A $2 million gift announced July 6, 2023, will transform the technology and simulation spaces to be contemporary and more realistic at the Michigan State University College of Nursing, ensuring students’ training includes the most up-to-date equipment in the high-demand field of nursing.
MSU alumna Nancy Grosfeld, BS ‘65, and her husband, Jim, provided the gift, which will be phased in over three years. It will, among other things, include funds for families of advanced high-fidelity patient simulators (infant, pediatric, and adult) that can display a full range of neurological, cardiovascular and respiratory physiological responses; a large technology-supported display that allows students to interact with a virtual library of anatomical images to advance their understanding of the human body as well as facilitating diagnostic decision-making; and virtual reality and immersive interactive simulation projection equipment.
“My husband, Jim, and I wanted to direct our gift to a department that was experiencing a shortage of important qualified professionals in the field,” said Nancy Grosfeld. “In selecting the simulation program specifically, we felt it would provide valuable lifelike clinical experiences for the students and allow the College of Nursing to expand and grow with the use of new technology and state of the art simulation equipment.”
Nancy Grosfeld was initially pursuing a career in social work before she went on a field trip with a group of nursing students, which was impactful, sending her down a new career path. She called her time at MSU an “invaluable educational experience.”
This gift will have a substantial impact on nursing, according to Interim President Teresa K. Woodruff.
“MSU’s 2030 strategic plan drives us to enhance health for all those around us and to improve the systems that support health care,” said Woodruff. “In order to do that, we must improve how health care education is delivered. We are grateful for the generosity of Nancy and Jim Grosfeld, which is bringing the most promising educational technology to prepare nursing students for careers on the front lines of health care.”
Some of the new simulators are so life-like, they will offer students the opportunities to engage with realistic “patients,” that cry, blink and even sweat, among other physiological responses.
“These new simulators will enhance students’ educational experience and help us prepare them better for real-life scenarios where critical decisions need to be made in seconds,” said Norman J. Beauchamp Jr., MSU Executive Vice President for Health Sciences, adding meeting the future nursing needs of the people of Michigan mandates an increase in the number of nurses being trained. “Enhancing our simulation facilities is a critical component of meeting this imperative. This gift also demonstrates how the commitment of an individual who in fact is a nurse, Nancy Grosfeld, can come together with the goals of MSU to make an extraordinary difference.”
The college is already in the process of acquiring the new equipment, which is planned to be in place by the fall. Additional items included as part of the gift are a medication dispenser station, simulated AED system and structural improvements like cabinets and headwall units that will create a realistic clinical environment.
“The MSU College of Nursing is very thankful to the Grosfelds for this transformational investment in our college and future nursing professionals,” said Dean Leigh Small. “We believe that by having this new technology and updated simulation spaces we can augment real-world clinical opportunities students experience and best prepare students for their future professional role. The ability to provide high quality, realistic simulation will also allow us to increase student enrollment to meet the critical need for professional nurses.”
Undergraduate nursing student Alexa Bowles said her peers will benefit immediately from the gift.
“The college provides us with different opportunities to interact with some of our manikins, for example,” said Bowles. “We practice a lot of our skills on these, which will then translate into the hospital setting. So, this donation will mean more opportunities for students to be working right at the bedside with these manikins and this will help them to feel more prepared to work with new patients in the hospital.”
In addition to the new technology that will be added thanks to this gift, the college recently expanded the Granger Simulation Lab footprint by 42 percent. Furthermore, in April, the MSU Board of Trustees approved the planning process for a new interprofessional health education building that would feature a new dedicated simulation space for the College of Nursing, including housing any new equipment funded by the gift.