Welcome to 2020, the year of the nurse!  Our founding nurse, Florence Nightingale was born on May 12, 1820.  In the 1870’s she wrote her first book profoundly stated it would take 150 years to achieve the type of nursing she was envisioning. How right she was!   Who could have predicted how impactful nurses would be this year, and our MPTC nursing graduates are no exception to this!

Every semester, Moraine Park’s nursing program welcomes approximately 50-60 graduate nurses and this semester is no different. Or rather it is completely different! These graduate nurses have had to adapt to change, demonstrate their integrity and flexibility and rise to the challenge amid adversity.  They have shown the compassion and dedication Florence Nightingale envisioned all those years ago.

The MPTC nursing faculty have also demonstrated these same ideals to ensure the student’s success and learning in their new online learning environment.  This was made easier by our students who have shown the faculty that they are willing to work even harder to earn that success! These graduate nurses have been balancing case studies, online course meetings, and lots of NCLEX practice amidst also homeschooling their children, caring for their family and working on the frontlines. We, as their MPTC nursing faculty have been blown away by the commitment and dedication of these graduates to their education and their future as nurses! To say we are proud of them is an understatement! We know Florence would be as honored as we are to welcome each one of them into the nursing profession!

Thank you students!  It has been an honor to work with you!  Best of luck in your future endeavors!​

Kerry DeGroot, Melissa Rodriquez, and Heidi Martin

MPTC Nursing Program Faculty

It’s never too late to pursue your passion. Gretchen Rauls, of Fond du Lac, decided in 2018, nearly 22 years after graduating from high school, that it was time she fulfills her career aspirations.

“After high school, I earned a technical diploma at Moraine Park,” she said. “I then started working, got married, and began a family.”

Gretchen found employment that helped to sustain her family, but knew she wanted to have a career she could be passionate about.

“In 2016, I participated in a wellness initiative at my work called Remodel Your Lifestyle,” she said. “It was through that experience I discovered the value of health and that I want to share it with others.”

She enrolled in the Health and Wellness program at Moraine Park in fall 2018. Her decision to enroll in school wasn’t an easy one. It required commitment from her entire family to ensure her success.

“I still had to maintain full-time employment, do my homework and be present for my family,” Gretchen said. “Finding the time and prioritizing can be hard, but I am lucky to have support around me.”

Gretchen’s hard work, dedication, and support from her husband and two teenage daughters were all key factors in her continued success at the College. To date, she is a 4.0 student on the Dean’s List, a member of Phi Theta Kappa, and has never had a late assignment.

Gretchen will graduate in May 2020 with her entire family cheering her on.
“Since day one, I’ve never had any doubts about coming to Moraine Park,” she said. “Going back to school can be hard, but the support from instructors and staff at the College helps to make it manageable.”

Her goal is to own a health and wellness business on her grandmother’s farm in Berlin.

“I look forward to sharing what I’ve learned and finding a passion for the work that I do every day.”

morainepark.edu/ican

Moraine Park Technical College Medical Assistant Program is excited to announce scheduling changes to our West Bend Cohort model. 

Students have asked for additional options and we listened. Yes we hear you!!  The improved cohort model will have the same great characteristics of students moving through the entire program at the same pace, with the same group, and at the same great location.  The big change is…….wait for it…..

The in-class commitment is now 2 days a week instead of 3!

Wait, what?  How did you remove an entire day from the program?   

Great question!  We will now be incorporating an online course into each semester to allow students flexibility in completing their coursework. The previous schedule had students coming to campus every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and while we know you all love seeing your fellow classmates and instructor three times a week, we also wanted to allow you to have more time for balance in your work, school and family life.

The new schedule will have you in class every Monday and Wednesday. Did we forget to mention the updates to our classroom, including more equipment and mock exam rooms? You need to check it out!

Our new schedule also helps to better align our courses to our program guidelines. You will be enrolled in courses where the content relates to each other at the same time. This allows for more comprehensive learning! I mean if you are learning about how the Digestive System works in Human Body it would be helpful to be learning the terminology in Medical Terminology in the same week, right?

Concerned about online learning? Rest assured that your time in class will allow for opportunities to receive additional resources and assistance with the completion of any online requirements. Your qualified instructors have taught it all and can offer assistance in any program course! We know now, more than ever, the importance of having qualified healthcare professionals in our community. The need to provide quality care will never change.

So, now is great of time as any to explore a career in healthcare and look into becoming a Medical Assistant. 

We cannot wait to have you join us! Still have more questions? Please feel free to reach out!

Erika Herriges, RN/BSN, MA/MO Instructor MPTC eherriges@morainepark.edu

Marisa Arnenson, MPTC Advisor marneson@morainepark.edu

Hello friends!

