ADVANCING CARE

To meet the health care needs of our growing population of older adults, CONHI now offers a Graduate Gerontology Healthcare Certificate. The certificate program is designed to provide health care professionals the skills they need to offer the best care to adults age 65 and older.

“The goal of the certificate program is to give a generalist in any health care field extra information on caring for older adults so they can be better prepared and skilled providers,” says Kathryn Daniel, associate dean of academic affairs in nursing.

The certificate program has been open for two years, accepting graduate students, most of whom begin with some experience as health professionals. The program is completely online but tied to the campus calendar, includes some synchronous meetings, and can be finished in as little as two semesters. These courses cover more than the clinical management of disease, including everything from health policy to health insurance to social work. The program also prepares RN students to sit for the Gerontological Nursing Certification offered by the American Nurses Credentialing Center. APRN students would be prepared to sit for the Gerontological Specialist exam offered by the Gerontological Nursing Certification Commission.

Current student Ka’Shiris Perryman, a nurse practitioner, joined the program when she realized there was still more for her to learn in order to take the best care of her patients. According to Dr. Perryman, the certificate program has encouraged her to find creative ways, think through, and explore strategies to care for older people. She loves how well-rounded the program is and feels like the opportunity to study social work has been tremendously beneficial.

“It’s really about being someone that my patients feel comfortable with,” she says.

2016-20

The College’s Clinical Translational Research forums began.

The College became a member of the National Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence.