Salvation Army partnership benefits nursing students

November 23rd, 2010

Students who are enrolled in La Crosse, Wisconsin-based Viterbo University’s (VU) nursing program may be able to gain experience that will be beneficial to their careers through the school's partnership with The Salvation Army, the LaCrosse Tribune reports.

This opportunity is the result of the CARING Inc. program, a partnership between VU, The Salvation Army and the La Crosse County Health Department.

Every one of the more than 600 VU students who has earned a bachelor of science in nursing degree in the last decade has participated in a type of health promotion, education or screening at The Salvation Army in their senior year.

Students from VU provide a variety of services at The Salvation Army two days a week, including talking about foot care, promoting smoking cessation, administering flu shots and checking cholesterol.

Following these health education sessions, it is not uncommon to see students conversing with people who are having lunch at The Salvation Army. To date, these representatives from VU have served more than 4,000 Salvation Army clients and made more than 1,000 referrals to other healthcare providers.

“We wanted our students to have the experience of working with the underserved, and really to challenge any preconceived stereotypes they might have,” says Judy Talbott, VU associate professor of nursing.

According to 2007/2008 service statistics on the organization’s website,The Salvation Army had assisted 29,104,361 people.