Nursing Research Collaborative of the Lehigh Valley Unites LVAIC Students, Faculty

May 9, 2018, @ 1:46 PM

Keynote speaker, Bernadette Melnyk, addresses the crowd of 300 faculty and students at the inaugural NRCLV symposium on April 6, 2018 at Cedar Crest College.

The inaugural year of the Nursing Research Collaborative of the Lehigh Valley (NRCLV) proved to be a major success for students and faculty alike. On April 6, 2018, over 300 faculty, students, and staff gathered at Cedar Crest College for this collaborative event.

Featuring keynote speaker Bernadette Melnyk, Dean and Professor of the College of Nursing at The Ohio State University, the topic of the day was nursing research: methods, topics, and procedures. While considered a funded program of LVAIC, this effort brought together Cedar Crest College, DeSales University, and Moravian College students to learn from each other and experts in the Nursing field. The symposium also highlighted student scholarly work through presentations and posters from the Baccalaureate to Doctor of Nursing Practice level.

NRCLV is committed to creating and sustaining a local nursing culture that encourages and supports the spirit of scientific inquiry, nursing research, and application of evidence-based nursing practice through mutually shared efforts and goals.

Exhibitors from several organizations were stationed throughout the simulation lab at Cedar Crest College where the event took place. These vendors ranged from holistic medicine to the local health networks and nursing home healthcare agencies. Exhibitors offered students the opportunity to network with potential employers, as well as connect on the shared interest of healthcare in the Lehigh Valley. Those present included the following:

• Lehigh Valley Health Network
• St. Luke’s University Health Network
• Wolters Kluwer
• Kaplan Nursing
• Gracedale Nursing
• MPI Uniforms
• F. A. Davis Company
• LuLaRoe
• Laerdal Medical
• Gaumard Scientific
• Jing Ai Beauty
• KCI USA, Inc.
• Young Living Essential Oil
• Easton Hospital
• Reading Hospital/Tower Health
• HCR Manorcare

While this event was enormously successful due to the efforts of the faculty planning committee, the true value lies in the spirit of collaboration that brought this group together. The planning process for this event took place over the course of two years, and the careful arrangement of the details of the event were clearly evident to all who attended.