FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Palm Healthcare Foundation Nurse Educator Conference Engages, Prepares Nurse Leaders For The Future

West Palm Beach, Fl. – At the recent Palm Healthcare Foundation Nurse Educator Conference, over 125 nurse educators gathered to learn teaching strategies to maximize their efficiencies, and address the nursing faculty shortage and its impact on the Palm Beach County nursing community. Designed to highlight the challenges facing nursing educators, the conference inspired discussions on ways to overcome the issues.

An important part of the conference brought together nurse educators and state representatives Kelly Skidmore, Susan Bucher, Richard Macheck, and Martha Lee, aide to Priscilla Taylor, to discuss the difficulties nurse educators in Palm Beach County face. “With the lack of nursing faculty, each year becomes more difficult for educators to share their time and resources to teach greater numbers of future nurses,” said Judy Brustad of Palm Healthcare Foundation. “These faculty shortages limit student and faculty capacity at a time when the need for nurses is increasing.”

The Nurse Educator Conference not only focused on the need for new faculty and skill development, but also taught educators new ways to effectively teach nurses the proper way to handle high-risk situations. Using full-body computerized mannequins to simulate various real life medical problems in real time, nurses were able to practice treating high-risk patients in an emergency situation. The exercise was not only fascinating to the nurses in attendance, but also gave them the opportunity to learn in a more relaxed environment.

Also in attendance: Terry Eggenberger, instructor and doctoral candidate in the FAU College of Nursing; Mark Goldstein, Director of Educational Development, Marketing and Technology the FAU College of Biomedical Science; Judy Brustad, Director of Healthcare Workforce Retention Strategies, Palm Healthcare Foundation.

For more information on Palm Healthcare Foundation and their programs, please contact (561) 833-6333 or visit www.palmhealthcare.org.

About Palm Healthcare Foundation, Inc.
Palm Healthcare Foundation, Inc. was chartered in 2001 as an independent community healthcare foundation. Believing that “Together We Can Do More,” the foundation’s mission is to transform healthcare challenges by bringing together the talents and resources of the community to create innovative solutions that deliver high-impact results. The Foundation’s funding priorities—access to healthcare, healthcare quality and safety, healthcare technology, healthcare policy and healthcare workforce—are designed to empower non-profit healthcare organizations and healthcare professionals to create programs and services that improve the quality of life for Palm Beach County’s underserved citizens.  Since 2001, the Foundation has distributed more than $20 million to over 80 non-profit organizations in Palm Beach County.  To learn more about Palm Healthcare Foundation, please visit www.palmhealthcarefoundation.org.