Launchpad to Nursing: Inspiring the Next Generation of Nurses

Dr. James K. Stoller:

Hello, and welcome to MedEd Thread, a Cleveland Clinic education podcast that explores the latest innovations in medical education and amplifies the tremendous work of our educators across the enterprise.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Hello, welcome to today's episode of MedEd Thread, an education podcast exploring Launchpad to Nursing Bootcamp, an innovative pipeline program to inspire the next generation of nurses. I'm your host, Dr. Tony Tizzano, Director of Student and Learner Health here at Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio. Today, I'm very pleased to have Dr. Linda Gardner, Senior Director for Nursing Education and Professional Development at Cleveland Clinic. Linda, welcome to today's podcast.

Dr. Linda Gardner:

Thank you, Dr. Tizzano.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Pleasure to have you. Also with us is Theresa Russo, program manager for nursing education at Cleveland Clinic. Theresa, thank you for being with us here today.

Theresa Russo:

Thank you, Dr. Tizzano.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

To get us started, would each of you tell us a little bit about yourselves, your educational background, what brought you to Cleveland, and your respective roles within the Cleveland Clinic Health System? Linda, why don't you start?

Dr. Linda Gardner:

Yes, thank you. So, Dr. Tizzano, I graduated from high school with my LPN, and I thought I was ready to be a nurse right out the gate at 18. I worked a little bit over the summer, but went straight to Ursula College to start school. I knew I always wanted to be a teacher as well, so I got my BA in mathematics and my middle school teaching certification to teach middle school math and science. So with that, I went and taught middle school math and science for five years, absolutely loved it, but was still missing that nursing piece that I wanted. So I fell back to my LPN license and started working in the OR using the LPN as a surgical tech. Fell in love with the OR and then stayed here at the Cleveland Clinic, and the clinic supported me going back to school to get my RN, my master's in nursing, and then my doctorate in nursing.

And through all of that, I then obviously moved into the RN role, moved into a clinical coordinator role, and an educator role, and moved up the education chain, and now I'm here as a senior director. I finally am able to really bring the two loves together, and that is education and nursing. And now that I'm in this role, I'm still covering peri-op. I have ambulatory, hospice home care, our new center for nursing career exploration, which involves pipeline. So students, adult learners, a variety of areas, and love that I really get to pull the pipeline piece, the middle school and high schoolers together. So 18 years here at the clinic and looking forward to retiring sometime in the future here from the clinic.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Wow, what a trajectory. I can only say two things. If you can teach middle school, you can teach anything. <laugh> And secondly, don't think about retirement. Cleveland Clinic is like the Hotel California. You can check out any time, but you can never leave. <laugh> Well, Theresa, what about you?

Theresa Russo:

So my journey at Cleveland Clinic started about 15 years ago. I had the opportunity to complete an internship in the marketing department while I was pursuing my undergraduate degree at Kent State University. Upon graduation, I actually graduated with my business management and marketing degree. I then was hired into administrative program coordinator role in operations and really fell in love with process improvement and continuous improvement in all of operations entirely. And I worked over in operations for about three years. And then I was promoted to program manager role where I managed our non-employee onboarding system. And then an opportunity opened up in nursing education and I transferred over into nursing education as a program manager and really dove head into operations where I focus on our pipeline development, which is our middle school, high school, and adult learners. I manage our nursing shadow program, as well as our Launchpad to Nursing Bootcamp program.

So I've been in nursing education for about 10 years now, and I really found my love of business management and operations in here.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

It's great that you've been able to marry the two, and you're proof positive that these pipeline programs are important. So in today's segment, we'll explore how this interactive nursing bootcamp inspires middle and high school students to consider one of the many careers within nursing through hands-on exploration. So Linda, can you help us frame today's topic and explain what this bootcamp is, what was the impetus for this program, and how it's going?

