Health and Human Services News

Archives for April 2023

Celebrating student success

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To celebrate the hard work and dedication of students this past year, the MCHHS departments will host several end of year celebrations.

“In a fast-paced world, it is important to slow down and appreciate major accomplishment – to savor the moment,” said Dr. Mark Smith, MCHHS dean.

“That is why the MCHHS white coat, pinning, and celebration ceremonies for our students are crucial. They afford us the opportunity to celebrate those that trusted MSU with important life and career decisions.”

Event details

Events are open to graduates’ friends and families.

School of Nursing

Family Nurse Practitioner Celebration, May 15, 6-8 p.m., Kentwood Hall

School of Nursing Pinning, May 18, 2-4 p.m., John Goodman Amphitheatre

Doctor of Nurse Anesthesia Practice Celebration, May 18, 5-7 p.m., Metropolitan Grille

RN to BSN Completion Celebration, May 19, 11-1 p.m., O’Reilly Clinical Health Sciences Atrium

Public Health and Sports Medicine

Public Health and Sports Medicine Awards Ceremony, May 18, 5-6 p.m., O’Reilly Clinical Health Sciences 100

MAT and MSAT Awards Ceremony, May 19, immediately following commencement, Kampeter Hall 160

Health Services Awards Ceremony, May 19, immediately following commencement, McQueary Hall

Biomedical Sciences

Graduation Banquet, May 18, 5:30 p.m., The Old Glass Place

Communication Sciences and Disorders

Doctorate of Audiology White Coat Ceremony, May 6, 1-3 p.m., Carrington Hall 208

School of Social Work

BSW and MSW Completion Celebration, May 19, 10:30-12:30 p.m., PSU Union Club

Psychology

Psychology and Gerontology Honors Reception, May 4, 5-7:30 p.m., PSU Theater

Appreciating the value of women as caregivers

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How many women do you know who care for children and their parents, in addition to themselves?

Dr. Maureen Templeman, assistant professor in the department of psychology with a specialty in gerontology, provides insight about the number of women in caregiving roles and their underappreciated value.

When your parents are older and need your help, you might provide informal care like:

  • Reminding them to take their medication. 
  • Cleaning their house. 
  • Helping them get dressed in the morning. 
  • Feeding them. 
  • Taking them to doctor’s appointments. 

Often, these adult children also work and care for their own children.

“It’s like there are three different roles they’re trying to juggle all at once,” Templeman said. 

The role of women? 

Nationally, 60 percent of caregivers are women. Closer to 70 percent of caregivers for people with dementia, are also women.

“Generally, when a woman is a caregiver, she’s fulfilling that role on her own,” Templeman said. “She doesn’t have a partner in her corner for support.”

This results in caregiving being a much more time-consuming role for women, extending throughout their entire lives.

“I think the reason for this is gender norms and just the expectation that when there is care to be provided, it’s provided by women,” Templeman said.

Expectations for men and women 

There has been a change over the past several decades where some men are providing more care.

However, Templeman believes that might have more to do with families having fewer children.

Her point is if a family only has one child and it’s a boy, then that child will be the one providing care by default.

“I don’t think the rise in men providing care has to do with them stepping up,” Templeman said. “Maybe they are to some extent, but for the most part, it’s when they’re the only one available.

Think about your own family. Is your sister more likely to care for your parents than your brother? Most of the time, it’s women who step up.”

The value of caregivers 

If 60 percent of U.S. caregivers are women, then that means there are roughly 23 million female caregivers.

The economic value of caregivers in the U.S. is about $600 billion annually. This means women provide a value of $360 billion per year or 60 percent of the total.

That’s over $15,000 a year in unpaid work for every woman providing care.

“Imagine what would happen to the U.S. economy if they all just stopped,” Templeman said.

“It’s hard to know if the number of women caregivers will significantly change in the future. But we can certainly say they’re underappreciated and overused. We need to recognize the true value of caregiving.”

Learn more about gerontology

Innovating hands-on learning

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Investing in resources to give students hands-on learning opportunities is a top priority for MCHHS.

One of the resources is the Simulation (SIM) Lab located in O’Reilly Clinical Health Sciences Center.

