Some days seem to mark themselves as important. A memory has substance. A task list rolls forward. The sound of laughter lingers. Not too long ago, I had one of those days.
Last month I had served as a grant reviewer for a new federal granting agency, and kept thinking that I can do this. So, I forwarded to one colleague the announcement for this rather new grant funding stream. She immediately responded with "let's pull out that grant on post partum women that we almost did." Being office neighbors and friends for several years, I knew exactly what she was referring to. And, as simply as that is how grant application activities get started.
By the following week we had a meeting scheduled with two other colleagues from medicine. We met in my new, slightly larger office which has curtains and a round table for meeting. Among the four of us (women), the ideas immediately started flowing. We noted which grant guidance nuances that would need to be addressed. We mapped out an overall research plan and a subject recruitment plan. We all groaned at the short amount of time to do so much, and at a time when we all already have pretty full plates. But, the grant idea is good and like hounds we were following the scent of potential funding. The mix of brain power and enthusiasm around the table far outweighed our reservations. So, I have a section of the grant proposal to develop, as do the others.
My office neighbor and I handed the title of principal investigator to our younger, not yet tenured colleague. We both have reached a place where we can be more generous in that way, and love the mentoring aspect of this emerging project.
Yes, us four nerds at my office round table were having fun. The way academic work ought to be fun. Now, we are focused on getting the proposal written and pulled together, and then we will cross our fingers. Hopefully, early next year, I'll have good news. Meanwhile, I have the good news of enjoying, a little bit like the "whistle while you work" enjoyment of life.
Showing posts with label Grant Work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grant Work. Show all posts
24 October 2012
29 June 2012
Summer Summary
Life, academic life, has been unfolding in marvelous ways. I can go into details, if you ask, but here's the Cliff Notes version ~
One of the unanticipated benefits of being an Editor involves travel. In February, I went to Milan, Italy to spend a day with health economics and administration faculty at Bocconi University. Naturally, I added a little sightseeing after the work was done. In November, I will return to Italy as invited keynote speaker at an international conference, and again add a few tourist days.
But, travel invitations also come from being recognized as an expert in public health nursing. That's how I got the invitation to speak at a conference in Ireland next year, as well as the invitation to the ASTHO biannual meeting of human resource directors. in May.
I missed going to AcademyHealth in Orlando in June, having gone to the Keeneland Conference in April instead. Well, and truth be told, I had a vacation retreat where I earned nursing CEU for attending a 5 day workshop on Qigong from Dr. Roger Jahnke.
Meanwhile, back at the not-so-ranch, starting with the new academic year, we will have a new Division Director, after much ado. In spring, we lost our Administrative Assistant to cancer and that shook up faculty, especial our cancer survivors. In her position, we now have someone who has brought renewed energy and vision.
My grants keep my busy. The KRISP project is now in a final 6 months of intervention and I will be losing my project coordinator, Hilary. I loss to me, a gain for her. This is how soft-money life goes. The RWJF grant, nicknamed MCAH Preserves just to be cute and unique, is also going well with data focused activities underway.
Now, that gets you caught on the big strokes outline of what has been happening. More details and reflections to follow on a weekly or bi-weekly basis.
17 June 2011
The mostly grey skies over Seattle didn't bother me; I was inside walking around the convention center and attending AcademyHealth sessions. AcademyHealth has grown over the years that I have been attending, and the science has become far more sophisticated and complex in keeping with the health services issues being addressed.
As usual, I made the rounds at the post sessions, scouting out potential manuscripts for the journal. I spent time with previous doctoral students, listening with some pride at their new career achievements. Naturally, networking and planning collaborations was a major activity. It's always difficult to know whether those conversations will prove fruitful. So, this year I am being more proactive than in the past and doing my part to follow-up and actualize the potential.
With the ever shorter time between the release of an RFP and the date due, we all must have a grant ready for minor changes. There is no longer time to generate something new. The shorter proposals are nice, but also harder, requiring a highly advanced skill in writing and explaining.
