Weber State University Annie Taylor Dee School of Nursing

Blood Donation: From a historical experiment to saving lives ❤️
Did you know that the modern system for blood banking was perfected in the 1940's to treat battlefield injuries?
You can see the same concepts used every two seconds in the U.S. to save lives every day!

Have you donated blood recently?

Doctoral Spotlight: Advancing Healthcare Systems & Patient Safety

We are proud to showcase two more of our Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) graduates. These nursing leaders are transforming healthcare delivery by standardizing quality compliance and reducing medication errors.

Dr. Zachary K. Crandall, DNP, MHA, RN
• Focus: Executive Leadership
• Project: Implementing a Revised Standardized Internal Readiness Plan for System-Wide Accreditation Survey Preparation
• The Challenge: Hospital system accreditation prep often suffers from inconsistent evaluations and a lack of clear pathways to address regulatory noncompliance.
• The Innovation: Dr. Crandall overhauled a hospital system's mock survey process by creating a standardized toolkit and a formal escalation algorithm for leadership remediation.
• The Results: Spanning 8 hospitals, the project drove evaluator variation down to 0% (from 11%). Surveyors rated toolkit usefulness at 4.3/5 and the new process at 4.54/5, standardizing enterprise readiness.

Dr. Moriah Dalton, DNP, RN
• Focus: Family Nurse Practitioner
• Project: Medication Administration Education and Policy Development for an Assisted Living
• The Challenge: Assisted living facilities face risks regarding medication errors due to non-standardized processes and limited clinical training resources for staff.
• The Innovation: Dr. Dalton implemented an evidence-based, facility-specific medication policy alongside hands-on routing demonstrations, education modules, and case studies.
• The Results: Within one month of adopting the new policy, medication errors plummeted by 31%. Post-survey data from medication technicians (N = 19) showed major increases in confidence and knowledge.

Excellence in Action

Dr. Crandall and Dr. Dalton are taking evidence out of the literature and putting it directly to work for health systems, staff, and vulnerable patients.
Join us in congratulating Dr. Crandall and Dr. Dalton!

We're excited to introduce one of the newest members of our nursing faculty team, Lindsey Wood!

Lindsey brings a passion for patient care, a love of teaching, and a sense of adventure to the classroom. This semester, she'll be helping students build confidence through pharmacology, simulation, nursing skills labs, and clinical experiences.

Please join us in giving Lindsey a warm welcome to the Weber State Nursing family! 💜🩺

Occupational Health Nurses play an integral role in keeping workers safe and healthy. OHNs collaborate with employees, administration, and management to identify and mitigate risks to employee safety and create metrics to promote a safe working environment and improve overall worker well-being. Completing the Occupational Health Certificate Program covers 2,000 of the 3,000 hours required to apply for the COHN or COHN-S exam.
Take the lead on employee safety with our fully online program! Visit our website for more information. https://weber.edu/Nursing/occupational_health.html

Are you an organized multi-tasker with a passion for healthcare education and community outreach? 💜 The Annie Taylor Dee School of Nursing at Weber State University is looking for our next Graduate Programs Clinical and Marketing Coordinator!

In this dynamic, 12-month full-time role, you will bridge operations and strategic communication. You will act as a vital liaison for our graduate nursing programs (MSN and DNP), managing clinical placements (75%) and helping shape our digital marketing strategy (25%) to share our brilliant Wildcat stories with the community.

What You'll Do:

✨ Manage and facilitate clinical/residency site placements and preceptor agreements.
✨ Maintain vital databases and facility documentation for graduate students.
✨ Collaborate on social media and digital marketing strategies to elevate our programs.

Qualifications:
• Required: Bachelor's degree + 2 years of related experience.

Take the next step in your career with a team dedicated to educating the future of healthcare!

👉 Read the full job description and apply today: https://jobs.weber.edu/postings/28574

Did you know that Pride Month and National Blood Donation Day are both in June? So what does that have to do with Nurse Blake? What many don't know about this nurse/comedian is that he started an organization during nursing school called Banned4life. We all know how overwhelming nursing school can be. Can you imagine taking on a passion project during nursing school? What started as an attempt to give blood to support a classmate who was in and out of the hospital receiving blood donations for sickle cell anemia became a journey to end the ban on gay and bisexual males from donating blood. When he himself could not donate, Nurse Blake and his classmates organized blood drives to raise awareness and pints of blood in the bank. Blood is essential to healthcare and required to maintain life for many patients. Here are some quick facts from the American Red Cross about blood:
Approximately 29,000 units of red blood cells are needed every day in the U. S.

