Dr. Charlotte Sortedahl, a UW-Eau Claire professor of nursing, and Dr. Min DeGruson, UW-Stout packaging program director, are one of three recipients of a grant for the proposal, “Driving Innovation and Value in Education Through Collaboration of Nursing and Packaging Students and Professionals: DRIVE Initiative.” From the three finalists, a review panel will select a “big idea” winner to receive additional funding totaling up to $400,000 distributed over three years.
The project between the two Chippewa Valley universities shows the power of collaboration by bringing together diverse ideas across multiple academic disciplines, says UW-Eau Claire Chancellor James Schmidt.
“This UW Innovation Grant highlights the outstanding work of our College of Nursing program, where our faculty members always look for new and innovative ways to strive for excellence, discover solutions and give our students high-impact experiences,” Schmidt says. “By working together with UW-Stout’s packaging program, we can solve common problems for the betterment of all.”
The grant proposal from Sortedahl and DeGruson builds on an existing faculty partnership that was piloted in 2023 bringing together engineering and nursing students to improve the packaging of sterilized medical devices. The project seeks to improve patient safety, environmental sustainability and economic efficiency.
Sortedahl says the project will add to the education of undergraduate prelicensure nursing students to prepare them to work in healthcare. The nursing students will learn basic and applied research as they collaborate with packaging students on an interdisciplinary team.
“Students will learn how to solve real world problems through research and collaboration,” Sortedahl says. “Students will learn valuable skills as they work on the project phases such as collecting data from registered nurses in the field to create sterilized medical packaging kits and educational materials.”
The materials and sterilized medical packaging kits will be incorporated into an undergraduate course for third-year UW-Eau Claire nursing students. Students will learn using the kits, videos and materials created specifically for them based on current recommendations from nurses in the field.
Engineers and nurses have very different mindsets, but the faculty members from the two universities were able to “bridge the gap” to create an effective collaboration, DeGruson says.
“We quickly discovered that hands-on experiences, such as lab visits, are far more impactful than discussions along in fostering mutual understanding,” DeGruson says. “The close proximity of our campuses makes it convenient for us to collaborate in person, which has been instrumental in our success.”
DeGruson says opportunities like the UW Innovation Grant encourage collaborations across institutions to leverage unique expertise to tackle complex challenges. The project is a prime example of how UW institutions can combine resources and expertise to drive meaningful, interdisciplinary research, DeGruson says.
Bringing nursing and engineering students together for collaboration illustrates the kind of innovation the UWs are known for, says UW President Jay Rothman.
“Ultimately, this work could generate better patient outcomes in Wisconsin and across the nation,” Rothman says.
