About Us

Welcome to the OHSU Hartford Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence.

The OHSU School of Nursing's position as a leader in the field of gerontology has been greatly enriched by the support of The John A. Hartford Foundation.  This funding permits us to create a Center dedicated to preparing nurse leaders to meet the challenges of caring for the aging population through the integration of practice, education, research, and policy.  Our Center consists of 27 faculty members, 15 doctoral nursing students and two administrative staff who have the following goals:

• Increase the number of expert gerontological nurses and nurse practitioners
• Increase the number of faculty in the Northwest with expertise in the teaching of gerontological nursing
• Advance the science of gerontological care

The OHSU Hartford Center has developed and expanded the following programs to support these goals:

• Post Baccalaureate to Ph.D. Program - Developing academic gerontological nurse scientists and leaders.
• Postmaster's Certificate in Advanced Gerontological Nursing - an innovative program that enhances capacity to serve older adults using an intensive format and building on existing knowledge in other specialties.
• Academic Nursing Partners - the Hartford Center is a founding member of the NW Coalition for Geriatric Nursing Education, an organization of 18 regional Schools of Nursing committed to faculty development and integration of geriatric content into nursing curricula.
• Learn more about center faculty, student, and fellow research. 

On our website, you will find a wealth of information about our faculty and students, our research activities, work with our many partners, including the Northwest Coalition for Geriatric Nursing Education, scholarship opportunities, and other useful resources. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact the Center or any of our faculty or staff.

History

In March, 2000, The John A. Hartford Foundation Trustees endorsed an initiative to Build Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity in response to the critical need for geriatric nurses at all levels. The initiative has three components:

• support for five Hartford Centers of Geriatric Nursing Excellence (HCGNEs)
• scholar and fellow awards
• a Coordinating Center at the American Academy of Nursing

According to the John A. Hartford Foundation Trustees, the Centers of Geriatric Nursing Excellence are schools of nursing "which have demonstrated the highest level of commitment to the field, have both current experience and future potential to build the next generation of gerontological nurses, have outstanding capacity in research, practice and education, manifest leadership that transcends their own institution and meet generally accepted criteria of excellence."

The OHSU School of Nursing was one of the first five institutions to be awarded one of these prestigious centers in 2001. In 2006, our Center was awarded an additional five years of funding to continue work in the arena of developing and expanding gerontological education and research.  In addition to continuation grants to the original five Centers, The Hartford Foundation was also able to launch an additional four Centers of Gerontological Nursing Excellence.

Learn more about The John A. Hartford Foundation, the BAGNC initiative or other Centers of Gerontological Nursing Excellence.