| The School of Nursing at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has been awarded a three-year, $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to support its new doctorate in Nursing Practice and the related Your Life Matters Program (LIFEMAP), an effort to promote health-risk assessment and health and lifestyle management.
In May, the UMass Board of Trustees approved the doctorate in Nursing Practice (DNP), making UMass Amherst the first school in the state to offer the advanced degree. The DNP, a four-year post-baccalaureate degree, focuses on preparing advanced-practice nurses for functioning at the highest level of nursing practice. The grant provides funding for implementation of the new doctoral program. The grant proposal was written by School of Nursing faculty in cooperation with the UMass Amherst School of Public Health and Health Sciences.
“Our team has worked hard to design a truly innovative new DNP program and LIFEMAP initiative,” said Jean E. DeMartinis, associate professor of Nursing, who led the team that sought the grant funding. “There are many advanced-practice nurses who want to further their education at the doctoral level, but do not want to become nurse researchers, and now they will have that opportunity.”
In addition, DeMartinis said, the federal funding will help start the LIFEMAP program, a clinic with a team of interdisciplinary experts who will work together to comprehensively assess individuals and develop individualized lifestyle management plans for them. The program also provides a hands-on practice opportunity for DNP students. “This has been a dream of mine for the past 15 years,” she said.
The LIFEMAP program will become part of a new Teaching, Research, and Practice Center that will be developed in partnership with faculty from the public health and health sciences program. The center will also serve as a DNP student residency placement site, and it will expose students to sophisticated technology and specialized education for evaluating risk and developing prevention strategies that promote health. |
