Northwood Tech News

Third-place team members representing Northwest Wisconsin AHEC are WITC-Ashland associate degree nursing students Deb Ledin of Ashland, Jaime Zar of Mellen, Kari Williams of Ashland, Angela Berg of Bayfield, and Sarah Lowe of Washburn.

“These nursing students work so hard with just their course load but still took on the task to compete in the healthcare case competition,” said Tina Hagstrom, WITC-Ashland associate degree nursing instructor. “It shows not only their dedication to their education, but also to the profession they have chosen to enter. I could not be more proud of them."

Northwest Wisconsin AHEC recruited and supported the WITC-Ashland team for the event designed to show students the complexity of the healthcare delivery system and the need for collaboration between different healthcare professionals. Executive Director Brad Gingras arranged local healthcare professionals for them to meet with, reviewed their progress and coached them on their presentation.

"I couldn't be more proud of how our local WITC team performed at the state competition,” said Gingras. “These women worked so hard to solve a real world healthcare dilemma and presented their solution beautifully to a panel of judges. They were excellent representatives of WITC."

Kevin Stranberg from Memorial Medical Center, Terri Kramolis from the Northwest Wisconsin Cancer Center, Anna Ellison from NorthLakes Community Clinic, and Maryann Ledin from the Northwest Wisconsin Workforce Investment Board also provided coaching to help them learn how institutions can collaborate.

“This is such a great community effort,” said Kate Siegler, WITC divisional dean-program development. “We are so lucky to have community members that are willing to give their time to support our students.”

The WITC-Ashland team competed against nine finalist teams chosen from 18 that applied. The teams were made up of students from private and public universities across the state. Ledin, Zar, Williams, Berg and Lowe were provided a healthcare case study with a complication situation. The team worked together to come up with an integrated plan that uses interprofessional teamwork to provide a solution and improve patient care. They presented their findings and recommendations for collaboration to a panel of judges made up of leaders from multiple disciplines within Wisconsin’s healthcare community on competition day.

“I am so proud of our healthcare case competition students,” said Siegler. “They challenged each other to look at the big picture of how we deliver healthcare in this country, especially to vulnerable populations. They were successful because they worked so well as a team.”

WITC is grateful to all its community partnerships. Your support of the WITC Foundation is essential to student success. For information on how to contribute, visit www.witc.edu/alumni-and-giving/giving.

A nationally top-ranked college and a designated 2017 Military Friendly® School, WITC serves the educational and career needs of more than 25,000 residents of Northwestern Wisconsin each year. With multiple campuses, WITC offers career-focused associate degree programs, technical diplomas, short-term certificates, customized business training, and a wide array of courses for personal or career enrichment. WITC is a member of the Wisconsin Technical College System and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (www.ncahlc.org). For more information, call 800.243.WITC or visit witc.edu. WITC is an Equal Opportunity/Access/Affirmative Action/Veterans/Disability Employer and Educator.