Faculty
Michelle Johnston, associate professor, was elected as the incoming president-elect for the Association of Oklahoma Nurse Practitioners with her term having begun this year.
Maria Jones, Doctor of Physical Therapy Program director, was the recipient of the American Physical Therapy Association Oklahoma鈥檚 Founders Award, which acknowledges the contributions of those who have demonstrated an outstanding level of commitment and service to the advancement of the physical therapy profession through clinical practice, education, research, public relations and community service.
Wendee Lentz, clinical assistant professor, attended the 2024 Special Olympics New York State Summer Games at Ithaca College in Ithaca, NY for training to be the Special Olympics Oklahoma FunFitness coordinator. FunFitness is a branch of the healthy athletes initiative that utilizes physical therapy screenings to examine flexibility, strength, balance and aerobic fitness. Lentz鈥檚 goal is to screen Olympic athletes and people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Oklahoma to determine their current fitness level and to help them improve their health.
Megan Dernaika, clinical assistant professor; Cene鈥� Livingston, chair of advanced practice programs; Michelle Johnston, associate professor; and Sara Buster, clinical assistant professor; embarked on a research study investigating doctoral student development of cultural competemility. Cultural competemility is a concept integrating cultural competence and humility, representing a nuanced approach necessary for nursing leaders. The study aims to explore the development of cultural competemility among nursing students, evaluating the effectiveness of educational interventions in fostering this crucial attribute.
Kimberly Viers, clinical assistant professor, and Elizabeth Diener, professor, are working on a qualitative research study addressing the experiences and perceptions of pain and injury in university-level dance students.
Cene鈥� Livingston, chair of advanced practice programs; Maria Jones, Doctor of Physical Therapy Program director; Bobby Bosse, Physician Assistant Program director; and Brandi Stanley, pre-nursing facilitator, partnered with OCU鈥檚 Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and other schools on campus, for the Emerging Stars Academy. The ESSA welcomed students from high schools in the surrounding community to learn about college programs. Faculty representing Kramer School of Nursing鈥檚 undergraduate and graduate programs provided activities and learning opportunities about health professions to participants ranging in age from 13-17 years.
Doctor of Physical Therapy Program
The Oklahoma Performing Arts Collective held their inaugural conference in August, featuring presentations from Wendee Lentz who discussed footwear and foot care, and Kimberly Veirs who talked about preparing for dance in college.
The program hosted a career fair on September 10 with more than 35 physical therapy practices and facilities attending that provided great networking opportunity for first and second year students.
The 34th Annual International Association of Dance Medicine and Science Conference was held in October and featured Kimberly Veirs and Gregory Dedrick, adjunct faculty, who presented a case report on the management of a rare case of midfoot pain, tarsal coalition in a university dancer as well as Kimberly Veirs, Wendee Lentz and colleague Johnathan Baldwin presenting risk factors associated with musculoskeletal complaints and injury in a university dance department.
Maria Jones presented 鈥淚nfluencing Change: Governance and Advocacy in Action鈥� at the American Physical Therapy Association鈥檚 Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy Annual Conference in November.
Physician Assistant Program
OCU鈥檚 seventh graduating class in its Physician Assistant Program was held last May. As the second largest PA program in Oklahoma, it has introduced 239 physician assistants into the medical practice community since the program鈥檚 inception in 2016. The Class of 2024 successfully complete their Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination with a 100% first time pass rate. This marks the third graduating class to reach this challenging accomplishment since the first graduating class in 2018.
Several PA programs have attempted to improve their student PANCE first time pass rates, but few have developed a method implemented into the curriculum to improve these numbers. The OCU PA program utilizes a statistical tracking method to identify students who may be at risk for failing their national board examination and implemented a program structured PANCE preparation curriculum to improve these first-time pass rates.
Kramer School of Nursing students volunteered at the 野狼社区 Memorial Marathon with Clinical Assistant Professor Jamie Kilpatrick.
Congratulations to the inaugural class of 33 Kramer School of Nursing accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing graduates in December!
Kramer School of Nursing鈥檚 BSN child health class attended a lecture at Oklahoma Children鈥檚 Hospital along with a concurrent Christmas in July toy drive held by the Student Nurses Association.
Supporting the Development of Nurse Educators
Nursing education is facing a growing crisis as aging nurse educators retire and leave the profession. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing projects that by 2025, one-third of the current faculty in baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs will retire, coinciding with an increased demand for nurses in the workforce. In response, the Kramer School of Nursing is taking proactive steps to address the crisis by fostering the development of future nurse educators. A year ago, the first cohort of Doctor of Nursing Practice 鈥� Nurse Educator students was admitted. Designed by a task force of expert nurse educators, this program track was developed to address both current and anticipated needs in nursing education. It focuses on Master of Science in Nursing-prepared nurses seeking a terminal degree to advance their careers as educators. Doctor of Nursing Practice-prepared nurse educators will play a critical role in shaping the next generation of nursing professionals, guiding and preparing diverse learners as they enter the field.
KSN Advanced Practice Students Partner with Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma
Kramer School of Nursing鈥檚 Family Nurse Practitioner and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner students hosted and participated in a collaborative event with the Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma and other community mental health entities. KSN faculty and GSWO staff partnered to develop 鈥淲ellness Warriors鈥� which included a variety of mental health-focused workshops for girls aged 5-to-18 and their parents. The event was held in May with plans for future collaboration.
