East Central College nursing student Ciara McDonald, recently noticed a subtle change in a stroke patient’s condition while she was conducting an assessment at Missouri Baptist Sullivan Hospital (MBSH).

McDonald, of Cuba, is an extern in the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Following the assessment, she immediately notified her preceptor, the patient’s bedside nurse. The preceptor continued to assess the patient, which prompted the activation of the hospital’s stroke team.

McDonald’s astute observation skills allowed a quick response to the patient’s declining condition. Ultimately the patient was treated and is doing very well.

The second-year nursing student is part of the inaugural class of the Missouri “Earn While You Learn to be an RN” program. The new curriculum already is having an impact on lives, and not just for the nursing students. According to McDonald, she asks a lot of questions of her preceptor and instructors to be sure she is providing the best possible care to patients.

“It is crucial to know the key things and keep good notes on what to look for — that is important for a thorough assessment,” she said.

The MBSH Clinical Excellence Team awarded McDonald a “Good Catch” award recognizing her steps in caring for the patient and making MBSH a safer place to receive care and work.

Earn While You Learn

The Missouri State Board of Nursing recently fast-tracked a change to its regulations to allow for qualified nursing students to be part of the workforce beginning this year. The curriculum change was a collaborative request by ECC, MBSH, and Mercy Hospital Washington.

ECC and the two hospitals asked for the change to introduce a new model of nursing education. The program transforms the clinical learning experience by placing students who are in their fourth, and final, semester of the associate degree in nursing (ADN) into the workforce.

Through the program, students like McDonald, earn a wage while learning hands-on, real-world practices and becoming part of the nursing culture. Learn more about the nursing degree options at ECC. The intent of the Earn While You Learn to be an RN curriculum is to combat the nursing shortage in Missouri and to reduce new nurse turnover rates. After McDonald graduates this May, she will continue to work in the ICU at MBSH for two years as part of the program.

There has been a spike in the number of dual credit students this spring at East Central College compared to last year.

There are 525 students who are enrolled in dual credit at ECC, which is 51 more than the 474 enrolled in the spring 2019 semester.

Dual Credit allows high school students to earn both college and high school credit simultaneously. Dual credit classes are taught by ECC-certified high school faculty in the high school.

According to ECC President Dr. Jon Bauer, the more than 10 percent increase is due to, in part, to the college’s initiative to provide dual credit to students in the Free and Reduced Lunch Program at no cost.

“We are excited about the additional students we are reaching through this dual credit initiative,” he said. “East Central is committed to providing tuition-free dual credit for students on the Free and Reduced Lunch Program which began this spring.”

There are 55 students who are taking advantage of the new ECC program that was approved by the board of trustees in December 2019.

“We moved quickly with this initiative in order to reach as many students as possible, as soon as possible,” Bauer commented.

“Cost should not be a barrier to college, and this program ensures that talented high school students can participate in dual credit regardless of income,” he added. “The growth this spring shows that we are on the right path.”

The new program aligns with ECC’s strategic plan, SOAR to 2024, which calls the enrollment 660 dual credit students by October 2024, Bauer said.

Anticipates Growth

ECC Director of Early College Programs Megen Strubberg said she expects even more students in the free and reduced lunch program to enroll in dual credit classes in the fall 2020 semester.

“We are anticipating the program to grow as the word gets out,” she said.

In addition to the students in the free and reduced lunch program, Strubberg attributes the increase of dual credit enrollees to an expanded field of offerings to students within their high schools.

“We are so excited to see the dual credit program grow by enhancing our credit offerings to students who are still in high school,” she said.

Strubberg added that students who participate in early college programs are more likely to enroll full-time after high school. Early college can shorten the time to degree and reduce the overall cost of higher education for students and their families.

Feeder Schools

Dual credit students are from high school, referred to as feeder schools, throughout the ECC service area, and beyond.

Nearly 25 percent of the dual credit students this spring attend St. Francis Borgia Regional High School, where 131 are taking ECC courses.

The next top feeder school is Washington High School with 64, followed by Union High School, 61; St. Clair High School, 58; Cuba High School, 42; and Vienna High School, 24. There are 15 Owensville High School students in the program and 14 from Rolla High School.

In addition, 92 of the total dual credit students are enrolled in technical courses.

Dual credit differs from dual enrollment. Dual enrollment students are high school students taking traditional classes at ECC campus or online only. There are 60 additional students in dual enrollment coursework.

The number of credits high school students are taking through dual credit has increased by nearly 17 percent over last spring. This year students are taking 2,394 credits compared to 2,052 in spring 2019.