After AcademyHealth, I spend the morning in Longview WA for the KRISP Project. I did a session with the public health nurses on the PDCA cycle. After a year of bi-monthly meetings, the lights are going on. They began to generate a set of possible, very doable QI projects which would increase their efficiency. They actually sounded excited about the possibilities. After the session, we all went to lunch. It was reassuring to hear them say that they are no longer going merely because they were told to go to my sessions. For at least a moment or two, I felt like we were all nurses sharing the same passion for our communities and patients. It was good.
As usual, I made the rounds at the post sessions, scouting out potential manuscripts for the journal. I spent time with previous doctoral students, listening with some pride at their new career achievements. Naturally, networking and planning collaborations was a major activity. It's always difficult to know whether those conversations will prove fruitful. So, this year I am being more proactive than in the past and doing my part to follow-up and actualize the potential.
With the ever shorter time between the release of an RFP and the date due, we all must have a grant ready for minor changes. There is no longer time to generate something new. The shorter proposals are nice, but also harder, requiring a highly advanced skill in writing and explaining.
After AcademyHealth, I spend the morning in Longview WA for the KRISP Project. I did a session with the public health nurses on the PDCA cycle. After a year of bi-monthly meetings, the lights are going on. They began to generate a set of possible, very doable QI projects which would increase their efficiency. They actually sounded excited about the possibilities. After the session, we all went to lunch. It was reassuring to hear them say that they are no longer going merely because they were told to go to my sessions. For at least a moment or two, I felt like we were all nurses sharing the same passion for our communities and patients. It was good.
18 March 2011
On the road, literally
Wow, the past month has whizzed past from spending hours on the freeway and days making Powerpoint presentations. For the KRISP Project (see the blog list for a link), I've been creating and then delivering weekly 2-3hour "trainings" for employees at two of the local health departments that are participating in the project. The amount of effort needed equals that for teaching a graduate course, but more intense in terms of the effort needed to meet the health department "where they are".
Our customer-focus and accommodating approach has resulted in weekly trips to deliver the trainings. The trip is 6 hours, round-trip, through two of the five Cook County collar counties, and then the cornfields of Illinois. There is no bus or train that goes were we need to be. So, I'm becoming familiar with where the highway patrol like to wait for the speeders.
We briefly covered doing community assessment via MAPP. Most of the effort has been on teaching the staff how to do quality improvement. When I wrote the grant, I had not imagined the amount of effort it would take to gain access to the public health nurses, nor did I imagine the need for so much face-to-face teaching time. I naively thought I'd just step and and things would get done. Not so. These are slow moving, if not well intending, organizations with lots of competition for their attention.
Over the past couple of weeks, overseeing and managing this project has again brought up the awareness of the timing as both a curse and a blessing. On the cursed side, I wrote the grant before the economy went bad, before the H1N1 outbreak, before the states failed to make payments to the local health departments, and before the health departments had to lay off half of the staff. How, under those conditions, can I possibly make any difference in the empowerment and valuing of public health nurses? How can I possibly meet my grant objectives? Will all these trainings really translate into improvement in health?
On the bright side, the project has been a blessing. We are able to be a compassionate sounding board and give moral support to the nursing directors. We are able to validate that the nurses are important enough to receive this special attention. We have given hope to public health nurses throughout Washington state and rekindled their enthusiasm for who they are and what they do. We have acknowledged the nurses as lifelong learners facing a strange new work landscape.
In writing the non-competing grant renewal, I did realize that we have done a lot in the past year. Naturally, I tend to see the work ahead and the gas bills staying high. But, to be honest, there's a part of me too that's renewed and rekindled.
Our customer-focus and accommodating approach has resulted in weekly trips to deliver the trainings. The trip is 6 hours, round-trip, through two of the five Cook County collar counties, and then the cornfields of Illinois. There is no bus or train that goes were we need to be. So, I'm becoming familiar with where the highway patrol like to wait for the speeders.
