Gaps in the quality and availability of healthcare along racial and socioeconomic lines continue to be a nationwide problem.

As she takes on her new role as the David R. Devereaux Chair in Nursing at Temple University’s College of Health Professions, Frances Ward, Ph.D., R.N., thinks that nurses can help fill in those gaps.

Ward’s research focuses on care delivery among uninsured and underinsured populations. Her work mirrors the recent “Prescription for Pennsylvania” legislation proposed by Gov. Edward G. Rendell to address the issue of access to healthcare. If passed, the bill would allow certified nurse practitioners to act as primary-care providers, offering healthcare services to a wider patient base.

Ward thinks Rendell’s policy is a step in the right direction; more nurse-run clinics have appeared in underserved communities nationwide to provide care to those who might not otherwise be able to get it.

She cites the Temple Health Connection Neighborhood Center at 11th and Berks streets, which has been serving residents of the Norris Homes development for the past 12 years, as a model of the nurse-run clinic. There, certified registered nurse

practitioners provide immunizations, well-baby services, violence prevention and self-esteem programs, care for sexually transmitted diseases, tutoring sessions for children and family planning for teens. Referrals are made to collaborating physicians as needed.

“This program is what every nurse-run health center should be, and it has tremendous opportunity to be replicated outside the Philadelphia area,” Ward said.

Ward completed undergraduate studies at Rutgers University and graduate work at New York University. Formerly professor and founding dean of the school of nursing at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Ward established undergraduate and graduate programs on multiple campuses and launched an interdisciplinary doctoral program in urban systems.

“What drew me to Temple was its comprehensive approach to healthcare,” said Ward, who will also serve as a professor of nursing. “Healthcare providers work together seamlessly, to enable Temple to prepare caring and skilled graduates who can offer quality healthcare to all patients, irrespective of ethnicity or economic background.”

She is optimistic about the future of nursing, both at Temple and nationwide.

“Nursing is on the brink of great change. More people will turn to nurses as their primary healthcare provider, and that will call for excellently trained staff. With the dynamic and passionate faculty here at Temple to train our future nurses, it’s a very exciting time. I am very eager to be a part of it.”

The David R. Devereaux Chair in Nursing was established in 2006 by David R. Devereaux, SBM ’86, executive vice president of Telemedicine Solutions Inc. He also serves as chair of the Board of Visitors for the College of Health Professions.