We want to make this world little bit better through very detailed, thorough health assessment, and we had opportunities to practice on thousands of patients.
This past October, a group of 13 BYU Nursing students joined Dr. Petr Ruda at the Huntsman World Senior Games in St. George, Utah.
The Huntsman World Senior Games is a senior sporting competition that draws participants from all over the world. Participants, all over the age of 50, gather in St. George, Utah for two weeks to compete in a variety of events, including tennis, archery, square dancing, pickleball, and track and field.
- Vaccinations
- Aerobic Fitness
- Balance
- Muscle Symmetry
- Glaucoma
- Visual Acuity
- Nutritional Assessment
- Carotid Artery
- Pulmonary Function
- Cholesterol
- Glucose
- Cognitive Function
- Oral Cancer
While the athletes aren’t competing, the Huntsman World Senior Games arranges free health assessments from volunteer medical and nursing students. These assessments give athletes a basic understanding of their health.
For our BYU nursing students, it’s essentially a full day of clinicals as they rotate through the health assessment booths and gain a wide variety of experience. If students already knew the skills, the repetition helped solidify their proficiency and confidence. For newer students who haven’t had as much clinical experience, they were trained on the job.
Students who join Dr. Ruda at the Games get international experience without having to leave the state. Athletes gather from 87 countries, giving students the chance to care for people across diverse cultures.
Along with practicing medical skills, they honed their interpersonal skills through hours of patient interaction. Fifth-semester student, Bryce Lewis said, “It’s really helpful to have that experience of interacting with someone that comes in: explaining and doing the education piece of nursing and providing patient care—helping them achieve their health goals.”
In many cases, because they are competing athletes, they are healthier than the general geriatric population. First-semester nursing student, Ashlee Jarvis, said one of the most valuable parts was learning how to talk to a patient about their assessment results, especially when the results were not what the athletes had hoped for. Regardless of the outcomes, students saw first-hand the value of good communication skills.
The BYU nursing students loved interacting with the athletes one-on-one, learning their stories and how they found their way to the Games. The athletes, in turn, were very appreciative and complimentary of the students.
Ellie Elgan, a first-semester student, said, “It’s really strengthened my confidence in interacting with patients and understanding that I can do these assessments and I can do hard things.”
The students were not only able to put education into practice, but they also got to build relationships with people they may be working alongside in the future. It brought together students from their first, second, and fifth semesters in the program, and they learned from one another as they worked on the assessments.
I feel like being here has reminded me why I’m doing this in the first place.
This was Bryce’s second time joining Dr. Ruda at the Huntsman World Senior Games. This time, he said, “It's been really rewarding to give back to some of the newer nursing students and coach them through whatever questions they have.”
Under the supervision of experienced nursing coordinators, the BYU students also got to work with nursing students from other schools, including Utah Valley University and Utah Tech, as well as medical students from across the state.
BYU nursing students also got to interact with BYU students from other disciplines Olivia Rand, a first-semester student said she was trained by BYU Exercise Science students for some of the assessments. As they worked side-by-side, they started talking about collaborating on future projects, and they have continued conversations since returning.
Better than just reading a textbook.
Dr. Ruda hopes to continue expanding this opportunity for students. He went on this same trip during his time at BYU College of Nursing, and he described it as a life-changing experience. It was because of his personal connection to the Games that he started bringing BYU students again last year, and he hopes to bring more next year.
Dr. Ruda said this is a great opportunity for people who may not get to travel abroad for their Global and Population Health Nursing Clinical Practicum—instead of going out to the world, the world comes to you.
The students’ experience is three days long, and funding covers the cost of everything except travel. For students who have to miss class to attend, Dr. Ruda said he sets aside time each night to teach missed content and administer exams. He also answers any questions students may have had over the course of the clinical.
All students agreed: missing class in the middle of the semester might be difficult, but it is worth it for the unique, hands-on experience.
I cannot recommend this experience enough!