We briefly covered doing community assessment via MAPP. Most of the effort has been on teaching the staff how to do quality improvement. When I wrote the grant, I had not imagined the amount of effort it would take to gain access to the public health nurses, nor did I imagine the need for so much face-to-face teaching time. I naively thought I'd just step and and things would get done. Not so. These are slow moving, if not well intending, organizations with lots of competition for their attention.
Over the past couple of weeks, overseeing and managing this project has again brought up the awareness of the timing as both a curse and a blessing. On the cursed side, I wrote the grant before the economy went bad, before the H1N1 outbreak, before the states failed to make payments to the local health departments, and before the health departments had to lay off half of the staff. How, under those conditions, can I possibly make any difference in the empowerment and valuing of public health nurses? How can I possibly meet my grant objectives? Will all these trainings really translate into improvement in health?
On the bright side, the project has been a blessing. We are able to be a compassionate sounding board and give moral support to the nursing directors. We are able to validate that the nurses are important enough to receive this special attention. We have given hope to public health nurses throughout Washington state and rekindled their enthusiasm for who they are and what they do. We have acknowledged the nurses as lifelong learners facing a strange new work landscape.
In writing the non-competing grant renewal, I did realize that we have done a lot in the past year. Naturally, I tend to see the work ahead and the gas bills staying high. But, to be honest, there's a part of me too that's renewed and rekindled.
30 December 2010
Holiday Break, Not
The week before Christmas has a reputation as being a low productivity week. The week between Christmas and New Year's has an even stronger reputation as a vacation week. So much so that the University shuts down non-essential services, including closing buildings and turning down heat in faculty offices and classroom spaces.
For me, December is always busy, with a long list of work that has January and February deadlines. Even more so this year. Early in January, Academy of Management has a deadline for manuscripts to be considered for presentation at the annual meeting. This year I am first author on a manuscript focused on organizational processes of implementing a new service line, and am co-sponsoring a symposium on health care reform. Right after the Academy of Management deadline is the deadline for AcademyHealth. I am undecided whether I have anything this year for AcademyHealth. Then, in mid-February is the abstract submission deadline for American Public Health Association. I foresee being first author and second on a couple abstracts. All of this takes focus, apply seat to seat, and type away into the night.
That's not all. The KRISP project is heating up with alots of trainings happening in January. Collaboratively planning those with the directors of the health departments and getting the schedules worked out takes time. And, then there is the KRISP budget. Problems uncovered and to be corrected. There's a reason why I am a control freak with regard to budgets. Maybe I just haven't had good luck or maybe it's the very weird and shoddy university system. Whatever the root cause, problems arise often and go unnoticed until an auditing approach is taken to account for the pennies. Moments like that require the "Breath!" mantra.
Meanwhile, other manuscripts in process ebb and flow between me and the co-authors. My editorship work rolls on and on, with more manuscripts submitted this year and ever. A good sign with accompanying more work. And, students who don't like their grades are now contacting me (on Christmas day, of all things!). Gotta laugh and love it!
.
For me, December is always busy, with a long list of work that has January and February deadlines. Even more so this year. Early in January, Academy of Management has a deadline for manuscripts to be considered for presentation at the annual meeting. This year I am first author on a manuscript focused on organizational processes of implementing a new service line, and am co-sponsoring a symposium on health care reform. Right after the Academy of Management deadline is the deadline for AcademyHealth. I am undecided whether I have anything this year for AcademyHealth. Then, in mid-February is the abstract submission deadline for American Public Health Association. I foresee being first author and second on a couple abstracts. All of this takes focus, apply seat to seat, and type away into the night.
That's not all. The KRISP project is heating up with alots of trainings happening in January. Collaboratively planning those with the directors of the health departments and getting the schedules worked out takes time. And, then there is the KRISP budget. Problems uncovered and to be corrected. There's a reason why I am a control freak with regard to budgets. Maybe I just haven't had good luck or maybe it's the very weird and shoddy university system. Whatever the root cause, problems arise often and go unnoticed until an auditing approach is taken to account for the pennies. Moments like that require the "Breath!" mantra.
