NPHF announces community service, diversity scholarship recipients

BELLEVUE, Wash. The Nurse Practitioner Healthcare Foundation, which was founded in 2005 by a group of pioneering nurse practitioners to help bring the NP profession to the forefront of healthcare, has awarded scholarships to leaders in nursing as part of an effort to encourage NPs to take a proactive approach to improving healthcare in their communities and promote diversity within the profession.

The scholarships, supported through grant funding from Procter & Gamble and AstraZeneca, help recipients pay school tuition and fund current programs and research in their areas of interest.

“These scholarships recognize and provide support for nurse practitioners who are leading the way to minimize health care disparities and provide quality care in their communities, emulating what the NPHF aims to achieve nationwide,” stated NPHF president Phyllis Zimmer, MN, ARNP, FAAN.

These $1,000 scholarships recognize commitment to community service or gastroenterology. The NPHF/Procter & Gamble 2007-2008 Community Service and Gastroenterology Endowed Scholarships were awarded to:

• Diane Nunez, RN, MS, ANP-BC. Originally from Tempe, Ariz., Nunez teaches at Arizona State University in Phoenix, and maintains an active clinical practice in community health. Nunez works at the Escalante Health Center as program coordinator for a health program emphasizing the functional health, physical fitness and quality of life of older adults. In addition to coordinating the program, Nunez takes on the role of fundraising to ensure the service is free to Phoenix residents. As part of her doctoral studies, she is developing a Chronic Disease Disability Prevention (CDDP) program for older adults with the aim of improving quality of life and reducing health care expenses.
• Jennifer Hill, MN, FNP. A nurse for 10 years, Hill has experience in NICU, geriatrics, academics and gastroenterology. Raised in Pleasant Hill, Iowa, she gives back to her home state, working in the pediatric gastroenterology department at Blank Children’s Health Center in Des Moines. Hill is constructing a plan to open a clinic for children with obesity-related gastrointestinal issues. Through this clinic, overweight children will learn how weight affects health, and each child will meet with gastroenterologists, dietitians, counselors, personal trainers and other experts. In addition to helping the child and child’s family, Hill plans to distribute educational materials to school nurses and other appropriate influencers in the form of handouts, DVDs and presentations.

The NPHF/AstraZeneca 2007-2008 Diversity Scholarships were awarded to:

• Ukamaka Oruche, MSN, PMHNP. Originally from Fishers, Ind., Oruche is focused on child and adolescent mental health, working with children in outpatient mental health clinics, schools and juvenile detention centers. Her mission is to make care accessible to her patients and to minimize the stigma associated with mental health illnesses. Oruche commutes to visit patients, minimizing barriers to care and increasing the involvement of family members. With such a diverse group of patients, she knows first-hand the importance of using culturally sensitive treatment approaches, and invites staff and patients to attend monthly cultural competency meetings.
• Jimmy Reyes, MSN, A/GNP. Raised in Santiago, Chile, Reyes learned about the nursing profession early in life from his grandmother, who was a nurse. He relocated to North Liberty, Iowa, and is currently pursuing his doctorate in nursing practice. Reyes plans to open a free clinic to bring quality health care to migrant farm-workers, minority groups, the elderly and Spanish-speaking populations. An avid volunteer, Reyes works for Proteus Migrant Health Clinic, where he treats mainly Spanish-speaking older adults. This experience opened his eyes to the importance of providing culturally sensitive care, inspiring him to organize monthly “cultural cafes” for students and faculty.
• Brenda Trogdon, MSN, ARNP, FNP. Trogdon has a broad range of nursing experience. From neonatal ICU to providing health care to the homeless to working with HIV/AIDS patients, her passion for her work shines through. Continually providing care to the underserved, Trogdon lives in a rural region of Florida and opened a free clinic out of her home to treat African-American, Hispanic and Native American populations with limited health literacy. At the same time, she runs a military base medical facility for teens at risk. In the future, Trogdon plans to open a free clinic in her hometown of Starke, Fla.

“NPHF and AstraZeneca strongly support efforts to ensure that the NP profession is representative of our nation’s population diversity,” stated Zimmer, who noted that 94 percent of the existing NP workforce is Caucasian. “These $5,000 scholarships provide educational support for minority students, who will be among those in the profession meeting the public demand for culturally relevant care.”