IU Southeast nursing faculty praised for partnership

By Katherine Sears

McKay

“Domestic violence transcends all barriers: economic, cultural, sexual, and religious. It occurs in all walks of life.”

Mimi McKay

That partnership has resulted in both receiving the public service award from the center, along with representatives of the Jeffersonville office of the U.S. Census Bureau. Both Myers and McKay emphasized that the partnership is a “great cause.” The two, along with the staff of the Center for Women and Families, have taught well over 100 students. As a result of faculty and student involvement with the Center for Women and Families, spin-off programs have evolved. McKay is the assistant project director f or the Southern Indiana SANE/SART Training Project and the campus was host to a week-long sexual assault/forensic training project in May. She is in her sixth year of teaching nursing at the New Albany campus.

McKay praised the center for the partnership, as well as the encouragement given by Lillian Yeager, dean of the IUS Division of Nursing, and Marcia Segal, an IUS associate vice chancellor who also serves on the center’s board of directors.

“Domestic violence transcends all barriers—economic, cultural, sexual, and religious,” McKay said. “It occurs in all walks of life.”

Myers, who has taught at IUS for five years, said the nursing students fulfill their service-learning requirements by volunteering at the center. The students may handle anything from mopping the floor to serving as an advocate for an abuse victim at a ho spital.

Two of the nursing students gave presentations to students at North and South Harrison high schools and learned that at least “40 percent of seniors had already experienced some measure of violence in a dating relationship,” said Myers. “Domestic violence is a complex public health issue, and it is important that our graduates be part of the solution. Whether they are working in public health or in local hospitals, we want IUS nurses to have the knowledge and skills needed to effectively care for victims of domestic violence.”