrictions of being in class on a specific time and day. Instead, RN students have the flexibility of choosing the best time to go online and complete the requirements. Clinical activities are designed on an individual basis, and efforts are made to arrange locations and times convenient to students.
UA’s Capstone College of Nursing has established similar partnerships with 11 community colleges and universities and six clinical agencies, including, locally, the DCH Health System and the Alabama Department of Public Health.
Amedisys, Inc. is a leading provider of home health and hospice services and operates more than 480 sites across the United States and Puerto Rico. In 1994, the Company became public and currently trades on The Nasdaq Global Select Market (NASDAQ) under the symbol “AMED.” For more information about Amedisys, visit www.amedisys.com.
The Tuscaloosa VA Medical Center is situated on a beautiful campus of 125 acres with 25 major buildings. TVAMC provides primary care, long-term health care and mental health care to eligible veterans in the VA Southeast Network (Veterans Integrated Service Network [VISN] # 7). The Tuscaloosa VA Medical Center provides access to secondary and tertiary care services.
Contact
Chris Bryant, UA Office of Public Relations, cbryant@ur.ua.edu
Damon Stevenson, Tuscaloosa VA Medical Center, damon.stevenson@va.gov
Pam Morgan, Amedisys Home Health Care, pmorgan1009@amedisys.com