Flower Hospital gives $1M to Lourdes
8/12/2011Through the McKesson Memorial Fund, ProMedica's Flower Hospital is donating $1 million over a 10-year period to Lourdes College's nurse-anesthesia program.
The study is a new graduate program set to begin Aug. 22 at Lourdes.
About 80 percent of the funding will be used for students enrolled in the program who have demonstrated financial need and academic merit.
Mary Arquette, vice president for institutional advancement at Lourdes College, said the scholarship amounts, which will vary based on financial need, will make a huge difference to students who are not able to work during the program because the curriculum is too intense.
"It's a very costly program to offer, and costly [for] our students," she said.
She said about four scholarships will be offered each year, but that also can depend upon the need as the committee assesses it. Once they are accepted to the program through a rigorous screening process, students will then be reviewed by the scholarship committee.
Four of the 12 nurse-anesthesia students this year will receive scholarships.
Lourdes will invest the remainder of the funding in continuing education in the field of anesthesia, staff development, direct support for the training program, and the creation of a lecture series.
Ms. Arquette said there's a huge need in the community for nurses with this advanced degree.
"I can't tell you how many openings there are for each person who graduates with this degree," she said. "In the rural areas where they don't have anesthesiologists, there's a very big need to have highly qualified people."
The nurse anesthesia program is the only one of its kind in northwest Ohio, program administrator Jill Liebnau said
Alan Sattler, president of Flower Hospital, said the scholarships are an investment both in the community and in Lourdes students.
"The hope is that as these Lourdes students complete their degrees and become [certified in anesthesia] they will have developed strong relationships with our staffs and physicians and will stay in this community," he said.
In recognition of the donation, Lourdes College Thursday dedicated the Flower Hospital/McKesson Nurse Anesthesia Lab.
Dr. Elmer McKesson was a consulting anesthesiologist at Flower Hospital until his death in 1935 and was known throughout the world as a scientist, physician, educator, and investor.
The McKesson Memorial Fund was established for the perpetual research, education, and study of anesthesia.
Contact Sara Felsenstein at: sfelsenstein@theblade.com or 419-724-6050.