Meanwhile, other manuscripts in process ebb and flow between me and the co-authors. My editorship work rolls on and on, with more manuscripts submitted this year and ever. A good sign with accompanying more work. And, students who don't like their grades are now contacting me (on Christmas day, of all things!). Gotta laugh and love it!
.
17 December 2010
Roller Skate Week
Looking forward to a week is always different than looking back on it. Nonetheless, the week from December 9 through December 17 was what I call a "roller skates" week. Skating, which is slightly faster than running and takes less effort, from task to task, from location to location, from meeting to meeting.
The highlight of December 10 was the little holiday party we had for the KRISP project. We managed to have about an hour of sweets, small present exchange, and photo ops. (see the KRISP blog for the group photo) It was also a day of problem solving with a couple of my MPH advisees. A mix of paperwork, encouragement and a little hand holding. All in all, a busy, productive, fun, smiling day.
Monday and Tuesday (December 13 and 14) were more unique. For the past month, I served as chair for a search committee to hire a new faculty into our department. After vetting a few applications, we invited the two best candidates to visit with us. The daylong process involves interviews, a presentation, and informal lunch in the commons area. Making the process public and inclusive made the faculty feel as though this was a real opportunity to hire a junior faculty. This may seem obvious, but in these economically bad times in Illinois, hiring a faculty feels like an sweet treat. The foresight and planning of our department chairperson made this hire possible. Each day with the candidate went smoothly. My own preference for one of the candidates was aligned with the consensus of the search committee and faculty who met the candidates.
Right after the last of the meetings with the candidate, I hopped in the car and drove 3 hours to Peoria. I needed to do this because on Wednesday morning Kathy and I were doing a training session with the public health nurses at Tazewell County. I arrived at Kathy's house as she was finishing baking the goodies for the morning meeting. The feds prohibit any purchase of food, so the treats of baked good and fresh fruit will come out of our personal pockets. (I understand the the restriction, but really...) The public health nurses seemed engaged and ready to have us come back next month. As soon as that meeting was finished, I had to drive back to Chicago and attend to the candidate selection.
I spent Thursday and Friday in the office working on KRISP budget, trainings and meetings. Whew....
The highlight of December 10 was the little holiday party we had for the KRISP project. We managed to have about an hour of sweets, small present exchange, and photo ops. (see the KRISP blog for the group photo) It was also a day of problem solving with a couple of my MPH advisees. A mix of paperwork, encouragement and a little hand holding. All in all, a busy, productive, fun, smiling day.
Monday and Tuesday (December 13 and 14) were more unique. For the past month, I served as chair for a search committee to hire a new faculty into our department. After vetting a few applications, we invited the two best candidates to visit with us. The daylong process involves interviews, a presentation, and informal lunch in the commons area. Making the process public and inclusive made the faculty feel as though this was a real opportunity to hire a junior faculty. This may seem obvious, but in these economically bad times in Illinois, hiring a faculty feels like an sweet treat. The foresight and planning of our department chairperson made this hire possible. Each day with the candidate went smoothly. My own preference for one of the candidates was aligned with the consensus of the search committee and faculty who met the candidates.
Right after the last of the meetings with the candidate, I hopped in the car and drove 3 hours to Peoria. I needed to do this because on Wednesday morning Kathy and I were doing a training session with the public health nurses at Tazewell County. I arrived at Kathy's house as she was finishing baking the goodies for the morning meeting. The feds prohibit any purchase of food, so the treats of baked good and fresh fruit will come out of our personal pockets. (I understand the the restriction, but really...) The public health nurses seemed engaged and ready to have us come back next month. As soon as that meeting was finished, I had to drive back to Chicago and attend to the candidate selection.
I spent Thursday and Friday in the office working on KRISP budget, trainings and meetings. Whew....