I wanted to do something from the Sunshine Club to celebrate all of our hard work, so this is what I came up with. I will Blog about this before the end of the week to share with the world.

Many of us are still in acute care or practicing at the bedside, clinic or something and others are not. I want to celebrate that we all have purpose in nursing and have risen to the challenge and what we are doing in not only important, but imperative to make the best graduate nurses in order to care for our communities!

Communicate Clearly– We have had close to 30 hours of Zoom Meetings, we have emailed, instant messaged, face-timed and even used the phone to make plans for our students success.

Act Responsibly– many worked over Spring Break to start making preparations because we knew it was the thing to do. Many are working early mornings, late evenings and weekends.

Work Productively– so many are juggling your home/family life with working from home, home schooling children and still managing to get “the bacon fried up”

Think Critically and Creatively– OH BOY!!!

Adapt to Change- We have learned Zoom, STUDIO, i-Human and beyond!
Demonstrate Integrity- We have worked hard to keep MPTC’s Nursing Program rigorous while taking in consideration our students changing landscape.

Work Cooperatively– well, we always do.

Here is a semi-accurate accounting of all of things we have done inside of a 10 working day period, seriously, we all know it was more but who needs a medal? We are nurses, we do what we do, we dig in, we still cry, yell and wonder why but yet everyday we come back to whatever form of nursing we do. We are cut from a different cloth- not silk, more like burlap- resilient and lasting.
What an unfortunate way to look back at the “Year of the Nurse” but Florence would be so proud of our work. Thank you for all you have done and continue to do, “We got this”.

Associate Degree of Nursing Accomplishments

Unfolding Case Studies- 25

Rubrics- 49

Quiz Questions- 130

Presentations- 3

Patient Scenarios for CCM’s, DCT’s- 46

Discussions- 19

Small Papers- 8

Power Points- 6 weeks of Studio Power points X 5 Theory Classes X 3 sections= roughly 60 X 1,000,000​!

Sunshine Club Love to All!!!! Thank you for being our TEAM

To date, over 600 class sections have moved from a face to face format to online. This means that there has been a lot of adapting and change by students and instructors.

Danielle Cook, surgical technology instructor, is embracing this ‘new normal’ and has been looking for innovative ways to stay connected with her students. She shared with us how she is finding success during these challenging times.

“When COVID-19 hit the US, we had team meetings to discuss how we could move to the digital format if the virus spread to Wisconsin. Less than 2 weeks later, we had to put those plans into place. Here is a glimpse into how the Surgical Technology program is enabling learning from home.

Second-year students were fortunate enough to have met the clinical case requirements set by our Accreditation body, thanks to our strong community partners who work with our students in clinical. Due to this, we can do simulation for their last rotation. Here is where the free mobile app Touch Surgery comes in. Touch Surgery has almost 170 free surgical cases on it and you first “learn” the procedure by going through the steps and virtually completing the surgery. After each section, you test your skills with a short quiz. The students are assigned various cases to be completed and tested on in Touch Surgery and they upload their test results into Canvas. The students are also completed Surgical Case Study Reports and we have a weekly Zoom virtual class and discuss the reports and other things as they arise. While they all miss the operating room, they are happy to be able to still practice virtually, and look forward to being in the workforce in May!

First-year students have one course that was already on-line and two that were blended. We have Zoom virtual classes twice a week to go over their assignments, worksheets, study guides, etc. I have also created short videos of how to use practice passing instruments, utilizing everyday stuff you can find at home. This course is trickier because we will need to be back in the lab to complete the work, but these students continue to review old skill videos and are excited to get back to class.

The Zoom virtual class is what I believe is keeping us all together as a program. Seeing and hearing each other at least once a week keeps that connection, and I bring encouragement to those who are feeling down and unsure right now. I have an awesome group of 20 students. They have been patient and understanding as we navigate this pandemic. Being prepared ahead of time and having the support that the College has provided has helped to make the transition to the digital world much easier. I am very thankful for everyone at the College who has supported the faculty and staff, and most importantly, our students. “

A sincere thank you to all of the Moraine Park instructors, and students for their patience as we move through these times together.

For more information on Moraine Park, visit morainepark.edu.

As we see so often during difficult times, people always find ways to keep a light shining by helping others.

Such is the case at Moraine Park Technical College. With the coronavirus continuing its grip on local communities, our nation and the world, the College is doing what they can to help.

Nearly 37,000 healthcare and safety-related supplies, including N-95 masks; disposable gloves and gowns; surgical gowns, hats and shoe covers; face shields and more, were collected from each of the College’s campuses – Beaver Dam, Fond du Lac and West Bend – and have been donated to local healthcare facilities in those communities including Marshfield Medical Center (formerly Beaver Dam Community Hospital), Froedtert and SSM/St. Agnes.

