National Association of Hispanic Nurses Hosts Mentoring Program Kickoff to Closeout National Hispanic Heritage Month
By Office of The President | Oct 24, 2022
Congratulations to Adriana M. Conde, Employee & Labor Relations assistant vice president, for her capstone project, developed
as part of the SUNY Hispanic Leadership Institute (HLI). The program focused on a
mentorship/leadership model to encourage more Hispanic and Latinx individuals to become
nurses. This one-year voluntary program will assist Latinx students in our College of Nursing
(CON) in excelling in their chosen careers.
A 2020 survey by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing and The Forum of State Nursing Workforce Centers showed that nurses from minority backgrounds represent 19.4 percent of the registered nurse (RN) workforce; only 5.6 percent of the RN workforce report their ethnicity as Hispanic. The RN population comprises 80.6 percent White/Caucasian, 6.7 percent African American, and 7.2 percent Asian.
The program will pair UHD nurses and students of Latinx descent currently enrolled in the CON Accelerated Bachelor of Science (BS) with a major in Nursing. Students in the 15-month full-time Accelerated BS program must already hold a baccalaureate degree in any discipline and meet science prerequisites by enrollment.
Paired teams will engage in shadowing activities as the nurse perform their duties, participate in mentoring activities to develop the student’s leadership potential, and provide further support for the student’s transition to practicing. The project is also a potential pipeline for employment opportunities upon graduation for students here and elsewhere.
The Latinx Downstate nurses who plan to serve as mentors eagerly endorsed this opportunity to assist in the academic challenges of the program as well as ways of managing day-to-day life’s challenges. They are helping to strengthen the Latinx nursing and Downstate communities, respectively, while also assisting the next generation of Latinx nurses with aspects of their nursing careers that can often be challenging.
The UHD Senior Leadership Team (SLT) welcomed Michele Crespo-Fierro, Ph.D., RN, NYU Meyers of Nursing Director and Clinical Associate Professor to present Mentoring: The Key to Diversifying the Nursing Workforce and Addressing Health Disparities at a recent SLT meeting. Dr. Crespo-Fiero shared her insights and experience in engaging and encouraging more individuals of Hispanic and Latino descent to enter the nursing field.
Thank you to Keydron K. Guinn, Ph.D., MA., MBA, senior vice president & chief of staff; Patricia A. Winston, DNP, MS, RN, Hospital Operations senior vice president; Cheryl Rolston, MA, RN, UHD chief nursing officer, Lori Escallier, Ph.D., RN, College of Nursing dean; Karen Broomes-Jones, DNP RN, Nursing Education director, and Jean McHugh, Ph.D., R.N., Entry-Level program chair, and Accelerated BS Track director, for supporting Ms. Conde and the work of the SUNY Hispanic Leadership Institute.
View Dr. Crespo-Fierro’s Video of Presentation and Presentation PDF
Tags: Nursing