30 September 2010
Three's
Things come in three's. If they come in two's or four's, we dismiss that as not counting. Three births, three deaths, three accidents, three deadlines. Yes, life happens in three's and I'm heading into the finale for three big projects, all due within a week.
1. Report to the IL Dept of Health and Family Services summarizing the results of our evaluation of the Healthy Births for Healthy Communities (HBHC). All the project staff are gone; the money has ended. Still we have to produce three substantial reports in order to get paid. This project was ongoing for four years, so you know we have too much data and too little time to do complex analyses. Still, it was a good run.
2. Grant proposal due to be submitted to the office at the University which submits all grant applications via the online, federal system. Even with the relatively new NIH forms, we were able to crank out the proposal in a couple of weeks. Of course, the idea had been peculating for months and the groundwork for pulling the proposal together had been done. Still, at 80 pages max, we did it.
3. The coming Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday is the research agenda setting conference that I am 'hosting'. Naturally, during the last week I received requests to attend, but I politely said we had reached the limit of 50 invited participants. The presenters have turned in thier handouts and sent us their Powerpoint presentations. The photocopying has begun of all the handouts, and I have new clothes for the event. Still, there's some party/hostess nervousness about not forgetting any last minute details.
So, when someone says "things don't really come in three's", don't believe them.
1. Report to the IL Dept of Health and Family Services summarizing the results of our evaluation of the Healthy Births for Healthy Communities (HBHC). All the project staff are gone; the money has ended. Still we have to produce three substantial reports in order to get paid. This project was ongoing for four years, so you know we have too much data and too little time to do complex analyses. Still, it was a good run.
2. Grant proposal due to be submitted to the office at the University which submits all grant applications via the online, federal system. Even with the relatively new NIH forms, we were able to crank out the proposal in a couple of weeks. Of course, the idea had been peculating for months and the groundwork for pulling the proposal together had been done. Still, at 80 pages max, we did it.
3. The coming Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday is the research agenda setting conference that I am 'hosting'. Naturally, during the last week I received requests to attend, but I politely said we had reached the limit of 50 invited participants. The presenters have turned in thier handouts and sent us their Powerpoint presentations. The photocopying has begun of all the handouts, and I have new clothes for the event. Still, there's some party/hostess nervousness about not forgetting any last minute details.
So, when someone says "things don't really come in three's", don't believe them.
18 May 2010
Monday Morning
As I was walking toward the elevators to get the week started, a colleauge was coming in to work. I started the ususal chit chat for such circumstances; "So, how was your weekend?" "I'm glad it's over." Huh? She was not forthcoming with an explanation, but we chuckled nonetheless on the irony of her response. That pretty much set the tone for the day, a bit whacky but good.
The day consisted of faculty meeting, a teleconfernece for the AHRQ grant, meeting with project staff, meeting with student to map out a publication, responding to emails (including another Doodle), and working on the promotion papers. Here's the grumble ~ data are collected by the Office of Reseach but not in a format nor with the same information required for the promotion forms. Looks to me like a pretty big communication gap at the university level which results in at least 6 hours of silly work for me. I don't mind working, but this copy and pasting and retyping and having to track down information is such a waste. And, inefficiencies really push my buttons.
I had a breif, pleasant conversation with one of the directors of nursing at a local health department. She had received an email from NACCHO regarding their recommendations for allocation of health reform funds. Fine. Except that public health nurses were not included in a brief list of needed health professionals. YIKES! What were they thinking? At a point in time when health deparrtments are really strapped for funding and looking to cut expenses, nurses are easy targets because they cost so much. Never mind the high rate of return for thier work. I immediately though how can I mobilize the public health nursing associations to take some action? I sent out a email to a listserve and will keep the pressure up. This could get interesting....