Dr. Linda Gardner:

Yes, absolutely, Dr. Tizzano. So Theresa and I took a step back and we are looking at what do we need to do to help get students to really understand nursing? So all of our research is saying students really need to understand careers younger, more often, and really have an experience. So our goal of this program is to have students understand what nursing truly is. So kind of we stepped back and we started thinking, let's imagine a day where a student is transported into this dynamic world of nursing using multiple techniques of teaching opportunities. We have simulation, we have didactic, we have real-life scenarios where students are put into the field of nursing. So we really tried to pull in all those different elements to be able to help our students. And why did we do this? The nursing shortage globally, not just here at Cleveland Clinic, continues to grow.

We know that we have to be able to get nurses into the door. However, if we don't start teaching individuals what nursing truly is, we're not going to be able to fill those spots. So Theresa and I really wanted to step back and say, how can we get and intrigue the younger generation into nursing and let them know that it's not as scary as it looks. It's not just being kind and gentle. We want to reframe what nursing is. Nurses are caring. They are innovative. They are smart. We are the person that is there every day with that patient. There are so many pieces and parts. But the reality is, with this nationwide shortage, the high demand for nurses, our aging population, and let's face it, nursing has a high burnout rate. The stress, short staffing. So we knew that we needed to do something.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

I always like the adage. Nurses do so much with so little that they're qualified to do anything with nothing. <laugh> You know, we rely on our nurses for so many things. And I think the word that you used was dynamic. And it's not what you just see on television. There is such a depth and breadth to your career paths. I'm always impressed all the time. And I couldn't work without you. Theresa, what is demand for this type of program and how has it evolved since its inception?

Theresa Russo:

Yeah. So the demand for this program has really been tremendous from the very beginning. Since 2024, over 800 students have signed up for the bootcamp with 400 students actually attending the bootcamp. So that shows us that the demand's there and it's actually exceeding capacity in the number of seats that we can fill. So that really led us into how we evolve the program strategically. So once they come to the bootcamp, we actually survey them after. And what we're hearing based on their feedback, they want to come back. They want more opportunity. They want to dive deeper into nursing and to see the different specialties. And we also want to expand those offerings. So we want to make sure if you're interested in nursing, come to our bootcamp and check it out for the day, but we want to make sure the spots are available for that student. So as Linda mentioned, series one is really designed to introduce nursing and what that role's really about.

But again, as we looked at that feedback from students, they want more exposure to those specialties. So what we did was expanded and we built series two, which really builds upon the foundation that was laid out from series one bootcamp. And this shows not only the different nursing specialties, so they have a broader sense of all the different areas in nursing that you can go into. Another important evolution of our program is realizing that we need to engage students younger. The earlier we can introduce students to nursing to this program, the better. This program provides an opportunity to really spark that interest, keep them engaged, and hopefully retain them as Cleveland Clinic caregivers.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Yeah, I really like that. I think that idea of starting early is really important. You never know who you're talking to. You know, you throw that out there, something sparks an interest, and then they start to take a path. And they have choice A, choice B, but choice B takes them closer to nursing, so maybe that's what they pick. If they didn't have that impetus, what would they do? So when you see these repeat customers coming from series one to series two, but you've started really early, maybe you start in elementary school at some point, do you think it will be important to develop a program where you keep throwing another log on the fire for them to kind of hold that interest as time goes on?

Dr. Linda Gardner:

Absolutely. So, you know, the students have definitely told us that. We've seen that. And we know in order to keep that pipeline, in order to keep them a part of nursing, whether they come to Cleveland Clinic or they go somewhere else, we're going to have to keep that trigger there. We're going to have to keep bringing it back to them. It is definitely something that we're looking at. And Theresa really sees this through our students.

