Frontier Nursing University

Although I haven't blogged about it, I did apply and was accepted to go back to school to become a Certified Nurse Midwife and Nurse Practioner. I went to Hyden, Ky for orientation. I will start classses in July on-line.

I met Erin at the Lexington airport last Wednesday. I was already in the area to have lunch with my friend, Angie. Earlier in the day, I saw on the FNU Class 102 Facebook page that her flight was cancelled and she would arrive into Lexington after the shuttle to Hyden departs. I offered to pick her up. I came with the mind set to make friends, besides; I wanted a companion for the 2 hour drive into the Appalachian Mountains. Before I picked her up, I made a sign that was entirely unnecessary in the quiet bluegrass airport. Making the sign sparked my exciting and pride in a program that I knew relatively little about.

 After 2 hours of driving, we reached Hyden, Kentucky.  The campus was small and unassuming. The buildings were nearly 100 years old.  The administrative offices, our bunks, the dinning area, and the classrooms were housed in the original buildings of the Frontier Nursing Service started by Mary Breckinridge in the early 1920’s. Back in the 20’s these buildings were the hospital and the barn that housed the horses that the nurses rode to the homes in remote Kentucky... Homes that were only accessible by horseback via creek beds and trails.

 Our group was small. Just 27 of us in Class 102. We were assigned rooms, and all of them were private sleeping quarters. Mine was room 305. I hit it off with Amber, a fellow L&D nurse and midwife student at dinner and so we decided to bunk together for the company. We were fast friends.  The overall smell of the dorm was musty, and the hard wood floor creaked, like many old homes in humid climate. It was comfortable to me.

 The first night we met each other at dinner that was served buffet style on wood tables and chairs. While there was small talk, it was pretty quiet. We spoke of where we were from and a little about our families. We also sought out the others of us that were either Family Nurse Practice students or Nurse Midwife students- this is when I met Amber. After dinner, we met some faculty and staff and heard from a nurse who worked as a nurse on horseback with the Frontier Nursing Service. This is where we learned about the heritage of the FNS. It was begun by Mary Breckinridge, who saw a need in the remote underserved Kentucky Mountains. The need was for primary care, but also for prenatal/maternal/postpartum care for moms and care for new babies. The mortality rate in Hyden was very high for moms in childbirth.  The nurses provided “home health” as traveling to the satellite clinics that were established and to the hospital was difficult. The nurses would ride out on horseback in sunshine, rain, ice and snow, though creek beds, and up mountain sides in wool uniforms. They were equipped with supplies for births and primary care. Their supplies were in their saddlebags.

 Thursday was a full day. We had brief introductions to the 2 courses of term 1. Dr Laura is the Physical Assessment instructor. What stands out to me is that she wants us to breathe and succeed. She reminded us to take things one step at a time, and gave us tips to make this program work in our lives, even with children and jobs, as many of us have.  Jackie will be the writing teacher, I came away from that thinking that thesis statements are going to be the bane of my existence, also to get real comfortable with feedback on my papers. She will beat us “with love”. Eek.

 That afternoon we broke up into groups. The 7 of us CNEP students had to work together on a folly.- That is a performance/skit to perform in front of everyone. This fosters teamwork, friendship and laughs. Since the other 4 groups are all FNP students, we represented with a labor and birth scene. It was fun. I got to know the other CNEP students as we prepared. Alanna was the creative brain-child and poet of the group. Laura was the main character,the CNM.

That night after the planned events were over, we went down to the local family dollar for treats and caffeine, then we partook of the locals at the Dairy Queen. Cori drove me and Amber and Laura.

 Friday was the final day we had mini sessions with financial aid, student services, IT and our advisor. Meeting with the advisor was good, but I have to say that I wanted to throw up a few times. She was encouraging, but the reality that this is something that cannot just be sprinkled in hit me hard. It is a great commitment and likely a 4-5 year commitment. With the mandates in healthcare, by 2015, it will be required that Advanced Practice nurses have their doctorate. As a result, this program meets that goal. This graduate and doctoral stuff is not to be taken lightly. Study and sacrifice will be a must.

My favorite part of the entire stay was listening to Kitty Ernst via skype. She is an 84 year old Advanced practice nurse who pioneered the distance nurse training portion of the Frontier Nursing Service. She poured her heart, soul and finances to make it happen. She encouraged us to find out what our mission is in relation to this program of study. She gave many gold nuggets of advice. Encouraging us to step up, speak up, and never give up. She compared the schooling to transition of labor. Many who are familiar with transition in labor know that it is a difficult phase. 8-10cm. Nausea, shaking, increased need for support, feeling that “I cannot do it”- wanting to give up. I loved that analogy! Life changes are appropriately compared to “transition”. Lastly, she closed by telling us to “Go forth my child, and help mothers and babies!”

In the afternoon, we rang the bell on campus. This bell ringing signifies that a new class is at FNU. It is tradition.

Lastly, we went to the home of Mary Breckinridge. It is now a bed and breakfast. We had a nice dinner served  to us there. It was an amazing contrast to the group of individuals 2 nights before at dinner making small talk. Now it was boisterous, laughing smiles, and talking at every table.

The Rockin' CNEP Mamas

The FNP beauties

Amber

 If the goal of orientation was to foster  pride in and connection to the FNS, and also to network and create friendships in a time of transition, then mission accomplished. It was great.

Amber and me