Leaders in healthcare gathered to support the nursing profession at Unitek’s Symposium

Albuquerque, New Mexico – In honor of National Nursing Month, Unitek Learning hosted a nursing symposium at Hotel Albuquerque in Old Town. On May 26th, more than 90 guests attended the celebratory event. Along with five esteemed panelists, Dr. Jean Watson, founder and director of the non-profit foundation, Watson Caring Science Institute, led the conference with her keynote address: “Reigniting the Light of Caring in Nursing Education and Practice.”

“The future of nursing education requires a strong partnership between academia and healthcare. Unitek Learning continually seeks to build a bridge between the two,” said Dr. Abdel Yosef, Chief Academic Officer at Unitek Learning. “Throughout the New Mexico symposium, we demonstrated our commitment to workforce resiliency so that we can help bridge the gap between the present and the future. In order to better our communities, we must encourage other leaders to meet standards of excellence, to implement new visions of Caring Science, and to serve as a national exemplar for education and practice.”

The nursing symposium featured distinguished panelists who are experts in their field, including Penny Beattie, DNP, MBA, RN, NE-BC; Gloria Doherty PhD, MSN, ACNP-BC; Rachael Frija, DNP, RN, NPD-BC, NEA-BC; Caryn Iverson, DHA, MSN, MBA, RN; and Cynthia Nuttal, MSN,MPA, PhD, RN, NE-BC. Each panelist spoke about educational equity, excellence, and opportunity to prepare a practice-ready healthcare workforce.

In her keynote address, Dr. Watson, PhD, RN, AHN-BC, FAAN, LL (AAN) shared the core aspects of philosophical-ethical humanistic, theory-guided caring and professional development for academia as well as healthcare organizations.This educational approach expounds on the boldness needed to nurture the practice of human caring in an ever-changing world. Dr. Watson has continued to persevere in her mission to restore the profound nature of caring and healing within healthcare systems worldwide.

“At Unitek, we are committed to a caring exchange between teachers and students,” Janis Paulson, Chief Executive Officer at Unitek Learning. “For educators to effectively prepare students, they must infuse their approach with a positive reflection on the past and an eye on the future. Our goal at the conference was to delve into the importance of diversity as well as mental wellness. To reignite the light of caring in nursing education, we must focus on the principles of effective communication, moral commitment to self and others, and our capacity to increase the quality of teaching overall.”

Unitek Learning is the parent company of several distinguished learning institutions: Unitek College, Unitek EMT, Eagle Gate College, Provo College, and Brookline College. Unitek programs teach the clinical practices and theory used in the field today. Equipped with a multitude of sought-after skills, Unitek graduates are prepared to excel in many of the fastest-growing careers in healthcare and nursing.

Inspirational leaders collaborated to help build the nursing workforce in Arizona.

Phoenix, Arizona – On February 7, 2023, Brookline College invited several area schools to their Phoenix campus for a nursing workshop. This event gave educators the tools and strategies they need to prepare students for the launch of the Next-Generation NCLEX. In April 2023, nursing graduates will complete a new licensing exam that is designed to assess clinical judgment. The symposium equipped both educators and students for success.

“We were honored to support the field of nursing by preparing more nurses for the workforce. Together, we can bridge the gap between the present and future of healthcare education,” said Janis Paulson, Chief Executive Officer at Unitek Learning. “During this event, we opened our doors to other schools so that nursing educators and leaders could gain the knowledge, strategies, and tools to adapt their programs for success on the fast-approaching Next-Gen NCLEX.”

Through this one-day training session, a team of experts from the Assessment Technologies Institute (ATI) covered various topics related to the Next-Gen NCLEX. These subjects included scoring updates from Jason Schwartz, Director of Outreach at the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN). Other event panelists delivered an introduction to the custom assessment builder and what it means for students. Attendees walked away with a copy of ATI’s NGN Guidebook as well as other resources that supplemented the agenda sessions.

At the event, executive nursing and academic leaders discussed how to achieve teaching excellence and pass the Next-Gen NCLEX. Some of these esteemed participants included a NCLEX success specialist, college campus deans, and a director/chair of a BSN Prelicensure program. Five area schools also participated in this unique event.