The day consisted of faculty meeting, a teleconfernece for the AHRQ grant, meeting with project staff, meeting with student to map out a publication, responding to emails (including another Doodle), and working on the promotion papers. Here's the grumble ~ data are collected by the Office of Reseach but not in a format nor with the same information required for the promotion forms. Looks to me like a pretty big communication gap at the university level which results in at least 6 hours of silly work for me. I don't mind working, but this copy and pasting and retyping and having to track down information is such a waste. And, inefficiencies really push my buttons.
I had a breif, pleasant conversation with one of the directors of nursing at a local health department. She had received an email from NACCHO regarding their recommendations for allocation of health reform funds. Fine. Except that public health nurses were not included in a brief list of needed health professionals. YIKES! What were they thinking? At a point in time when health deparrtments are really strapped for funding and looking to cut expenses, nurses are easy targets because they cost so much. Never mind the high rate of return for thier work. I immediately though how can I mobilize the public health nursing associations to take some action? I sent out a email to a listserve and will keep the pressure up. This could get interesting....
15 May 2010
TGIF, not
Two days of long hours and not one item crossed off my list. I'm wondering if I ought to make a list of the tiny things I did accomplish, just so that I can put a line through something....teleconference with KRISP grant co-investigators, met with Proj Coordinator to keep the KRISP project coordinated, responded to student emails asking for appointments and help with practicum objectives, attended a meeting to explain the procedure for seeking promotion, worked on power point presentations, wrote up notes from meetings, responded to emails asking me to respond to a Doodle (an online free meeting scheduling program, LOVE it), and made final edits to a manuscript which I can not yet submit because the editor hasn't changed the status in the online system.
As yo can see, the stumbling block (to feeling productive) was not lack of working. I just could not find someone who would be good for filling in the last slot at the AHRQconference. So, I spent hours online doing lit searches and then reading bios. This exercise gave me a renewed and deeper appreciation of how few scholars can be counted as public health nurse scholars ~ reinforcing the need for the conference and creating a catch-22.
As yo can see, the stumbling block (to feeling productive) was not lack of working. I just could not find someone who would be good for filling in the last slot at the AHRQconference. So, I spent hours online doing lit searches and then reading bios. This exercise gave me a renewed and deeper appreciation of how few scholars can be counted as public health nurse scholars ~ reinforcing the need for the conference and creating a catch-22.
07 May 2010
Collegial Work
For 24 hours, I had in-person time for working with my colleague from Seattle. Our focus was on the KRISP grant, which is clearly at at developmental milestone. And, as milestones go, this one requires careful coordination of activities to make it successfully to the next milestone. Working via distance with only hour long monthly meetings was clearly not getting to the level of detailed planning that we now need.
I need to mention that as we sat in the restaurant, I toasted to our productivity and having fun. So, there was a fair amount of deeper getting to know each other, as happens when the intellectual task ahead requires an unshakable friendship foundation.
We spent time focused on planning what to do about our research assistants, the interested doctoral student, the budget and future manuscript preparation. But mostly, we came to the realization that the health departments were in need of training and support. I had envisioned that the health departments would, by now, be deeply engaged in quality improvement efforts. But, they are are struggling with how to transition the public health nurses from individual and family care to population-focused practice. Not an easy transition by any reckoning. This was not the intent of the grant, but must be addressed in the spirit of the grant in order to maintain the trust and cooperation of the health departments. We both become reluctantly resigned to what the next year would likely be like; travel to the local health departments and trainings.
Oh, new blazing new trails is such hard work on so many levels. I just pray I can make a path that is passable to those behind me and of use to those who have not yet ventured out.
I need to mention that as we sat in the restaurant, I toasted to our productivity and having fun. So, there was a fair amount of deeper getting to know each other, as happens when the intellectual task ahead requires an unshakable friendship foundation.
We spent time focused on planning what to do about our research assistants, the interested doctoral student, the budget and future manuscript preparation. But mostly, we came to the realization that the health departments were in need of training and support. I had envisioned that the health departments would, by now, be deeply engaged in quality improvement efforts. But, they are are struggling with how to transition the public health nurses from individual and family care to population-focused practice. Not an easy transition by any reckoning. This was not the intent of the grant, but must be addressed in the spirit of the grant in order to maintain the trust and cooperation of the health departments. We both become reluctantly resigned to what the next year would likely be like; travel to the local health departments and trainings.
