Integrated Public Health Nursing Training and Internship Program

Providing Milwaukee nursing students with education and training in public health

Full Project Name:Integrated Public Health Nursing Training and Internship ProgramPrimary Community Organization:Milwaukee Area Health Education CenterPrimary Academic Partner:Joni Williams, MD, MPH, MedicineAward Amount:399,962

Award Date

January2020

Project Duration:48 months

Project Description Narrative:

In 2017, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation brought together a group of thought leaders to explore the key roles that nurses play in improving the health of the U.S. population. This resulted in the development of recommendations that nursing and health care move beyond the individualistic, downstream focus of traditional medical care and view people in the context of their environment. Yet within nursing education and practice, more emphasis on population health is still required.

Through this project, partners will take a multi-pronged approach to developing a system that will infuse the nursing curriculum with education on the social determinants of health and provide nursing students with opportunities to understand, engage with, and experience public health fields in order to build a workforce that is able to address both acute care and community needs.

Community partners: City of Milwaukee Health Department, Wisconsin Department of Health Services-Public Health Nurses Association, Wisconsin Public Health Association-Southeast Wisconsin Public Health Nurse Residency Program, UW-Milwaukee Joseph J. Zilber School of Public Health, Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development Fast Forward; JoAnn McGrath School of Nursing and Health Professions of Alverno College

Project Updates:

Placed students from cohorts three and four into in-person, paid 8-week summer internships to gain additional public health experience with students placed at four health departments, Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, and the Milwaukee Hmong Consortium of Health
Continued to host focus groups and administer the Alumni Survey, including collaboration with Alverno's Alumni correspondence channels to follow up with nursing students six-months post graduation to learn about where they found employment and how they are incorporating their education and experiences gained through the program
Researching other intern-to-hire programs across Wisconsin and nationally with plans to use the information to create a mechanism for local health departments to implement a pathway for nursing students