Health and Human Services News

Ensuring educational success

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In order to provide the best care to patients, healthcare workers must constantly learn new things to stay up-to-date in their field. Continuing education has become an important tool in the healthcare industry.  

“When working in the hospital as a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA), you are sometimes given continuing education money in order to keep your license,” said Dr. Monika Feeney, department head School of Anesthesia.  

The world-renowned medical organization, the Mayo Clinic, has established a program to ensure its employees get the best continuing education possible.  

“The Mayo Clinic recently announced that they will pay 100% of the tuition for any of their CRNA employees wanting to get the DNAP at Missouri State.” 

How the program works 

CRNAs who are wanting to get into the program must currently have their master’s and be prepared to get their doctorate.  

“The doctorate degree can be completed in one, two or three years,” said Feeney. “They are all distance classes, so students can complete the program where they currently reside”  

The university also has a satellite campus on Mayo Clinic’s campus where they offer onsite options for required Campus time. “Our program is made for working people and that drew the attention of Mayo Clinic,” said Feeney. “We are really excited about the opportunity they are giving their employees and this partnership we have.” 

How to apply 

Current CRNAs at Mayo Clinic are asked to apply through the Missouri State DNAP application.   

Applicants will then go through an interview process to determine if they are eligible for this program.  

Students will be selected shortly after the interview process. 

Learn about our DNAP Completion Program

Developing skills for the future of healthcare

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The healthcare industry is always evolving. New machines and tools are being created and best practices continue to be altered. 

Missouri State’s School of Anesthesia is hoping to stay ahead of the curve on these changes within healthcare by providing students with the best educational resources.  

This year, the anesthesia department offered its first ever Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) workshop to the students in the program.  

“The use of ultrasounds is being incorporated into our practice now,” said James Keaton, CRNA, clinical assistant professor. “We thought it would be a good idea to offer our students the opportunity to get some experience using them.”  

The importance of POCUS 

Being able to effectively monitor patients is one of the most important jobs of a Nurse Anesthesiologist. 

It is important for students to get as much practice in POCUS as possible because everyone’s anatomy is slightly different. Experience will enhance students’ knowledge immensely. 

“By using ultrasounds, we are able to quickly and effectively assess a patient’s condition,” Keaton said. “We can look at someone’s heart and airways to assess how their body is functioning and alter the anesthetic accordingly.” 

Because of its usefulness, POCUS will now be included on the certification exam.  

“The national accrediting body recently announced that students will be required to learn and understand the use of POCUS in our field, so it’s important for us to start that training for our students now,” Keaton said. 

Outstanding first workshop 

Seventy-six students in the anesthesia program were able to go through the POCUS training during the workshop.  

Twenty-four students from departments around the college volunteered their time to get ultrasounds taken of them. 

“The cooperation between departments around the college was amazing. It gives students a better idea of what we do and the program we offer,” Keaton said.  

The workshop was held in the nursing simulation lab in O’Reilly Health Sciences Hall, one of the amazing facilities on the MSU campus.  

This educational opportunity would not have been possible without the generosity of several companies who lent their machines to the program for the weekend. 

Those companies include: 

    • Butterfly iQ. 
    • GE. 
    • Phillips/Braun. 
    • Sonosite/Fujifilm. 

Learn more about the School of Anesthesia

Behind the Brohort

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Making up such a small percentage of the nursing program at Missouri State University, male nurses can easily be overlooked. 

The common stereotype within hospitals is to have a doctor being assisted by a female nurse. So what is it like to go against the grain, being a male nurse? 

Nursing students Caleb Huettenmyer and Trevor Whittington share about their experiences within April’s podcast episode, just in time for National Nurse’s Month around the corner. 

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE

How to achieve your goals

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For nursing students, hospitals tend to become their home away from home. The best nursing students make hands-on work at the hospital their priority. 

Tregg Geren graduated with his Bachelor of Science in Nursing  from Missouri State University in 1992.  

“At that time, the focus of the program was very community-based, instead of giving students experience within hospitals,” Geren reflected. 

He went on to receive his nursing degree from St. John’s College of Nursing and Master of Business Administration from Webster University. 

In January  2022, Geren accepted the position of chief operating officer for Citizens Memorial Hospital District after enjoying his time serving as the chief nursing officer. 

Learning the ropes in a leadership position 

Headshot of Tregg GerenGeren’s new responsibilities include radiology and laboratory on the clinical side of things. He works mostly with support staff, which gives him a glimpse at the way other departments operate. 

“To see how things work behind the scenes and hear the way that the staff deal with situations is extremely different than how a clinical department would,” Geren said. “It has been quite interesting so far.” 

Geren recommends current nursing students or recent graduates obtain as much hands-on experience as possible. Eat, sleep and breathe all things hospital related. 

“Particularly if you don’t have any background in health care, it’s essential to apply for a position like a nursing assistant either before, during or after you’re in nursing school,” he urged. 

For Geren, his extensive experience is what has landed him several leadership positions within the medical field. 

“There’s such a valuable element that’s added because nursing students have done the grunt work and are much more well-rounded in their approach.”  

Explore the nursing program at MSU