Nursing seniors get real-life lesson

Each Wednesday after her classes, Nursing senior Kelli Huzzard boards an Amtrak train and journeys to New York City, where she has the opportunity to gain hands-on experience working with patients. Huzzard, along with 10 other seniors in the School of Nursing, is an Alex Hillman Scholar. Established in 1990 by the Alex Hillman Family Foundation, the scholarship program enables highly qualified Penn Nursing students interested in direct patient care to working at a New York City hospital after graduation, according to Mary Naylor, program director and Nursing undergraduate dean. In return, the scholarship subsidizes a percentage of students' junior and senior year tuition, provides them nearby housing arrangements in New York City and grants them a $125 weekly stipend. Huzzard, who performs her clinicals at the general medical unit at New York University Medical Center, said that on a typical day she works from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., dealing with patients who have a variety of illnesses. "You see everything that's medically related," she said. "I work with patients who have anything from AIDS to cancer to heart failure to kidney failure." And Michael Bentley, Nursing senior and fellow Hillman scholar, recently witnessed the birth of triplets through a Cesarean section during one of his clinical sessions. Bentley added that his shifts at the labor and delivery unit in New York Hospital/Cornell Medical Center extend from 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Many scholars said they find the Hillman program to be a wonderful addition to their curriculum at the University. "It has added a whole new dimension to my world here at Penn," Huzzard said of the experience so far. Nursing senior and president of the Nursing Student Forum Tracey Peterson said she agreed. "It's fantastic," she said. "It's the best way to get the best of both worlds." But Bentley said he found the commute to be both inconvenient and time consuming. He also said he is not thrilled with the location of the program. "I'm not much of a city person," he said. "But the opportunity and people we work with are great." Bentley emphasized that the financial support was another major plus for the Hillman program. Naylor said she views the program as a success. "The hospitals are thrilled with the quality and commitment of Penn Nursing students," she said. The Hillman program is offered to both graduate and undergraduate students. Hillman scholars are selected on the basis of academic excellence and a strong desire to work in New York after graduation.