The healthcare supplies came from several of the College’s more than 60-plus programs, including:  Associate Degree Nursing, Nursing Assistant, Respiratory Therapy, Surgical Technologist, EMS and Cosmetology.

The College is also loaning respirators SSM/St. Agnes according to Barb Jascor, Moraine Park’s dean of health and human services.

“In addition to the need for healthcare and safety supplies, we were also seeing an ever-increasing need for ventilators,” said Jascor. “We wanted to do what we could to help and it made sense to loan our ventilators in advance, as a precautionary measure, should the local need for ventilators surpass current capacity of our community health care partners.”

For COVID-19 updates at Moraine Park, visit morainepark.edu/coronavirus.

Moraine Park recently received a donated C-arm from Sharp Medical Inc. that will be used by both the Surgical Technician and Radiography programs. A C-arm is a mobile medical imaging device used in surgery to capture live images during various surgical procedures and must be properly draped to avoid contamination of the sterile field.

According to Dani Cook, surgical tech instructor, the idea started at an advisory meeting when a member inquired if the students had the opportunity to learn how to drape a C-arm before starting their clinical. Kelly Shafaie, associate dean of nursing, reached out to the radiography program to see if one could be purchased and used cross-functionally.

While researching vendors of C-arms, contact was made with Kevin Noone, president of Sharp Medical , who made a unique offer to help both organizations. They were willing to donate a used C-arm to MPTC, in exchange for recognition in helping an educational institution that introduces so many students to our industry.

The C-arm has arrived and will be now be used by our Surg Tech students to give them the experience of properly draping the equipment in a less stressful environment. The Radiography students will then take over and learn how to maneuver the C-arm into position without contaminating the sterile field. Radiography instructors, Nichol Supri and Todd Bartelt, both feel this type of training will tremendously increase the student’s skills when working alongside other healthcare members in a surgical setting.

morainepark.edu/programs

Juggling the responsibilities of life is tough, but Faith Rockwell of St. Cloud is tougher. She came to Moraine Park in 2019 with a mountain of daily responsibilities, a goal to provide a stable life, and a sweet young daughter who relied on her to accomplish both.

“I graduated high school in 2014 and got married shortly after,” Faith said. “My original plan was to go to college, but when I became pregnant in 2016, that shifted my plans.”

Faith became a single mother when her daughter was just six months old and was left to take care of all the parenting and financial responsibilities.

“Suddenly my life changed from being a stay at home mom to having to struggle to pay bills and provide for my daughter,” she said. “There were times we went hungry. I knew I had to find a stable career to get us into a better situation. That’s when I found Moraine Park.”

Faith chose the respiratory therapy program, a career path that offers job security and an opportunity to serve in a fast-paced health care environment.

“Moraine Park has been amazing,” Faith said. “My teachers have helped me so much by providing me with many resources to help me be successful in my program.”

She has utilized many resources that often are forgotten, like disability services, counseling, and the student emergency fund.

“Being a single mom is terrifying,” Faith said. “It feels like you can never get ahead or enough. I struggled for a long time, and finally, I decided to apply to Moraine Park. Since coming here I’ve had more support and help than ever before. It is possible to redefine your life.”

Faith is scheduled to graduate in May 2021 and has goals to specialize in the NICU and help premature babies with their breathing function.

“Achieving my educational goals gives me hope for my future.”

morainepark.edu/ican

Moraine Park Technical College is committed to community engagement and student success.  The College supports these commitments through the opportunity for students to participate in student community impact and apply their classroom knowledge to an applicable, real world environment. 

In 2018, MPTC started a community impact awards program where students can track their service hours, submit their reflections, and earn a Bronze Award for 25 hours, Silver Award for 50 hours, Gold Award for 100 hours, or Presidents Award for 200 hours of service learning or volunteering.

As of January, 2020, we have our very first President’s Award Winner – Renee Vnuk-Uhrman! Renee earned the President’s Award with over 220 volunteer hours to date!

Renee is a second year medical laboratory technician student, who took advantage of dual credit opportunities in high school and became a certified phlebotomist after graduating. She is also part of the College’s Promise Scholars program, our current MPTC Newman Civic Fellow, the Secretary for the MLT Student Club, and volunteers at her local community hospital as well as Campbellsport High School as a bowling and band coach; all while maintaining high academics.

“We are so proud of Renee,” Moraine Park President Bonnie Baerwald said. “She is a great role model and student leader, with such a strong dedication to her family, school, and community, and a true desire to make an impact. It was extra fun to present her with our first President’s Student Community Impact Award, which includes lunch with the President! We are all excited to see what comes next for Renee!”