The University of Alberta Faculty of Nursing has become the first school outside of the United States to join the National Hartford Centers of Gerontological Nursing Excellence (NHCGNE), which is considered to be the gold standard in gerontological nursing.
"We look forward to joining a group of elite American universities to enhance care of older adults," said Dr. Anita Molzahn, dean of the Faculty of Nursing.
The mission of the NHCGNE is to enhance and sustain the capacity and competency of nurses to provide quality care to older adults through faculty development, advancing gerontological nursing science, facilitating adoption of best practices, fostering leadership and designing and shaping policy.
Only schools of nursing that have demonstrated a commitment to the field of gerontological nursing and share a vision of optimal health and quality of life for older adults are invited to apply for membership. NHCGNE members must have both current experience and future potential to build the next generation of gerontological nurses and manifest leadership that transcends their own institution.
"It is exciting that our expertise has been acknowledged internationally by the NHCGNE," said Molzahn. "As one of the leading research-intensive nursing faculties in Canada, we have a strong cohort of researchers interested in aging and gerontological nursing. With 25 per cent of our faculty members-many of whom are leading scholars-focusing their research and scholarship primarily on care of older adults, this partnership will facilitate future research activity and faculty development relating to gerontological nursing."
Dr. Wendy Duggleby, vice dean and Nursing Research Chair in Aging and Quality of Life, is excited about this opportunity, for both the faculty and her own research.
"We are now a member of an internationally recognized and experienced organization that has an excellent reputation for building research capacity through their programs and is focused on improving the quality of life for older adults.
"The NHCGNE will open doors to resources, programs and collaborations that we didn't have access to previously. Our faculty and students will be able to work with other researchers towards the goal of advancing science in gerontological nursing."
Other members of the National Hartford Centers of Gerontological Nursing Excellence (NHCGNE) include: Arizona State University, Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing at NYU, Oregon Health and Science University, John Hopkins University, Penn State, University of Iowa, University of Arkansas, University of California at San Francisco, University of Maryland, University of Minnesota, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, University of Pennsylvania and University of Utah.