Thomas Ehrlich award for excellence in service learning, Joyce Splann Krothe

Krothe's nursing students learn how to negotiate the labyrinths of health-care funding and legislation, a crucial skill in making sure clinics stay open and services remain intact for those who need them.

Most people see nurses as professionals who help people feel better. According to Joyce Splann Krothe, however, treating illness is only a fraction of the many responsibilities entrusted to today's nurse. A fine example herself of a nurse's current wide-ranging role, Krothe has been teaching nursing since the early 1980s, has served as director of the Nursing Division on the Bloomington campus since the early 1990s, and in addition to tirelessly mentoring her students, she has published a number of articles on the most effective methods for teaching nursing and on implementing community development models.

The most important achievement so far in Krothe's career, however, was the opening in 1996 of the desperately needed Brown County (Indiana) Health Support Clinic. The nurse-managed clinic has since served as a model for the International Council of Nurses in Geneva, Switzerland; the World Health Organization's Eastern Mediterranean Region branch; and health students and professionals involved with Massey University in New Zealand.

From clinics initially run out of community schools, the staff traveled around the Brown County school system for four years. In the fall of 2000, Krothe's team set up a permanent home in Bean Blossom. Nicknamed the "log cabin clinic," its central and permanent location has skyrocketed its patron tally. By the most recent count, the clinic served more than 700 different clients in one year, thus reaching nearly one-third of the estimated 2,400 Brown County residents who need primary health care but cannot afford it.

Because of understaffing and underfunding, many clinics are forced to simply treat illnesses episodically. In contrast, one of the main goals of Krothe's clinic is to encourage clients to return to the clinic for follow-up visits and to keep themselves healthy. It's this commitment to follow-through that makes this clinic, and Krothe herself, stand out. Last year, the Indiana State Department of Health acknowledged the magnitude of her community contribution by awarding her the Rural Health Award for Distinguished Community Service at the Local Level.

Just as important as the treatment of her clients is the education of the undergraduate student nurses who have clinical experience at Bean Blossom. Krothe makes sure that her students learn not just the skills of practice, but also the politics involved in running and maintaining such a clinic. They learn how to negotiate the labyrinths of health-care funding and legislation, a crucial skill in making sure clinics stay open and services remain intact for those who need them.