Future RN’s prepared in Blanding program

Utah State University’s Blanding campus has perfect scores to spare from their successful nursing program.

According to Sue Dewar, USU Blanding’s nursing ​​professional practice assistant professor, in the last two years, they have had a  National Council Licensure Examination, or NCLEX, and job placement rates of 100%.

Dewar credits this success to herself and her coworker Emmy Patterson.

“We stay close to all of the students,” Dewar said. “We are invested in their success, and we don’t give them things to do that don’t help them move to their ultimate goal, which is passing their national boards and being great nurses.”

Kristian Olsen, senior associate vice president for Blanding and Moab campuses, wrote Dewar and Patterson, “are student centered. They want the students to succeed. They believe in their students. And they care deeply about them.”

According to Dewar, coronavirus hit their enrollment numbers hard. On average, there are 15 to 25 students in the program at a time.

For the last two years, each student has finished the program as a registered nurse.

“We are small but mighty,” Dewar said.

This year, half of their students are Native American which makes the pass rate more special to Dewar.

“I’m very proud because Native students have traditionally not done as well in the program, and since I got here, they are doing much better,” Dewar said.

Dewar said the increase in performance on the NCLEX for Native students is because she and her team focus on their needs when they are commonly overlooked.

“We have graduated many Navajo registered nurses, including our first male Navajo RN this last spring,” Dewar said.

The many hours spent by Dewar’s team mentoring, tutoring and answering questions is a great asset for Blanding’s nursing program.

“Coming across individuals who can seamlessly blend dedication, hard work, and compassion in the classroom is a rare occurrence, yet these qualities define Sue and her team,” Olsen wrote.

Another factor in their success, according to Dewar, is the absence of busy work in their program.

“They work hard to structure the classes in a way that challenges the students and increases their capacity to learn and understand the nursing profession,” Olsen wrote.

“We hold the bar high where we know it matters, but we have flexibility in things we don’t think are as important,” Dewar said.

Dewar dedicates the program to becoming better at studying and test taking which is essential to pass the NCLEX, as it is needed to become an RN, “If you aren’t preparing them for the NCLEX the whole two years, they won’t be ready,” Dewar said.

Students can earn their associate degree in nursing at the Blanding campus and become RNs. If they choose to pursue a Bachelor of Science in nursing, they can take a RN to BSN online course.

Olsen and the USU Blanding community give support to the nursing program that helps ensure the students become great nurses, according to Dewar.

“Kristian Olsen loves nursing and is always in our corner,” Dewar said. “The community clinical sites have been very supportive. Without their help, I don’t think we would be as successful.”