Theresa Russo:

Yeah. In addition to that, because these students are so young starting in middle school, we know operationally that we might not see ROI. We don't see that right away. We might not see it until another seven to 10 years. However, we know it's so important to keep them engaged and engaged with them as well in connection to them and Cleveland Clinic. So we offer not only the bootcamp, we let them know about the other opportunities and pipeline programs that we have, which are our shadow program. So after middle school, come and shadow at Cleveland Clinic and see what nursing's about on a nursing unit to see if you like that role. Then maybe you'll come back as a nurse associate externship program during college. And then hopefully, like I said, in seven to 10 years, we see them as a Cleveland Clinic nurse, the ultimate goal.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Yeah. And you know, if you're a young child and you've managed to somehow dodge the healthcare system, hopefully, you may not have someone in your family that kind of serves as a role model or gives you an idea. So having something that you can jump into the pool and see if you like it is really great. So Linda, when someone comes to your door, what can the student expect in a day when they are in this program?

Dr. Linda Gardner:

So the life of a student nurse here in Launchpad to Nursing Bootcamp really starts off with all nurses have uniforms, right? So when our students come in, they come, they change, everyone gets a shirt. They start off having a uniform just like everyone, and they all have a badge. We really want them to know that we are a team, but we all are uniformed and really set out to go. So our students come in, we're all uniformed. They get their paper chart, and they really start to come in and learn about their first patient.

After they've learned about what it is to be a nurse, how nurses work together, teamwork, the real meat and potatoes of the day is they get a patient scenario. A patient comes into the ER, they get a scenario, and then they run through five immersive hands-on stations where they're learning about the patient as the patient goes through their day.

My favorite part of this is they're not just doing the skills. So everything is a skill that they go and do. But they're also learning the why behind the role. And they're doing this with Cleveland Clinic nurses. So Cleveland Clinic nurses are talking about why we do a blood draw. And they're not just practicing the blood draw. They're talking about the actual labs. We're looking at the labs, talking about what is the result? Is this a good lab? Is this a bad lab? What could this mean? And so what we do is we then connect it back to school. I always tell the students, “I know you don't understand why your teacher has you going out and counting cars and looking at graphs and trying to understand these decimals and what does this mean?” So we bring back what they're learning at school so they can understand, “Here's why I'm doing all these things at school and trying to understand values.” We bring it back to how it will help them eventually when they decide to become a nurse, right?

Because I remember when I taught middle school, they're like, “I'm never going to use this again.” Well, you do. You use it every day, but in a different context where that scientific piece is. So yes, we have doctors and folks that have different levels and they're going to say, you know, here was the potassium, here's what this is. A nurse needs to know that as well. You need to know what your regular potassium is. If it's low, what does that equal? If it's high, what does that equal?

So we really run through all of those stations and talk about each area, what was happening with the patient. At the end of the day, they come back and nurses don't diagnose, but we're able to start figuring out what's going on with the patient as well. And we work with our different team members, the physicians. They figure out what is going on with this patient. And I don't want to say it's a common illness, but it's something that happens to many, many individuals in our community.

And they do a culminating activity. Communication and handoff communication is extremely important in nursing. So they do something at the end called Escape Your Shift. And so they run through an escape room where it pulls all the different pieces together from what they've done through the day. And you really find out if they've communicated and they can read directions because it's extremely important to read all of the directions. And they complete an escape room, really learning that handoff communication, seeing if they're able to pull all of the pieces together and pull the important elements from the day together.

And the great thing, every program that Theresa and I do together, we make sure that they're taking elements, even if they decide nursing is not what I want. Because to us, that's also a win. We don't want kids spending all this time in college saying, “I want to be a nurse,” and then realize they don't. So this is a good time. We'd rather you figure out, “I don't want to be a nurse, but I want something else in healthcare.” But we want them to take something back for the community. So we give them stuff they can take back into the community. This particular one happens to center on stroke. So we teach them about BFAST. So when they leave here, they're able to now, if they see someone in the community or at home, recognize the signs and symptoms of a stroke. They may not be able to fix it, right? But they can recognize it. They know to call 911. They know to be able to help this patient or grandma, grandpa, mom, dad, the bus driver.

So we give them those tools to be able to help the community, which is fantastic.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

I love the way you've chosen to immerse them in this. And, you know, the T-shirt and the badge may seem like something little, but you know, you've now begun the process of professional identity.

