School of Nursing to use text messages

The Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing plans to use mobile text messages to share timely information about applying for its inaugural graduate classes in nursing science and health care leadership.

The school will broadcast a text message notifying interested students of the opening of applications for the first-ever doctoral and master’s degrees of the Nursing Science and Health Care Leadership Graduate Degree Program. To sign up to receive this text message, text “apply” to SMS short-code 27138. Be sure to text “y” to the confirmation message received following the initial request.

“This is a great way for us to be sure interested students immediately receive the news that applications are open,” said Heather M. Young, associate vice chancellor for nursing and founding dean for the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing. “We’ve heard from a number of students interested in our new, interprofessional graduate degree program and we hope this mobile campaign will allow students to learn important details.”

Hosted by the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis, the Nursing Science and Health Care Leadership Graduate Degree Program will open to the inaugural classes of doctoral and master’s degree students in fall 2010, pending the programs’ approval.

Young said the school expects final systemwide University of California approval of the graduate degree program this month and is working with the UC Davis Office of Graduate Studies to open the application process immediately upon program approval.

The school is not charging for the texting service, although mobile carriers will apply standard text messaging rates, which vary according to individual carriers and plans. Those who sign up for the service can expect to receive a message when the application process opens as well two to three reminders prior to application deadlines.

Asian Pacific Islander dementia partnership

The UC Davis Alzheimer’s Disease Center is a partner in the creation of the Sacramento Asian Pacific Islander Dementia Care Network, which is intended to address barriers to service for Alzheimer’s disease within the Asian and Pacific Islander population.

The network, also known as Bridge to Healthy Families, will be made possible by a $700,000 grant from The Harry and Jeannette Weinberg Foundation. The other partners in the joint project are the Asian Community Center of Sacramento Valley, the Alzheimer’s Association, Northern California and Northern Nevada Chapter.

The partnership will focus on three key areas:

improving the understanding of dementia and depression among Asian Pacific Islander family caregivers and community organizations;

building capacity to enable service providers to reach families and coordinate services; and

piloting interventions using community assets to connect Asian Pacific Islander caregivers with service providers and resources.

For more information on these stories and others, visit www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu.

— Dateline staff