For more information about all early college programs, contact Strubberg at 636-584-6723 or email Megen.Strubberg@eastcentral.edu.

East Central College, Union, Learning Center Executive Director Erin Anglin recently received a fellowship for her work in improving the educational opportunities for students.

Anglin was selected as a College Board Regional Fellowship recipient in Late January.

She is among the first in the region to receive the fellowship from the College Board through a pilot program. Regional Council leaders developed the program in direct response to feedback received from the educators they represent.

According to The College Board representatives, Anglin’s application for the fellowship “impressed and inspired” the review panel.

The organization is paying Anglin’s transportation, lodging and registration costs for the ACCUPLACER (testing system) National Conference June 24-26 in Las Vegas, Nev.

The College Board is a not-for-profit organization that expands access to higher education. It was founded in 1900 and it has grown to 6,000 of the world’s leading educational institutions, including ECC.

Each year, the organization helps more than 7 million students prepare for a transition to college through programs, including the SAT and the Advanced Placement Program. The organization also serves its members through research and advocacy.

Under Anglin’s direction, the ECC Learning Center offers free tutoring in math, writing, science and many other subjects to students and community members. ECC students can make tutoring appointments or stop in for assistance. The center also contains over 40 computers for student use, study tables, a lounge area for relaxed study, private group study rooms and more.

For more information about the center, to make an appointment or chat with a tutor, visit www.eastcentral.edu/learning-center/.

The East Central College Health Science building was the stage for a recent hazardous material training scenario.

During the drill, ECC paramedics technology classes worked side by side with a Union Fire Protection District (UFPD) crew for a Sarin gas bioterrorism demonstration.

ECC Instructor Jenifer Goodson and EMS Program Coordinator Tom Fitts offered assistance along the way, but primarily observed how the students handled the situation.

“We put some of the processes into practices, so instead of lecturing on them, we were simulating more,” Fitts said.

Goodson noted that this is the first time that the ECC paramedic classes have run a bio terrorism simulation.

“It hasn’t been done before,” Goodson said, “so this was a learning experience for all of us.”

According to Fitts, there are two paramedic classes this semester that both participated in the demonstration and training.  He explained that the Union Fire Department set up equipment for hazmat decontamination procedures.

“Since they do not use this on a regular basis they were reviewing their procedures and doing refresher training on its setup and use,” Fitts commented.

The demonstration was all done in the EMS lab/ambulance garage inside the ECC Health and Science building. Goodson said that the bioterrorism scenario reinforces what students are learning in lecture.

“We are putting the operation chapters of text books into hands-on situations,” she said. “It is better than just reading.”

After suiting up, the students took part in the decontamination of the area and then triage where they prioritized patient treatment based on the severity of the exposure to the “nerve gas.” Student and fire district role players also assisted with the scenario, acting as patients.

After triage, the victims were transported to the “green zone” where it was determined how and where they were to be transported.

“The students did well,” Goodson added. “There were a few hiccups but it is a learning experience — it is better to make a mistake in the classroom than on the street.”

See a video of the scenario shot in the ECC Health and Science Building here: https://youtu.be/b2m6U-2VXjc

Suiting Up

The process included a demonstration on properly putting on “entry suits” used in the hazmat situation taught by Bob Dopp, a senior active member of the UFPD and ECC instructor.

“We talked about different chemicals they may encounter and how to completely seal the suits for respiratory protection so they don’t pick up dust for whatever situation they may be in,” Dopp said.

The scenario, all around, was successful and informative for the students, and the UFPD firefighters, he noted. Dopp previously worked with the Missouri Department of Public Safety as an evaluator and observer.

“Jenifer (Goodson) did a heck of a job in writing the scenario and the role players did an excellent job,” Dopp added.

While in the suits, students conducted routine tasks, such as using the stairs, as well as basic patient care. After running through the Sarin gas scenario, the class, instructors, firefighters and role payers held a “debriefing” where there were questions about what could have been done better, and suggestions to improve the training.

“There were good questions and comments,” Dopp added. “This helps prepare the paramedic students and, helps the first responders be better prepared.”

Partnership

The UFPD has been working with ECC for years is many capacities. For example, every semester the district conducts an auto extrication demonstration. The college provides vehicles for the extrication demo and the fire district uses its own equipment to teach students how to remove a victim from a vehicle that was involved in a crash, according to Fitts.

“For the fire district volunteers it is continuing education,” he said. “That has been a great partnership.”

To learn more about the ECC paramedic technology classes and degree, visit Paramedic Technology.

