Recruitment and Retention of Alaska Natives into Nursing (RRANN) featured in The Tundra Drums

by Kathleen McCoy  |   

UAA's Recruitment and Retention of Alaska Natives into Nursing (RRANN) program was highlighted in the May 10 edition of The Tundra Drums. The following excerpt is from the article "Giving seven days to those who give all the time," written by Emily Wilder.

Alaska can also be proud of the effort to grow its own: In addition to the University of Alaska Anchorage's highly regarded nursing program, the RRANN (Recruitment and Retention of Alaska Natives into Nursing) program increases the number of Alaska Natives and American Indians graduating with associate's or bachelor's degrees in nursing.

"A lot of our students are from villages or smaller towns," said Student Success facilitator Cheryl Lovegreen. "One of the main things we do is help them negotiate the big university system -- it can be overwhelming." The program offers tutoring, networking opportunities, scholarship facilitation and one-on-one academic counseling. Students who take advantage of those offerings are eligible for a small stipend.

Many graduates of the program end up working at ANMC, or returning to their home communities, where their patients benefit from a local nurse's knowledge of the culture and awareness of his or her own critical place in the care system.

"In many communities they may be one of a few providers available, so they feel that responsibility and take extra care to give good patient care," Lovegreen said. "That's probably one of the more rewarding parts of nursing in Alaska -- you really are a valued part of the community."

Read the full article here.

Creative Commons License "Recruitment and Retention of Alaska Natives into Nursing (RRANN) featured in The Tundra Drums" is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.