NewsRelease

(Posted 5-21-04)
Contact: Sean Olson, 336-334-5371

UNCG Nursing School Wins National Award

GREENSBORO – The University of North Carolina at Greensboro School of Nursing has received a national award for its emphasis on health care for older adults.

The Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) have given the nursing school the Stand-Alone Baccalaureate Geriatric Course Award. The award recognizes the nursing school’s integration of geriatric coursework into the undergraduate curriculum.

“This award recognizes our national expertise in terms of health care for the elderly,” said Nursing School Dean Dr. Lynne Pearcey. “This shows our students graduate with a significant amount of knowledge about caring for the elderly.”

The need for geriatric nurses is great. According to the Hartford Institute, only a fraction of a percent of the nation’s 2.56 million registered nurses are certified for geriatric care. With the aging of the baby boom generation, the need for nurses with elder-care knowledge is certain to only increase. There are 25 million adults over the age of 65 in America today, according to the AACN.

“We are delighted to honor nursing schools at the forefront of preparing students through outstanding curricula and innovative programs,” said AACN President Dr. Kathleen Ann Long.  “The 2003 winners should be proud of their contributions to geriatric care, which serve as shining examples for other schools to follow.”

For six years, the awards have recognized universities and colleges with baccalaureate programs emphasizing geriatric nursing.
The Hartford Institute is based at New York University and aims to improve the quality of health care for older Americans. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing is a national organization of 575 schools of nursing at public and private universities.

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