East Central College nursing student Anna Swoboda’s passion for helping others is guided by the personal experiences of her and her family.

Swoboda, of Villa Ridge, aspires to be a nurse “first assist” to aid surgeons during operations — a goal she set when her mother was being treated for vulvar cancer.

She explained that her mom, Donna, battled cancer for a total of 12 years. At one point she had defeated it, but the cancer came back more aggressively than ever more than 10 years ago. When the cancer returned treatment required one major “last resort” surgery, Swoboda said. The surgery last 16 ½ hours.

“This was the moment in my life when I knew I needed to be on the opposite side of the waiting room doors,” Swoboda said.

“I wanted to be in the operating room. I wanted to repay everyone in that OR (operating room) that day who attributed to saving my mom’s life.”

The surgery was a success but Donna still faces repercussions of the procedure today. However, she has been cancer free for nine years.

Swoboda is in her second semester of the complete pre-licensure program, a program offered to students who are interested in becoming a registered nurse, or pursuing their education more

“I am the type of person who sets goals,” Swoboda said. “I plan to get my RN (registered nurse) and then be a CNOR  (Certified Perioperative Nurse).”

She is determined to earn an Associate of Applied Science degree in 2021, exactly 10 years after her mother went into remission. Ultimately, Swoboda wants to be a RN first assist where she will work in the OR.

Helping Others

Swoboda has been to Honduras twice, once in 2016 and then in 2017, through the Washington Overseas Missions. Medically trained volunteers assisted Hondurans with medical and dental needs during the trip.

The team, called the “American Brigade” by Hondurans, extracted teeth, cleaned blood clots and open soars, checked vision of patients and taught children how to properly brush their teeth. It was not easy work, Swoboda said. Each day for two weeks the volunteers would travel to a different village, unload and set up clinics, and pack up at the end of the day.

According to Swoboda, her experience assisting with surgeries and helping patients has reinforced her goals at ECC and beyond. In one case a man sought treatment from the American Brigade for severe head pain. Swoboda explained that after an assessment, he admitted to volunteers that six months prior a tree had fallen on him, striking him in the head.

“He had no doctor to go to until he heard about our brigade,” she said.

There was one family that walked four hours to see the medical team, Swoboda added. Another family complained of severe pains in their abdominal area.

“They asked our physicians if there was any medication that we had for them to make it stop,” Swoboda said.

The doctor did his assessment and told the family that they were having hunger pains.

“They were starving and severely malnourished. The medication we gave them was food,” Swoboda said.

In November 2019, she wrote about her experiences in Honduras that was published in The Surgical Technologist — a trade magazine.

Africa Trip

In 2018 another medical emergency shaped Swoboda’s future, but this time it was her own surgery.  She explained that she needed an immediate operation to remove her gall bladder and appendix. Her surgeon was Dr. Jonathan N. Limpert, who has been a leader of medical mission trips to West Africa. The surgery was a success and the patient and doctor quickly became friends.

“I told him that I really wanted to go on a surgical mission,” Swoboda remembers.

The team is through “Crossing4Mercy,” a humanitarian outreach effort that helps the people of Yendi. Later that year, she joined the medical team that visited Ghana, Africa for several days in late 2018 through early 2019.

 

“I was sick and that led to an opportunity to help other sick people,” she said. “God places people in our life at the right time.”

During the trip to Africa, Swoboda took vital signs of patients and conducted prescreenings. Each morning, Swoboda would help set up at the hospital. She would check on patients daily, clean and sterilize instruments and set up for surgeries, among other responsibilities.

Some of the cases seen by the medical team were serious — tumors, prolapsed uteri, enlarged thyroids, hernias and other conditions. During the mission, Swoboda wrote in her journal, “I feel like I finally have a purpose in life. . . “

She said the mission trips have reinforced her life goals and pushed her to continue her education.

”These trips really opened my eyes,” she said. “There is so much more suffering in the world than most people see.”

Education

Swoboda already earned a surgical technician certificate, which she obtained from St. Louis Community College in July 2017. But she wanted to continue her education and set her sights on the ECC nursing program.

“I know the more education I have the more I can help in my lifetime,” Swoboda said. “I want to have as much knowledge as I can to take care people in the states, and outside the states.”

She added that there are many reasons why ECC is a perfect fit to continue her education.

“The instructors here are all fantastic and love being here,” Swoboda said. “I like being closer to home and not have to commute.

“This is my community — where I grew up,” she added. ”It is where I will get knowledge to take care of people for the rest of my life.”

Swoboda commented that not only does she receive a high-quality education, but she intends to graduate debt free.