“For educators to effectively prepare students, they must continually adjust their approach and keep an eye on the future,” said Dr. Abdel Yosef, Provost and Chief Academic Officer at Unitek Learning. “Our goal was to demonstrate how to actively integrate clinical judgment resources in classrooms and clinical simulations. ATI’s team of NGN specialists is in regular contact with the key officials at the NCSBN. As a result, we gave participants access to the most important information they need to prepare for the latest version of the NCLEX-style questions.”

Unitek Learning is the parent company of several distinguished learning institutions: Unitek College, Unitek EMT, Eagle Gate College, Provo College, and Brookline College. Unitek programs teach clinical practices and theories used in the field today. Equipped with many sought-after skills, Unitek graduates are prepared for licensure and employment in their chosen field in healthcare.

Unitek Joins Forces with Banner Health and Launches New Initiative

Newport Beach, CA–Unitek Learning has announced an educational partnership with nonprofit Banner Health to expand their Career Pathways for Essential Frontline Healthcare Workers program. The Career Pathways program supports employees currently working in areas such as environmental services, culinary, and patient transport who want to move into essential frontline health care roles.

“People are at the center of all we do and by investing in our team members’ futures, we can continue to deliver meaningful care together,” said Julie Ann Alvarado-Dubek, Banner Health EVP and Chief HR Officer. “Our Career Pathways program is a creative approach to help our team members realize their clinical aspirations, while simultaneously addressing the health care worker shortage.”

Thanks to a $1.2M workforce development grant issued to the Banner Health Foundation from Maricopa County, the Career Pathways program provides a fully funded experience for eligible team members to receive career advisement, job shadowing, education and support services to develop and transition into high-demand jobs.

Through the partnership, Banner Health employees can enroll at no cost in medical assisting and sterile processing programs at Brookline College. Students receive on-site instruction, access to simulation labs, and hands-on clinical training and can attend the programs through the Phoenix or Tempe campuses.

“An increased demand for a strong workforce has been evidenced by recent events,” said Karilyn Van Oosten, VP of Strategic Business Development at Unitek Learning. “Our partnership with Banner Health will allow Unitek Learning and Brookline College to become part of the solution. We want to help create a career-ready workforce that is needed by an organization like Banner Health.

By joining this partnership, Unitek Learning has committed to providing Banner Health participants with a specialized tuition rate, waived application fee, and the ability to start classes every month at Brookline College. Through this partnership, Unitek Learning has identified themselves as one of Arizona’s most dedicated academic institutions.

“At Unitek, we are committed to education and workforce alignment so that the next generation can thrive,” saidDr. Abdel Yosef, Chief Academic Officer at Unitek Learning. “We’re honored to join forces with Banner Health and help transform the healthcare workforce. As a learning institution, we measure Unitek’s success by our capacity to increase the quality of teaching overall.

Unitek Learning is the parent company of several distinguished learning institutions: Unitek College, Unitek EMT, Eagle Gate College, Provo College, and Brookline College. Unitek programs teach the clinical practices and theory used in the field today. Equipped with a multitude of sought-after skills, Unitek graduates are prepared to excel in many of the fastest-growing careers in health care and nursing.

Banner Health is one of the largest, secular nonprofit health care systems in the country. In addition to 30 acute-care hospitals, Banner also has an academic division, Banner–University Medicine, and a partnership with one of the world’s leading cancer programs, Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center. Banner’s array of services includes a health-insurance division, employed physician groups, outpatient surgery centers, urgent care locations, home care and hospice services, retail pharmacies, stand-alone imaging centers, physical therapy and rehabilitation, behavioral health services, a research division and a nursing registry. To make health care easier, 100% of Banner-employed doctors are available for virtual visits, and Banner operates a free 24/7 nurse line for health questions or concerns. Patients may also reserve spots at Banner Urgent Care locations and can book appointments online with many Banner-employed doctors. Headquartered in Arizona, Banner Health also has locations in California, Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada and Wyoming. For more information, visit bannerhealth.com.