The SIM Lab is a controlled hospital environment with real machines and mannequins used to simulate a real-life health care experience.

“The main purpose of the SIM Lab is to give students going into health care professions a chance to interact with the health care environment before they are thrown into their profession,” said Alexis Curran, MCHHS simulation coordinator.

“We create a scenario where it may be something they will see in the hospital. This will help prepare them for patient care.”

How the lab operates

Students use the SIM lab starting in their junior year. Faculty members monitor and control the lab.

The lab has a control room. Faculty and lab techs will sit inside and observe. They’ll also control the mannequin and the cameras.

“The lab uses a recording system so students can watch in a different room and help critique each other.”

The lab has several hospital rooms to replicate different scenarios. They include:

  • Medical surgery room.
  • Clinical room.
  • Intensive care unit (ICU).
  • Maternity room.
  • Pediatric room.

Continuing to evolve

To give students more real-life scenarios, the SIM Lab continues to be upgraded and used in different situations.

“Last fall, we also started using simulated patients (SPs), which are human actors who take on a patient profile to make the scenario seem more realistic,” Curran said.

“Our students don’t perform skills like catheters or NG tubes on our SPs, but they have been a great asset for helping our students learn communication skills, and students have reacted positively to working with a live person.”

The goal for the future of the lab is to have departments within the college collaborate to give students more diverse experiences that are as realistic to the patient care setting as possible.

Learn more about MCHHS resources

Faculty fan-favorites

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Dr. Jennifer Yates, clinical assistant professor at the department of occupational therapy, and Sherri Ramirez, clinical assistant professor at the School of Nursing, are two fantastic members of our MCHHS faculty. 

Let’s ask them some questions! 

What’s been the craziest thing to happen in your classroom?  

Yates: I was introducing virtual reality as a means for therapeutic rehabilitation, but I think I will keep that experience between me and the students. I will say I am definitely not meant for virtual reality. 

Ramirez: I have a class that is very competitive. I love doing a Kahoot or a case study where they try to show they know the information. The names they give themselves in a Kahoot are very entertaining to the class. You never know what they are going to come up with. They also act out scenarios of what patients might do. That can always be interesting. 

Do you have a favorite class to teach?  
Yates posing with her students
Yates posing with her students and a recipient of a custom-made car for OT’s annual Go Baby Go event.

Yates: I love all the classes I teach and I have quite a wide array, but I am particularly fond of my assistive technology course. It’s a very hands-on course. The students participate in many community projects, but my favorite one is a program called Go Baby Go. The students adapt small, motorized vehicles for children with special needs. Most of these children would otherwise not be able to experience this type of mobility through play. Play is a child’s occupation and a fundamental right all children should be able to experience.  

Ramirez: I love teaching the medical surgical nursing class because they are so eager to learn, go to clinicals and take care of patients. They want to “get their hands dirty” and soak up as much information as they can in order to save lives. I can see how proud they are of themselves when they connect the dots of didactic and clinical practice. 

Where are you from?   

Yates: I am originally from Missouri, but I have lived around Nashville, Tennessee, and Dallas, Texas, for roughly 15 years before returning to Springfield in 2020.   

Ramirez: I’m a Navy brat and from everywhere. If I had to name my home base, it would be Texas, but I’ve lived in Springfield for the majority of my adult life. 

What brought you to Missouri State?

Yates: I’ve always known I wanted to eventually get back to southwest Missouri. After starting and owning my pediatric therapy practice, I knew the next step I wanted to pursue was teaching and research. Missouri State is my alma mater and it feels like home to be back here.  

Ramirez: I have known many faculty members from Missouri State from my previous hospital nursing positions and they were all impressive to me. They love their students and have a great rapport with the hospital staff.  

Learn more about the department of occupational therapy

What’s your favorite part about working here?  

Yates: The people for sure. I truly love coming to my job every day. The faculty, staff, students and administrators are all the best. We have a wonderful program that is next to none. I cannot say enough good things.  

Ramirez: I have worked at a couple of different nursing programs, and here I felt at home from day one. It doesn’t matter who I’m having a conversation with, the dean of nursing, the director of nursing or the AMAZING administrative staff in the school of nursing. We all have mutual respect for each other. 

Explore the School of Nursing