FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                        April 29, 2008

KIM BRUCE NAMED AS AMBASSADOR OF NURSING

            Kim Bruce, coordinator of the Ketterman Clinical Skills Lab at Northwestern Oklahoma State University-Enid, has been appointed by the National League for Nursing (NLN) to serve as an NLN Ambassador. As a participant in the program, Bruce will help keep faculty and administration informed about the NLN’s initiatives, grant opportunities, conferences, publications, workshops and other benefits available to NLN members.

            “We created this selective program to make it as easy as possible for nurse faculty and nursing programs at all levels to understand what the NLN has to offer to enhance professional development and status,” said Dr. Beverly Malone, NLN’s chief executive officer. “At the same time, we expect the Ambassadors to communicate to NLN professional staff and the board what issues and challenges are of greatest concern to nurse educators in the field so that we can maximize the effectiveness of our programming and services. The Ambassadors are, in effect, the NLN’s ‘eyes and ears’ on campus.”

            As the Ketterman coordinator, Bruce works with nursing students from Northwestern and Northern Oklahoma College. She also helps employees from St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center and Integris Bass Baptist Medical Center with training and the updating of skills.

            The Ketterman Clinical Skills Lab is a state-of-the-art simulation lab that provides experience to students before they have to deal with them in real life. It involves everything from writing scenarios for critical care to making a bed with the patient in it.

            Bruce graduated from Northwestern in 1996 with her bachelor’s degree in nursing and earned a master of science in nursing from Wichita State University in 2006. She currently is preparing to take the Clinical Nurse Specialist in Adult Health certification test in September. She has been married for 14 years to Brian Bruce. Between them they have three grown daughters, two grandsons and two granddaughters.

            It is anticipated that Bruce will encourage colleagues at Northwestern to participate in NLN processional development programs, apply for research grants, submit abstracts for the annual Education Summit and manuscripts to the peer-reviewed journal “Nursing Education Perspectives,” volunteer for task groups and special committees, run for elected office, nominate colleagues for awards and complete research surveys.

            She will be prepared to answer any questions other faculty or administrators have about the NLN and, when necessary, refer them to the appropriate NLN staff person.

            The Ambassador Program was established in 2006 with an initial cadre of 126 members who teach in all types of nursing programs—practical nurse, associate degree, diploma, baccalaureate, master’s and doctoral. Today, there are 689 ambassadors representing schools of nursing in 28 states. Appointments are made periodically to meet the goal of having at least one NLN Ambassador in every school of nursing.

-NW-

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