Dr. Linda Gardner:

Yes.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

They know when they're wearing that T-shirt and they've got that badge, people are going to look at them and they're not just another person walking down the hall or following someone. They've got a role. And I also love that you have this escape room because there's no doing it halfway. You have to complete it to finish the day. You can't just leave it hanging. Those are just very important professional precepts, and I have to applaud the way you sneak it in there.

Theresa Russo:

Yeah. So one of the biggest challenges to this program is really ensuring that we have motivated and committed nurse educators that can offer the students a meaningful experience and that they're impacting these students. The success of the program really depends on who's educating these students. I mean, we want to make sure they bring enthusiasm, their expertise, and they're consistent at every bootcamp.

Another challenge is really maintaining that student engagement over time. Because the program is really hands-on and interactive, we need to make sure that we keep students curious and engaged and excited to come to the bootcamp and want to also come back to another iteration. We're constantly evaluating what's working, what we need to change, what are some opportunities for growth for our program, and finding new ways that we can engage with a new generation.

And last but certainly not least, funding. We need funding for this program. It would allow us to really grow strategically, intentionally, offer more time with the students. That's a really big component of this to ensure that we're putting out a product that is successful for the students for them to come back, but also for our side to really, again, engage them and catch them as nurses.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Sure. And perhaps making it accessible to groups of individuals who might otherwise not be able to take advantage of such a program. And, you know, the more wide ranging we can make the population of individuals that are providing care and that more reflects the tapestries of our communities is really an important piece.

I think we're fortunate that we are in a system like Cleveland Clinic that one of the three major goals is to educate those who serve. And the issue is, of course, there are so many opportunities that we have to stay on top of. Gee, you don't even know it's there unless you look. Being in education, which was new for me in doing these podcasts, I am always just astonished at the variety of opportunities there are. And these poster presentations and so forth that inspire some of these podcasts are proof positive that there are just so many things that we can bring to the table. We just have to know they're there to take advantage of them.

So, as you look into the future, both of you, what do you see on the horizon for this kind of program? What might you change? Dr. James K. Stoller loves to talk about the magic wand. If you had a magic wand and could have it any way that you want, what would you have?

Dr. Linda Gardner:

So, I have a laundry list of things that I want. But for the time that we have, we really would like to continue to grow the program. So, you talk about being available for more students. You know, when Theresa said we have 800 students apply and 400 show up, it's not that only 400 of the 800 are showing up. It's that we can only invite 400 because of our capacity.

So, we'd love to be able to offer more so that those who are signing up would have the availability to come. And also, when you talk about how are we going to be able to keep the engagement, so many of our students have said, "Are you going to have a Launchpad Three?" So, we'd like to be able to continue developing those programs. And it may not be sustainable to continue making Series Three, Series Four, Series Five, right? We need to be able to use our NPDSs in other ways. We also have to be able to care for our own current caregivers.

But one of our ideas that we'd really like to get up and running is a Future Nurses Club. Because those students who come to our Launchpad and they really want to continue learning, there's a lot you could do with a Future Nurses Club. You can have embedded mentorships. You know, there's professional development that you can do with the students, but there's a lot of development you could do with the club. You could do some things virtually, you could have other times where they come into the hospitals, we could rotate hospitals. It would be different nuggets that you're able to continue along the path.

And you could do that starting in middle school all the way through high school. And if you can't attend one meeting, it's okay. They could then come to the next. So, that is something we really would like to be able to get together, get the funding and things where we could get that up and running, because that allows students to stay involved. And it's okay if you have sports one month, but you want to be able to join the next month.

And we really want to get into the younger grades. There is such potential to move to the younger grades and start introducing nursing. Now, are we going to be doing the same things we do with middle schoolers? No. But there's different ways to introduce nursing to the younger students and help them have an understanding and an idea of what it is, even if it means helping them not be afraid to go into the doctor's office to see the nurse. Because let's face it, when they're younger, who are they afraid of?

They're afraid of the nurse because the nurse is the person bringing in the shots and all those scary things, right?

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

That's what I was thinking.