“I encourage people to go to a community college,” she added.

Swoboda said her instructors go the extra mile for students to ensure academic success.

During her first semester of nursing school Swoboda did not perform as well as she had wanted on two exams.

”I clearly remember the day I finished the third exam we were given that semester,” she said. “I came down to the office to ask a question about a positioning technique used, and when I entered the office, all the instructors came out of their offices and were cheering for me and congratulating me because I got a B on that third nursing exam.”

”That was the day I realized they truly care about my success in this program.”

Swoboda’s experiences in mission trips and interactions with her instructors are two primary factors shaping her.

“The interactions with patients and teachers is transforming me into the nurse I want to be someday.”

To learn more about the nursing degree at ECC, visit https://www.eastcentral.edu/allied-health/.

 

The East Central College Foundation will continue its steps for a grant to repair and improve the recreational walking trail at the Union campus.

The ECC Board of Trustees Monday approved a resolution allowing President Dr. Jon Bauer to sign documentation needed to seek the Missouri Recreation Trails Program (RTP) grant.

According to Bridgette Kelch, East Central College Foundation executive director, if ECC receives the grant, plans call for an overlay of the existing trail. The nearly one-mile long trail would be widened to its original width of 6 feet.

Over time, she explained, the width had diminished due to encroaching weeds and crumbling asphalt.

Bauer added that the trail sees a lot of community use but improvements are needed. He explained that if the Foundation does not receive a grant this year, it could seek funding during the next grant cycle.

The grant also would fund upgrades to the restroom facility near the trail.

“We are very excited to have the opportunity to bring the trail back to a more usable condition,” Kelch said. “Not only is the trail used by students, faculty and staff, but by community members as well.”

She said a recent survey conducted by the Foundation indicated that up to half of those who use the trail are local residents.

The RTP utilizes federal funds that are administered through the Missouri Department of Natural Recourses, Division of State Parks. Projects funded by the grant are required to be available for public use.

The grant application is due Feb. 14 and grants will be awarded in November, Kelch said. If it is approved, work would likely begin in the spring of 2021.

The maximum amount awarded through the grant is $250,000, which would require a 20 percent local match. A portion of the funding would come from the college.

Kelch said the total project is estimated to cost $312,500.

She added that the ECC Civic and Community Engagement Group, comprised of students, faculty and staff, will contribute in-kind donations.

The excitement surrounding the announcement of the addition of new sports teams at East Central College is taking shape as Martin Clayes has been named the new, full-time combined men’s and women’s head soccer coach.

The ECC Board of Trustees Monday approved the hiring of Clayes to lead both teams.

Clayes is moving from his previous position as head men’s soccer coach at St. Louis Community College, where he won the 2019 NJCAA Region 16 Men’s DI Soccer Tournament in his first year in the position.

According to Jay Mehrhoff, ECC athletic director, Clayes will be instrumental in overseeing the start of new women’s program.

“His hopes are to elevate the women’s program to compete for the region title in the same way he feels the men’s program is ready to compete in the near future,” Mehrhoff said.

“Coach Clayes has a very knowledgeable soccer mind along with a passion for the sport.”

The coach began his new role at ECC Tuesday, Feb. 4.

“I am excited to help start the women’s program and improving the men’s team, and hopefully winning regional titles” Clayes said.

“I am beginning to integrate into the college and I am looking forward to helping students, not only in soccer and academic pursuits, but in life.”

A native of Scotland, Clayes came to the United States on a soccer scholarship to Truman State University where he was a member of the Bulldogs soccer squad during their most successful run in school history.

In 2005, he was named an NCAA DII 1^st Team All-American as a midfielder. He ranks No. 2 all-time in career assists and No. 7 in career goals for the Truman State Bulldogs.

Along with his college experience, Clayes has coached at the professional level in the Premier Development League (PDL) with the St. Louis Lions and Chicago Fire. He has also spent time coaching at the youth level.

Prior to coaching at St. Louis Community College, he was the head men’s coach at Bacone College, Muskogee, Okla., in the 2017-18 season.

Clayes also was the assistant women’s soccer coach at the University of North Texas from 2014-16, the head men’s coach at Westminster College from 2010-13 and the assistant women’s soccer coach at Truman State University from 2008-10.

Clayes received his Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science from Truman State University and his Master of Science in Sports Science from United States Sports Academy.

His coaching licenses include a United States Soccer Federation A License, NSCAA. USC Director of Coaching Diploma & Goalkeeper Diploma and Scottish Youth D License. He also big proponent of fitness and holds an English Football Association of Fitness for Football certificate.