College of Nursing’s New Contract with Wilder Youth Development Center Expands Commitment to Clinical Faculty Practice

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Nursing recently signed a three-year contract to provide primary care for residents at the Wilder Youth Development Center in Somerville, Tennessee. Wilder is a secure residential facility that provides long-term treatment, education, and rehabilitation services for males aged 14 to 18 who have been committed to state custody for various offenses by the Juvenile Courts.

At Wilder, two members of the College of Nursing faculty each provide primary care four hours per week on site, in collaboration with licensed practical nurses on the Wilder staff. The College of Nursing will also provide telehealth services to Wilder residents through its Nursing Mobile Health Unit, which is also staffed by an advanced practice nurse. The two faculty members committed to provide services at Wilder are on call 24 hours each day to address immediate health care concerns.

College of Nursing Dean Wendy Likes, PhD, DNSc, APRN-BC, FAAN, FAANP, said, "The mission of UT Health Science Center is 'Healthy Tennesseans. Thriving Communities.' The work we do in our college of nursing exemplifies that mission. When Wilder Youth Development Center reached out regarding this collaboration, it was apparent this aligns with our mission, particularly around caring for the most vulnerable and at-risk individuals in our communities."

Patricia Slade, MSN, RN, MBA, director of nursing for the Department of Children's Services, said, "We are grateful to have the opportunity to collaborate with the UT Health Science Center College of Nursing. Their deeply committed staff are able to draw upon research and the experience of families and youth to address the complex and interconnected needs of our youth while promoting their health, well-being and positive development."

Assistant Professor Lisa Beasley, DNP, APRN, FNP-C, AFN-C, director of the Center for Community and Global Partnerships, and instructor Rebecca Burrow, MSN, APRN, FNP-C, CNE, RN-OB, are the faculty members who serve at Wilder.

The contract with Wilder represents an expansion of the college's commitment to both community outreach and clinical practice by faculty. In November 2023, the College of Nursing launched the Health Education and Lifestyle Promotion (HELP) Center at the Southwest Tennessee Community College (STCC) Union Avenue Campus, which is staffed one day each week by a nurse practitioner from the college faculty. The HELP Center, a collaboration of STCC and UT Health Science Center, allows the community college's students, faculty, and staff to obtain physicals, referrals, and health care resources provided by a nurse practitioner on the faculty of the College of Nursing one day per week.

Twenty-nine members of the college's 63 full-time faculty are involved in faculty practice, which means they practice as nurses or nurse practitioners one day per week - or 20% of their workload. "It is important for academic nursing faculty to continue to practice to maintain their clinical skills, remain current with evidence-based practice, and improve their effectiveness in nursing education," said Assistant Professor and Director of Clinical Affairs Diana Dedmon, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, AFN-C.

Faculty members from the College of Nursing practice at locations including Regional One Health, Baptist Memorial Health Care, and the Methodist Health System. In addition, the college has an Academic Practice Partnership with Le Bonheur Children's Hospital. This innovative partnership allows advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) at Le Bonheur to maintain full-time faculty roles in the College of Nursing at UT Health Science Center while maintaining full clinical practice. The APRNs who are clinical faculty members maintain a role that is 95% clinical practice and 5% teaching. About 40 APRNs at Le Bonheur are on the clinical faculty at the college, and several others serve as volunteer faculty.