We celebrate 115 years of ‘the educated spirit of the nurse’

Dear Friends,

115 years ago, Richard Olding Beard led the effort to found a school of nursing at the University of Minnesota in what would become the first such school established within an institution of higher learning. Beard believed that educating nurses, rather than training them as had been the practice, would help society recognize the worth of human life, conserve human health and provide for social justice. This vision resonates throughout our 115 years, including today. As I read this issue of Minnesota Nursing, I kept returning to Beard’s ideal for “the educated spirit of the nurse” in story after story.

University of Minnesota School of Nursing students and alumni (in partnership with our faculty and staff) are having a profoundly positive impact on health locally to globally. In this issue we’re highlighting several who are using their education to improve care in rural Minnesota. The cover story features DNP student Mattie Ellenson whose efforts to bring specialized women’s health care to rural Minnesota earned her the Emerging Rural Health Leader Award. We highlight recent DNP grad Emily Carroll who is serving patients seeking care for opioid addiction as lead nurse practitioner at the HealthFinders Collaborative in Faribault, Minnesota. We spotlight BSN alum Margaret Kalina leading Alomere Health to become the first Minnesota hospital named one of the top 20 rural community hospitals in the nation.

Join us in celebrating how a new agreement with Great Plains Area Indian Health Service is creating a pathway for rural providers to improve American Indian care. We explore how Earl E. Bakken Center for Spirituality and Healing researchers are developing a comprehensive pain management program for rural veterans, who have more severe pain than the average person but less access to care. And we highlight the research of Carrie Neerland and team that aims to impact the grave national health challenge of maternal mortality and morbidly through the NIH Pathways to Prevention Program.

As always, we appreciate your continued readership and support. We welcome your reflections, suggestions, and shared wisdom to advance our school and this magazine.

In gratitude, 

Connie White Delaney
Professor and Dean