Oh, new blazing new trails is such hard work on so many levels. I just pray I can make a path that is passable to those behind me and of use to those who have not yet ventured out.
23 April 2010
TGIF
Grey skies, cool temperatures, and empty halls. Friday. No classes, no faculty, no students. Just me and my computer. Well, and a few staff members and the Divison Chair. Time focused on grant work ~ planning next steps, editing documents, dealing with IRB and HR issues, making Editor decisions, surfing for ideal speakers, having too many documents open at once, and finally reaching "time to go."' All the while streaming baroque.
22 April 2010
Joys and Toil
A rare event in my professional life occured today; a doctoral student defended her dissertation. Successfully goes without saying in this case. Sure, this time of year, across the nation, it's probably a daily event. But, each faculty has only 2-3 doctoral students at a time. So, for us, it's not a daily event, or even an annual event.
We spend years nurturing, reassuring, educating, guiding, mentoring. cajoling, learning from each doctoral student. It's a pregnancy that lasts three times longer that of elephants. Mostly, its a pregnancy and a journey we enjoy, that we take very seriously, and set as a high priority. But, like any pregnancy, some are easier than others and some "births" are easier than others. This one was almost like not being pregnant. Easy, enjoyable, with a smooth passage into the new life. Although the student would say otherwise.
A doctoral defense consists of the committee members meeting, the student presenting the research to anyone who chooses to attend the public presentation, then the committee meets with the student for in depth questioning and discussion, followed by an executive session of only the doctoral committee members. We schedule 2 hours for the whole thing. During the executive session, the group votes pass/fail. We all hope for a quick unanimous pass decision, as happened here. But, somethings things are not so smooth and the executive session turns into a battle between members over what would be required, beyond what was presented, for the student to pass. We have all horror stories of being involved in one or two of those, but thankfully those are the exceptions.
After the hugs and hand shakes and the relieved chatter, we meander back to our offices to face the more mundane. I went to the office and faced human resources problems related to my KRISP grant. I reviewed for the last time the grant renewal application and made sure it was submitted via the web to HRSA. Done, and a day to spare. Then I spent 2 hours with an RA (graduate research assistrant) re-coding statements from public health nurse job descriptions. Tedious, but finished. That too was part of the KRISP grant.
My day ended with a surprise visit from a friend. We sat in my office and chatted, happy to see each other. It was a great excuse and wonderful way to end the day.
We spend years nurturing, reassuring, educating, guiding, mentoring. cajoling, learning from each doctoral student. It's a pregnancy that lasts three times longer that of elephants. Mostly, its a pregnancy and a journey we enjoy, that we take very seriously, and set as a high priority. But, like any pregnancy, some are easier than others and some "births" are easier than others. This one was almost like not being pregnant. Easy, enjoyable, with a smooth passage into the new life. Although the student would say otherwise.
A doctoral defense consists of the committee members meeting, the student presenting the research to anyone who chooses to attend the public presentation, then the committee meets with the student for in depth questioning and discussion, followed by an executive session of only the doctoral committee members. We schedule 2 hours for the whole thing. During the executive session, the group votes pass/fail. We all hope for a quick unanimous pass decision, as happened here. But, somethings things are not so smooth and the executive session turns into a battle between members over what would be required, beyond what was presented, for the student to pass. We have all horror stories of being involved in one or two of those, but thankfully those are the exceptions.
After the hugs and hand shakes and the relieved chatter, we meander back to our offices to face the more mundane. I went to the office and faced human resources problems related to my KRISP grant. I reviewed for the last time the grant renewal application and made sure it was submitted via the web to HRSA. Done, and a day to spare. Then I spent 2 hours with an RA (graduate research assistrant) re-coding statements from public health nurse job descriptions. Tedious, but finished. That too was part of the KRISP grant.
