FEMAP Seeking Funds to Build a New Nursing School

Location:
Monday, July 12th, 2010

Details:

MISSION: To prepare nursing professionals who are ethical, critical, analytical and committed to society who can provide comprehensive,professional, humanistic and respectful care to the community we serve.

The FEMAP Foundation and FEMAP/SADEC in Cd. Juarez are currently seeking funding to build a new nursing school. The current school, adjacent to Hospital de la Familia has an enrollment of 500 students and graduates 100 nurses a year. Sixteen percent of the nursing students come from El Paso.

The school's reputation for providing an excellent education at a very low cost has made it popular among the population served. In the past couple of years, FEMAP's nursing school has grown to be one of the largest in the state of Chihuahua. In 2010, three of its students graduated as "the best qualified nurse within the state of Chihuahua in the Centro Nacional de Evaluacion para la Educacion (CENEVAL)". CENEVAL is the National Centre of Evaluation for Higher Education. Its main activity is the design and administration of assessment instruments for abilities and competencies, as well as the analysis and dissemination of results obtained. A non-profit organization, CENEVAL was founded in 1994 by a mandate of The National Association of Universities and Higher Education Institutions (ANUIES) and provides valid and reliable information about the knowledge and abilities of people.

The popularity has a drawback; approximately 180 students are turned away every year. This is especially harsh for a city like Cd. Juarez, where opportunity for an affordable education may be scarce. "These are 180 young people hoping better their lives and those of their families by getting an education," laments Mrs. Guadalupe De la Vega, FEMAP Founder and President. "With the current situation Juarez is undergoing, this is the best way to help our youth, by making a good education accessible and preparing them for a career that will open many opportunities."

The school is already at capacity and the goal is to build a stand-alone school which can house 900 students. The budget for the new school is $1.4 million. If you'd like to help, please call the FEMAP Foundation at (915) 544-4151 or email us at aaleman@femap.org

Historical Background of the Nursing School
FEMAP is an organization known for its ability to seek out the needs of the community it serves and providing a means of resolve. The citizens of Ciudad Juárez sought access to a healthy lifestyle; FEMAP responded by creating a full-fledged hospital and primary care clinic that provides low cost, high quality medical care. However, the community needed not only a means of healing but a way to develop; an opportunity to train marginalized individuals in a profession that would both provide a sturdy wage and benefit for the overall community.

On September 20, 1993 FEMAP opened the doors to its own nursing school.

The original school provided year long courses in nursing for sex-workers seeking a means of income alternative to prostitution. Months later, this educational initiative received academic certification from the National Professional Technical Education Council (CONALEP), an achievement that formalized the effort made for marginalized populations to seek better means of employment. The original enrollment took on 20 students, of which two students are still working at Hospital de la Familia16 years later. On November 11, 1997 the FEMAP School of Nursing was recognized by the Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez (UACJ). This meant a curriculum change in order to fit in accordance with UACJ standards, guidelines and rules. This action helped to raise academic standards and as a result, the overall academic level of the FEMAP nursing school dramatically improved. The school is additionally a member of the Comisión Interinstitucional Formadora de Recursos Humanos en Salud (Inter-Institutional Commission for Preparing Human Resources in Health Care - CIFRHS) in the State of Chihuahua; a membership based under decisions 279 and 330 by the Secretariat of Public Education published in the Official Federal Daily.

The growth of the nursing school was rapid: by December 31, 2007 the school had graduated fourteen general nursing classes and by 2008, the FEMAP Nursing School had graduated two classes of Nurses Aides. During its 16 years of existence, the school that started with just 20 students under the FEMAP-CONALEP system in 1997 catapulted to an enrollment of 180 students in 1993 and further expanded to 500 students in 2008. The FEMAP nursing school has in essence grown 25 times over its initial enrollment. The prestige of the nursing school has additionally crossed the border; 18% of the total current student body at the school comes from our sister city (El Paso, Texas, USA).

The Demand Today
There is an unsatisfied demand within the health care infrastructure in the Paso del Norte Region for general nursing staff. The global standard currently maintains an average of three nurses per 1,000 individuals; the number of nurses in the Municipality of Juárez calculates a deficit of nursing staff of 3,108 nurses. Additionally, it is estimated that the city of El Paso, Texas is 40% under the nursing standard for the United States. Over the next two years, health infrastructure in Ciudad Juárez is to be substantially increased due to the expansion of the General Hospital, development operations at the Pediatric Hospital, the construction of 10 health centers and two primary care units, construction of the Psychiatric Hospital and building of a new General Hospital – the demand for nursing staff will undoubtedly increase. As it currently stands, the city’s academic infrastructure does not have the capability to satisfy this demand. The addition to the FEMAP School of Nursing will fill the demand for 50 new direct jobs and 120 indirect jobs with individuals from marginalized regions in search of a sustainable means of income. The nursing school is a development alternative for youth living in deprived communities in Ciudad Juárez – an outlet for a strong future. Though the school stands as a gateway for these individuals, this year alone, due to lack of enrollment capacity, 200 students were turned away from entrance to the program.

Our Goal
1. Within a year, build a school of nursing with a capacity for educating a minimum of 600 students.
2. When building the school, to include all the necessary physical infrastructure elements (building and equipment) to facilitate fulfillment of the overall objective of this project (classrooms, laboratories, library, computer room, auditorium, administrative offices, professors’ lounge, etc.).
3. To increase the school’s installed capacity from 350 to 600 General Nursing students (Technical-Post Junior High) within a term of one year and to 900 students over two years.
4. To increase terminal performance from 75% to 90% of newly enrolled students in the General Nursing program with a Technical-Post Junior High level.
5. To increase from 75% to 85%, the total number of students who attain a score of 1,000 points or more on the CENEVAL exams. This score would exempt them from the Professional Examination for the General Nursing program (Technical-Post Junior High).
6. To attain certification from the Secretariat of Public Education within a term no longer than one year. This measure will be taken to offer the nursing community:
a. A year of post-basic courses in different specialties including; administration, surgery, pediatrics, neonatology and gynecology.
7. To attain certification from the Secretariat of Public Education within a term no longer than two years, to be able to offer the nursing community:
a. A Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing.


Needs of the School and Budget
The school will be built on three levels, in addition to a basement for parking. The additional building should allow for the enrollment capacity of the FEMAP nursing school to serve 900 students. The addition to the nursing school will consist of ten classrooms, an auditorium, laboratories, library, computer room, professors’ lounge, administrative offices and bathrooms. The total constructed area of the new school will be 23,800 square feet.