[ Music ] 

>> Welcome to Aspiration, a podcast series from the Indiana University Foundation. Aspiration highlights just a few Indiana University students from both undergraduate and graduate programs across the state. Each featured student benefits from the generosity of donors, IU's loyal alumni and friends, whose support makes today's dreams and aspirations become reality in tomorrow's world. Since 1987, the Ruth M. Deeder Community Health nursing scholarship has assisted students of outstanding promise in pursuit of an advanced degree at the Indiana University School of Nursing. Eleanor Johnson is one of those students who dream of challenging their community's public health problems. 

>> Eleanor Johnson wants, above all, to be a community health clinical nurse specialist. One of her professional goals is to help unify the community health services of her hometown. It's a goal born of working on the front lines of social and health issues. Eleanor spoke to us over the phone from her home in Muncie. 

>> No one comes to health and social service agencies with just one problem. I've seen cases where a woman comes into the local food bank because she needs help with feeding her family. But she needs the help because she and her husband have been laid off, and collection agencies are after them for unpaid health care bills. The stress has increased her use of alcohol, then she mentions to me she's afraid she's pregnant and doesn't know where to turn. 

>> In Eleanor's dream, a community health nurse specialist will assess, plan, and evaluate nursing interventions that emphasize good health, primary prevention, and overall program management. 

>> With a coordinated regional console, community services would pool their resources to lower overhead costs and provide a full range of help, while being more accessible to those who need it. When receiving direct services, individuals would have a ready access to assistance for other services they may need. They wouldn't waste time or feel the frustration of shuffling from one office to another, repeating their story. The console would also support establishing a plan of action for the whole community so that programs would work together, meeting the needs of individuals and bringing about but healthier community. 

>> Clearly, looking at the bigger picture goes hand-in-hand with the role of the community health clinical nurse specialist. 

>> In Muncie, we're seeing employment fall. This impacts our entire community's well being because it touches everything in our life, and therefore, affecting our social, physical, emotional health. And this is what a community health nurse specialist looks at, the overall health concerns affecting all of us and the solutions that are needed. 

>> Eleanor's can-do attitude was inspired by life in Mabel, Minnesota, the small town where she grew up and where her father was the man everyone came to with a problem. 

>> He was Mayor for 16 years, though he never ran for office. People just wrote him in. My father thought that our community of was only as good as what we put into it. He did more than just settled neighborly disputes; he wanted to consolidate our school districts to improve education. He wanted to make sure our town ran more effectively, so he hired a town manager. He wanted to make Mabel a better place for everyone. I learned so much from him about the value of community service. 

>> Eleanor came to IU because of its advanced degree in nursing. The fact that she was eligible for a scholarship was a welcome surprise. 

>> I didn't expect to find a scholarship for community health nursing, but Ruth Deeder wanted the work she had done to live on through students. In my mind, she was a visionary who created a wonderful legacy. As a community health nurse, I also want to create a legacy, one of healthier and happier communities. I want to work with rural communities that often go underserved and promote coordination of community health services. That is my passion. That is how I want to help my community. 

>> Thanks for listening to this Indiana University Foundation podcast. Next month, we'll introduce you to another student to exemplifies the rich diversity and great aspirations that exist across all IU campuses. If you'd like to learn more about how private support helps Indiana University every day, please visit us that iufoundation.iu.edu. 

[ Music ] 

==== Transcribed by Automatic Sync Technologies ====