$1.5 million grant awarded to The University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s School of Nursing to identify issues leading to health problems

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center's School of Nursing has received a $1.5 million grant that will be paid out over three years to help its students work to identify issues that lead to patient health problems.

Students will use simulated scenarios to roleplay the different social determinants, like income inequality, poor access to quality healthcare, and different neighborhood environments, that can lead to adverse health situations. 

According to an article on The University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s website, Assistant Professor Christie Manasco, PhD, who is the project director of the grant, said, “This will help future nurses be more proactive in addressing the root causes of patients’ health problems. If we can help improve those conditions that are impacting their health, then they will not have to seek care for the same problem over and over again. I want my students to move upstream to where they are addressing the root causes of health problems, so that there will be fewer needs downstream.”

The focus of the grant will be to help train students understand how to help patients in need of resources based on the social determinants they discover by speaking with their patients. Among the factors and resource topics students will become experts in include homelessness, mental health, aging populations, HIV/AIDS, and obesity, among others. 

The timeline of the grant includes one year of planning how to introduce the simulations into the curriculum. In the second year, there will be a gradual rollout, and in the third year, the simulations will be fully integrated. More than 250 undergraduate and graduate students a year will be trained under this grant. 

Speaking on the impact this grant will have throughout Tennessee, College of Nursing Dean Wendy Likes, PhD, DNSc, FAANP, FAAN, said, “In 2021, 14% of Tennesseans had three or more chronic conditions, such as high blood pressure or diabetes, that lead to poor overall health. In the nation as a whole, less than 10% of people have three or more chronic health conditions. Many of these health problems are connected to behaviors that are influenced by the social determinants of health. This grant can help improve the health of Tennesseans by preparing future nurses to identify these issues and intervene to promote better health outcomes.”

For more information about The University of Tennessee Health Science Center, visit the school’s website.