CASE STUDY: Duquesne University School of Nursing Free

Duquesne University remains at the forefront of nursing education with Mediasite. Duquesne University first opened its doors as the Pittsburgh Catholic College of the Holy Ghost in October 1878 with an enrollment of 40 students and a faculty of seven. Today, Duquesne University is a progressive educational community that has more than tripled from its early 12.5 acres to its present self-enclosed 40-acre campus. Duquesne's tremendous growth includes more than 10,000 students in 10 schools of study, offering baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral degrees as well as professional certificates.

The United States is in the midst of a nursing shortage that is expected to intensify as baby boomers age and the need for healthcare grows. Compounding the problem is that colleges and universities across the country are struggling to expand enrollment levels to meet the rising demand for nursing care. Duquesne University School of Nursing is at the forefront of this challenge, as one of the first institutions in the country to offer online programs in forensic nursing education. In 2003, the forensic program was awarded a 3-year Advanced Education Nursing Grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

According to Joseph Seidel, videographer and computer technology consultant, “A major goal of the funding was to enhance the program through technology in order to better serve online nursing students located throughout the United States and in various other countries around the world.”

Duquesne University's School of Nursing sought a solution that would allow it to share critical information related to forensic science in a clear and concise manner. In addition, the School of Nursing wanted to bridge the gap between a regular classroom and an online environment, providing students with the best of both worlds.

Prior to purchasing Mediasite, the university employed a short-term solution of videotaping its courses. The content featured nationally known guest lecturers speaking each week and included real-world crime scene investigations. The result was an extensive videotaping process, requiring much equipment, time, and money.

“We wanted our distance learning students to have the same rich experience as being in class and interacting with professors directly,” says Seidel. “But, our early approach was exhaustive in terms of the time, effort and expense we incurred. We truly had to manage the entire process—step-by-step—which demanded a great deal of time and money.”

In addition, distance learners experienced a lengthy delay in receiving the DVD for a class, making it difficult for them to interact with students on campus via the Blackboard course management system. As Seidel notes, “Mediasite brings the classroom to the student via the Internet and allows them to ask questions of the professor in real-time, not later when they have a moment to e-mail the professor directly.”

With Mediasite, students and faculty who cannot attend lectures have the ability to ask questions of the presenter and hear questions from live audience members through the use of wireless microphones. Another added benefit is that doctoral students can now view presentations from their peers and professors on-demand, in preparation for their own defenses.

“Mediasite has transformed the way course content is delivered to our distance education students,” Seidel explains. “The feedback from students has been incredible and the growth of the program is due in large part to the quality of the courses offered online. Mediasite simplifies the post-production time and cost dramatically.”

Over the past year, the School of Nursing has expanded its educational opportunities by providing continuing education in the area of Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Training. An initial live SANE training is now offered on a continual basis through Mediasite to reach underserved areas where few nurses are trained in caring for victims of violence.

“We have found an unlimited number of ways to use Mediasite to improve our nursing distance education,” says Seidel. “It allows us to branch into other clinical areas, enhancing the capabilities of our doctoral program through live dissertations. With Mediasite, students and faculty who cannot attend now have the ability to ask questions of the presenter.”

Mediasite has provided a framework for future advancements in distance education at the Duquesne University School of Nursing. Students, faculty, and staff across the university are now collaborating to provide similar innovative programs in their own departments.

“We look forward to continuing our use of Mediasite as we seek to both educate and inform our students in this demanding field,” says Seidel.

• Meets the demand for training qualified workers to address the national nursing shortage;

• Simplifies postproduction time and cost dramatically;

• Bridges the gap between the regular classroom and an online learning environment, better serving online students in the United States and beyond;

• Makes classes available to online students in a user-friendly and rigorous manner, encouraging real-time interaction between students, faculty, and guest lecturers; and

• Offers unlimited possibilities for future advancement and growth of clinical programs.