“I wrestled with what to write for this. A lofty, detached, academic-leaning piece, or, something that gives insight into the totality of who I am as a person. I decided on sharing part of my truth that makes me more human.
These days I awaken to somewhat of a Twilight Zone experience.”
For two weeks, 37 fourth-year nursing students checked people in, conducted screenings, and swabbed noses, contributing to the more than 13,000 tests completed at Houston Hall since early August.
There are ways you could try to quantify the reach and influence of Penn Nursing. You could look at school rankings, which for the past five years have placed the School in the number one spot in the world. Or you could calculate the amount of research funding it’s been awarded by the National Institutes of Health.
When Antonia Villarruel PhD RN FAAN, now Professor and Margaret Bond Simon Dean of Nursing, was earning her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in the late seventies, her classes covered the nuts and bolts of sexual health: sexual physiology and the management of STIs.
Addressing perceived stigma about taking HIV preventive medication key to helping women at risk.
Disparities in rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV between Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino adolescents and their white counterparts are well documented. Culturally and developmentally appropriate efforts targeted to help these youth establish healthy practices to lower their risk of sexually transmitted infections are warranted. However, such interventions present unique challenges in recruiting and retaining research participants.