Montana State University Mark and Robyn Jones College of Nursing faculty member Laurie Glover, MN, MSN has been accepted to the distinguished Edmond J. Safra Visiting Nurse Faculty Program at the Parkinson’s Foundation.
The prestigious, 50-hour, accredited “train the trainer” Nurse Faculty Program is designed to improve nursing care for patients with Parkinson’s disease by training faculty leaders across the U.S. so that they, in turn, may better educate nursing students. The rigorous course includes didactics, clinical time with patients, participation in a Parkinson’s disease support group and the opportunity to develop an independent project. Glover completed the 50-hour educational portion of the program last month and will spend time with patients at the San Francisco VA Medical Center in early 2022.
The Parkinson’s Foundation notes that nurses are critical to the care of patients living with Parkinson’s disease.
“Considering the growing number of people living with Parkinson’s and the shortage of neurologists specializing in the disease, it is pressing that we prepare nurses to treat Parkinson’s,” the foundation notes on its website.
Upon conclusion of Glover’s training, she will join a group of more than 300 alumni, called Parkinson’s Foundation Nurse Scholars, who have completed the intensive training over the last 12 years.
Sarah Shannon, dean of MSU’s nursing college, said the expertise Laurie Glover gains from the Edmond J. Safra program will directly impact the health of Montanans who are affected by Parkinson’s disease.
“Montana is the ‘grayest’ state in the western United States,” said Shannon. Montana ranks sixth in the nation for having the greatest percentage of the state’s population age 65 or older, with only Maine, Florida, West Virginia, Vermont and Delaware home to a higher percentage of this population. In Montana, 18.7% of state residents are in this age group and are, therefore, at greater risk of diseases like Parkinson’s, Shannon said.
“It is important for health care providers and educators, such as Laurie Glover, to learn specialty knowledge to ensure that Montanans can receive the care they need when they need it,” she continued. “Laurie is an exceptional educator and clinician.”
Glover is a clinical associate professor on the MSU Mark and Robyn Jones College of Nursing’s Great Falls campus. She teaches courses in care management, population-based nursing care in communities and nursing concepts. Other teaching interests include public health, aging and end-of-life issues, social justice and family nurse practitioner-related issues. Glover has a master’s degree in nursing and a bachelor’s degree in nursing, both from MSU.
According to the Parkinson’s Foundation, Nurse Scholars educate more than 24,000 nursing students on Parkinson’s disease annually. It notes that with the number of people living with Parkinson’s globally is expected to double by 2040 to nearly 13 million, teaching nursing students in the classroom is one of the best ways to prepare them for treating people with Parkinson’s when they graduate.