Dr. Linda Gardner:

When you're younger, the doctor's the fun one. They're the ones just checking their ears and their nose, you know, and then it's the nurse or the MA that's coming in with the needles and the scary stuff. So, those are a few of the ideas. I'm going to hand it over to Theresa because she really helps me drive this.

Theresa Russo:

Yeah. In addition to that, it's really connecting students with our current work experiences that we offer here at Cleveland Clinic. So, again, not only a Future Nurses Club, not only our Launchpad, but we also have our high school patient care nursing assistant program where they can come and complete an internship over an academic school year and get that hands-on experience with nurses and working alongside them.

There are many opportunities. We just want to make sure to continue opening those doors for students and also being a resource for them so we can connect them to the appropriate channels and information that they're looking for.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Yeah, and a health system as large as ours, that is such a critical feature, is to be able to connect the dots because we are so big. You know, I love the idea that you're looking at nursing education because just because you're a nurse doesn't mean you're a nurse educator or because you're a physician, that you're automatically an educator.

There's more science and method to the madness around education than you would ever imagine. And so, I think it's really important to try to encourage that because I think that could be one of the other bottlenecks.

I love the idea of mentorship because I think it's important in every career. But, you know, you have an opportunity with this nursing club. It could also be like a journal club where maybe you discuss an article, and it doesn't have to be a technical one. It could be a soft skill, like how do you deal with uncertainty? How do you deliver bad news? How do you embrace a patient's spirituality that is different than your own? These sorts of things that kind of build, and then they start to see themselves as a much more rounded professional, and all of that builds professional identity along the way. Fabulous work.

Dr. Linda Gardner:

Absolutely.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Were there any questions that I didn't ask that you think are important for our listeners to hear?

Dr. Linda Gardner:

Well, I think one thing that I'd like to share that's coming up that would be great for our listeners, Theresa, is our Ignite Your Nursing Passion. I think this is something, if they can't get into a Launchpad, that would be great for even our adult learners to come to. Theresa, do you want to give a little information on Ignite Your Nursing Passion that I know you are strategically working on right now?

Theresa Russo:

Yeah. So, we want to plug our new program. This will be launching in fall of this year, so be on the lookout for Ignite Your Nursing Passion.

So, this program, as Linda mentioned, is for middle school, high school, and adult learners, so that's college students. You can come with your family and come check out what nursing's about. So, we are going to host it where students can rotate through different stations, but then we'll also bring academic institutions in and talk about their nursing programs. We're also going to bring in our talent acquisition teams to talk about different entry-level roles that individuals can go into.

So, we're trying to make it a one-stop shop where they can come check us out for a couple hours and spend the day with us, and hopefully be very interested in nursing when they leave.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Yeah. I think that sounds outstanding. There are so many things at the Clinic you can do without formal education. You can graduate from high school and get your foot in the door, whether it be something like sterile processing. We have all these programs that we train in-house that one can take advantage of that you might never think about.

Dr. Linda Gardner:

And that's really our goal, to let caregivers or students come and be able to find a role, and then if they want to continue with nursing, we'll be here to help them. And we think it's important to make sure adults realize they are welcome to this program as well, because for many, this could be a second career, or that opportunity of, like, they're ready now to go to school, so let's have some schools here for them to be able to speak to as well.

Dr. Tony Tizzano:

Perfect. Well, I hope a light bulb is going off in our listeners' heads, because if it's not you, perhaps you know somebody - Yes. That could benefit from a program like this. Well, I wanna thank you both so much, Linda and Theresa. This is a wonderfully insightful and inspiring podcast. To our listeners, if you'd like to suggest an education topic to us or comment on an episode, please email us at education@ccf.org. Thank you very much for joining us, and we look forward to seeing you on our next podcast. Have a wonderful day.

Dr. James K. Stoller:

This concludes this episode of MedEd Thread, a Cleveland Clinic Education podcast. Be sure to subscribe to hear new episodes via iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Until next time, thanks for listening to MedEd Thread, and please join us again soon.