Program Growth Leads to New Views for UF’s College of Health Professions

University of Findlay’s College of Health Professions has seen steady growth, both in the number of programs offered and in enrollment in recent years. This growth led to a pressing need for additional facilities and more centralized educational and offices spaces for students and faculty in the college’s 28 programs. To meet that need, the University has been working since the beginning of summer to make good use of existing spaces on campus.

According to Dr. Richard States, dean of the College of Health Professions, the University’s health professions programs have been experiencing a growth trend even before the onset of COVID-19. “The various programs throughout the College of Health Professions have been experiencing growth and the need for additional classroom and lab space,” States said.

States added that the overall goal behind the program moves was to improve communication between programs, provide a more centralized learning space for students, and increase the level of efficiency at which the college operates.

While some of the changes began about three years ago when the Nursing Department moved to the first floor of the Village after the space previously used by the Hospitality Management Program was converted into a nursing lab, classroom, and offices, several other of the College’s programs were able to move out of the decentralized ‘white houses’ into larger spaces this summer.

These spaces join the Nursing Department’s facilities in the Village which includes top-notch labs and classrooms that allow students to gain hands-on experience with life-like, programmable manikins, an industry-standard scrub room, and surgery suite. “Having these programs in the same building allows for great collaboration and allows PA and nursing students to work together like in the real world,” said States.

In addition, when the Physician Assistant Department and the Neuroscience and Anatomy Department moved out of the first floor of Morey Hall, that presented an opportunity for the faculty and staff in the Occupational Therapy Department to move into that space, giving them better opportunities for interaction and collaboration.

Offices in the Diagnostics Services Building, home to the following programs:  Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Echocardiography, Health Informatics, Master of Science in Radiologic Science , Medical Laboratory Science,  and Nuclear Medicine Technology were also updated to allow for a more cohesive workflow between faculty and students. “All of these changes have made good, cost-effective use of existing campus space and our students are loving the new changes,” explained States.

“It has been amazing to be a part of the growth of the College of Health Professions,” said Dr. States. “As the demand for highly-trained healthcare professionals continues to increase, these changes ensure that the University of Findlay is well-equipped to meet that demand.”

To learn more about the College of Health Professions and the many programs it comprises, visit the College’s webpage.