LETTERS: In defense of the Nursing School

To the Editor: Callahan posits that closing the School of Nursing is an acceptable if not appropriate sacrifice to be made in order to rid ourselves of the troubled UPHS. One might think that Callahan would have some hard facts to support this radical suggestion. Rather, not one of his 626 words remotely explains how Nursing is any less a part of Penn's tradition and reputation than any other of our schools. Yet somehow the obvious solution is to dismantle one of the nation's most respected institutions of nursing education, in addition to ending the young careers of so many undergraduates. The School of Nursing exists as a vital educational resource for many hundreds of Penn students, from its single degree BSN and MSN students to those enrolled in its joint degree programs with the Wharton School and the School of Engineering and Applied Science and its joint minor programs with the Annenberg School for Communication and the College of Arts and Sciences. Not to mention that, believe it or not, some Penn students do stray outside of Callahan's limited intellectual mindset to take classes in Nursing. A dark day will have descended in Penn's history when we say to these students, as Callahan says to his readers, "But so what?" Heather Flett Nursing '01 " To the Editor: As a student in the School of Nursing, I was extremely offendedby Josh Callahan's column. What makes Callahan believe that he is more indispensible to this University than any one of Penn's Nursing students? I can only assume that it is a combination of arrogance and ignorance. Allow me to enlighten you, Mr. Callahan. Perhaps if you would actually attempt to learn something about the School of Nursing, you would realize the magnitude of the services we provide for the University, community and health care profession. Not only is the program among the most prestigious in the nation, but it provides this university with 250 of its most dedicated students. According to your almost amusing mentality, losing the School of Nursing would "solve the University's current campus housing crunch." It would also, however, deprive this campus of students who are actively involved in every facet of University life. As your fellow classmate, I find it appalling that you feel entitled to belittle the value of other students to this university. The day may come when you find yourself in need of nursing care. For your sake, Mr. Callahan, I hope your nurse is a Penn grad. Heather Ann Finley Nursing '00 " To the Editor: I am disappointed in the naive commentary provided in Josh Callahan's column. First, I question the negatives of divesting University of Pennsylvania of Health System. There are many universities across the nation who function perfectly well without the advantage of owning a major health system. The Health System itself has many incentives to stay closely linked to the University -- even if it does remain separate financially -- in the way of governmental research and teaching subsidies. There will continue to be clinical and lab positions for the needy pre-meds across campus, sorority girls will be able to get their "morning after" pills the morning after and faculty will successfully straddle the gap between a divided Health System and University. UPHS's struggles aside, Callahan's commentary on the value of the School of Nursing was groundless and simply erroneous. While it is true that many have never stepped foot inside the Nursing Education Building except for "that one midterm stat exam sophomore year," the school is held up across the country as a model of excellence in the field and beyond. It brings the University its share of research dollars and contributes to Penn's slowly improving image in the wider Philadelphia community. In writing his column, Callahan illustrates his self-acknowledged ignorance. Hopefully, he will educate himself prior to publicizing unfounded and hurtful views in the future. One wonders if the International Studies and Decision Processes departments in which he studies might be reviewed for cuts given their student's poorly informed decisions and close-minded, small-world views. Benjamin Katz Nursing/Wharton '01