Nearly 16 million blood components are transfused each year in the U.S.

The average red blood cell transfusion is approximately 3 units.

A single car accident victim can require as many as 100 units of blood.

Blood and platelets cannot be manufactured; they can only come from volunteer donors.

One donation can help save more than one life.

According to the American Cancer Society, more than 1.9 million people are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in 2023. Many of them will need blood, sometimes daily, during their chemotherapy treatment.

One of the most important parts of being a nurse is taking pride in the quality of care we give to each patient. As Nurse Blake taught us, we can advocate for those we care about and improve healthcare. We might not all have the energy to start an organization and overturn a 30-year ban, but we can sign up to donate blood. Our patients, our hospitals, and our communities can benefit from our donation. For more information: https://www.redcrossblood.org/.../blood-needs-blood... and to read the whole story about Nurse Blake https://nurse.org/.../nurse-blake-banned-from-giving-blood/

Practice makes perfect. 💜💉

Before our students ever step foot into a clinical setting with real patients, they spend hours perfecting their hands-on skills right here in our state-of-the-art Simulation Lab. From mastering the perfect IV start to navigating complex patient scenarios, our Sim Lab bridges the gap between classroom theory and real-world nursing excellence.

Shoutout to our undergraduate Wildcats for putting in the reps and building that clinical confidence! 🙌

👉 Current students: What’s your favorite skill to practice in the Sim Lab?
👉 Alumni: What was the hardest skill for you to master when you were in school? Let us know below!

Ready to balance active clinical practice with a rewarding career in academic administration?

Weber State University offers more than just a job—we offer great benefits. Our new CRNA Faculty member & Assistant Program Director will enjoy comprehensive medical/dental options, a dedicated wellness program, retirement contributions, university tuition benefits, and free tickets to Wildcat athletic and cultural events.

Join a culture that values your clinical expertise while actively supporting your work-life balance.

👇 Review our exceptional benefits and apply online:
https://jobs.weber.edu/postings/28241

We are proud to showcase two more of our Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) graduates. These nursing leaders are transforming healthcare delivery by strengthening workforce retention and delivering vital resources to families navigating complex diagnoses.

Dr. Holland Clawson, DNP, RN
• Focus: Family Nurse Practitioner

• Project: Implementation of a Nurse Mentorship Program

• The Challenge: Nurse retention is a critical issue in healthcare. Newly hired nurses need supportive professional environments to combat burnout and build confidence.

• The Innovation: Dr. Clawson designed a 3-month pilot mentorship program where mentees chose mentors based on self-identified strengths, fostering judgment-free dialogue and professional development.

• The Results: 100% workforce retention was achieved during the pilot. Mentees reported an increased appreciation for leadership and development, and expert nurse leaders validated the program's potential for broader organizational rollout.

Dr. Rebecca Cotterell, DNP, RN, CRN
• Focus: Family Nurse Practitioner

• Project: A Toolkit for Newly Diagnosed Alzheimer’s Patients and Their Families

• The Challenge: Receiving an Alzheimer’s disease (AD) diagnosis is overwhelming. Families frequently lack early, structured guidance on disease progression, safety, and long-term planning.

• The Innovation: Dr. Cotterell developed and implemented an evidence-based toolkit covering disease education, safety, financial/legal planning, and caregiver resources in a primary care clinic.

• The Results: Family members (N = 14) rated the toolkit as a highly valuable caregiving resource. Clinic providers (N = 4) confirmed it actively prompted vital long-term planning dialogues and streamlined clinical education.

Excellence in Action

These projects prove the power of targeted clinical interventions. Dr. Clawson and Dr. Cotterell are taking evidence out of the literature and putting it directly to work for patients, families, and healthcare teams alike.
Join us in congratulating Dr. Clawson and Dr. Cotterell!

Congratulations to Dr. Jodi Waddoups on her presentation at UNPD Nursing Professional Development Conference.

Her presentation, “Utah Action Coalition: Nurse Wellbeing and the State of Nursing in Utah,” highlighted the importance of supporting the nursing workforce, promoting wellbeing, and strengthening the future of nursing across our state.

We are proud to see Weber State nursing faculty contributing to important conversations that impact nurses, students, and patient care throughout Utah.