My day ended with a surprise visit from a friend. We sat in my office and chatted, happy to see each other. It was a great excuse and wonderful way to end the day.
21 April 2010
A Day in the Fields
Today was a reality check, and reality changing. Not to be grandiose, but tiny changing and solid reality.
The day started with a drive from Peoria (where I stayed with a friend and colleague) to the smallish building, literally in the middle of cornfields, also the geographic center of the county and chosen as the best location in terms of county politics. The fields are being plowed and planted; the dust makes a faint light brown haze that hangs near the horizon. I was there to speak to a group of public health nurses about the KRISP grant. I wasn't sure what to expect, and was prepared to ad lib a lot.
The room was full, with a line going toward the breakfast brought by the director. Food surely gets staff to an 8:30am meeting. I spent 1.5 hours talking about the project, about the public health core functions, about the relationship of quality improvement to nurse recruitment and retention, etc. The questions were good, including the one of "what does health care reform mean for public health?" Answer: LOTS! I left feeling hopeful that these public health nurses would be engaged and grow professionally over the next two years.
Then we drove back to Peoria and met with a small group of supervisors at that health department. Again, spending 1.5 hours talking about the KRISP project, answering questions that were thoughtful and beginning to move toward taking action steps. Baby steps, and that's fine.
After a brief lunch, we headed back to the first health department to meet with the health administrator. We talked for an hour, addressing questions, giving explanations, and finding common ground.
And, why the hell don't we have a national immunization registry, instead of state by state?! What century is this country in anyway? Why not have a web-based system that all providers and parents can access? It's a no-brainer. We have the technology, but not the collective will. How can the health departments do true quality improvement processes without having current data? It's mind boggling. Yes, 2 minutes on this soap box brought knowing but resigned smiles and nods from everyone. After all, they were the choir....
The reality checks were: unions must be included in planning and brought along in a positive way; the state has not paid counties for services and that means hardship for the county health departments; everyone has a boss that needs to be attended to; people are in public health out of passion and commitment rather than for the money, I love getting involved, and the whole experience is better when shared and mutually supported by a colleague.
The day started with a drive from Peoria (where I stayed with a friend and colleague) to the smallish building, literally in the middle of cornfields, also the geographic center of the county and chosen as the best location in terms of county politics. The fields are being plowed and planted; the dust makes a faint light brown haze that hangs near the horizon. I was there to speak to a group of public health nurses about the KRISP grant. I wasn't sure what to expect, and was prepared to ad lib a lot.
The room was full, with a line going toward the breakfast brought by the director. Food surely gets staff to an 8:30am meeting. I spent 1.5 hours talking about the project, about the public health core functions, about the relationship of quality improvement to nurse recruitment and retention, etc. The questions were good, including the one of "what does health care reform mean for public health?" Answer: LOTS! I left feeling hopeful that these public health nurses would be engaged and grow professionally over the next two years.
Then we drove back to Peoria and met with a small group of supervisors at that health department. Again, spending 1.5 hours talking about the KRISP project, answering questions that were thoughtful and beginning to move toward taking action steps. Baby steps, and that's fine.
After a brief lunch, we headed back to the first health department to meet with the health administrator. We talked for an hour, addressing questions, giving explanations, and finding common ground.
And, why the hell don't we have a national immunization registry, instead of state by state?! What century is this country in anyway? Why not have a web-based system that all providers and parents can access? It's a no-brainer. We have the technology, but not the collective will. How can the health departments do true quality improvement processes without having current data? It's mind boggling. Yes, 2 minutes on this soap box brought knowing but resigned smiles and nods from everyone. After all, they were the choir....
The reality checks were: unions must be included in planning and brought along in a positive way; the state has not paid counties for services and that means hardship for the county health departments; everyone has a boss that needs to be attended to; people are in public health out of passion and commitment rather than for the money, I love getting involved, and the whole experience is better when shared and mutually supported by a colleague.
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