Carroll Nursing Newsletter: Fall 2023
Upon news of her passing, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Jennifer Glowienka shared the following with the campus community:
"I share the very sad news that Nursing Professor Meredith Krutar passed away on Wednesday, August 23, 2023, after a brave journey with metastatic breast cancer. A member of the Carroll faculty since 2010, Meredith recently completed her doctorate in the spring of 2022.
She was a passionate and inspirational teacher, academic, and practitioner who positively touched the lives of all who knew her, especially her many students, and contributed to the Carroll community in numerous ways. I personally admired Meredith's thoughtfulness and honesty, creativity, and her courage in all things. We will miss her dearly."
In lieu of flowers, please send any gifts to: Cathedral of St. Helena, Carroll College Nursing Program, or Grace Hospice of Missoula County. You can also support the Krutar Family by donating to the "Meredith Krutar Memorial Fund" through GoFundMe.
The college has created a webpage to share remembrances of Meredith. If you would like to contribute your own reflections, we will continue to add your stories to her page. Please email news@carroll.edu.
This past summer, we said farewell to another wonderful nurse who had an impact on so many Carroll alumni, Kathleen Joyce Mullins (formerly Trudnowski), who passed away on July 11, 2023.
Kathleen was a beloved member of the Carroll family who served as Director of the Wellness Center for over 20 years. Coach Mo Boyle shared, “(She) impacted our Carroll family with a smile, hug and a blessing ... As Carroll’s nurse for over 25 years, Kathleen treated students, faculty and staff with grace and love.”
Director's Welcome
Lauren Swant, Carroll's Director of Nursing, offers the following reflection for our alumni and friends.
There is immense power in reflecting on the past and using it as a springboard to build a remarkable future. As we pause and cast our minds back, we gather the wisdom that time has bestowed upon us. We recognize the trials and triumphs, the lessons learned, and the growth achieved. As I begin my third year as the Director of the Nursing Department at Carroll College, this sentiment resonates with me for it is in these moments of introspection that we find the fuel to tackle the challenges before us in higher education, and in healthcare, to build an aspirational future that honors the strength of the past and envisions the possibilities of a promising future.
This year marks a substantial milestone for the Carroll College Nursing program. After many years preparing successful associate degree nurses, Carroll began preparing students for a career in nursing with a Baccalaureate nursing degree in 1973. Carroll’s first baccalaureate nurses began their studies 50 years ago, graduating in the spring of 1977, establishing what is now a long line of graduates well known for their outstanding holistic patient care, collaborative and interdisciplinary leadership, and dedication to proactive health promotion and disease prevention initiatives.
Continue reading her full message here.
50th Anniversary
The 2023-2024 academic year marks the 50th anniversary of our baccalaureate beginnings! We’ll have more about this in our spring edition of the Nursing Newsletter, and four years from now (in 2027-28), we will be highlighting the golden year grads who formed this first cohort. If you are one of the members of the nursing class of 1977, please email Terri at tjohn@carroll.edu to ensure we have your current contact information and also to share any photos (including class photo) or remembrances you have of your years at Carroll.
Joys and Challenges of Nursing 2023:
Perspectives from a Nurse Educator
Assistant Nursing Professor Janet Johnson shared her insights on the challenges and joys facing the nursing profession in 2023.
Can you remember why you wanted to be a nurse? Every fall, I ask the newest students to the nursing program in the Fundamentals of Nursing course why they want to be a nurse. Their inspirational responses fill me with hope for our profession and the world. The majority reflects an altruistic spirit—these aspiring nurses want to ease suffering, make a difference during a health challenge, be compassionate listeners when a patient receives difficult news, or be part of welcoming a new baby into the world. Many students have been patients and have felt the impact that a nurse can have. Or, they have family members who are nurses and want to follow in their footsteps to do meaningful work.
To be surrounded by people who want to do good and who desire to help others is one of the many reasons I love my job! Being surrounded by those who want to help others in big and small ways is inspiring. This altruistic spirit is not new; it has been a common trait for nurses since the beginning of nursing. I would guess that many of you felt called to nursing and shared this desire to help others and have, in turn, felt the joy and satisfaction that comes when we can care well for another person. This is just one of the joys of being a nurse.
Along with many beautiful, inspiring, and intimate joys, there will always be challenges as well.
Alumni Highlight
Nick Pacella, Class of 2004
1st Nursing ROTC Cadet to Graduate from Carroll
Nick Pacella was already a veteran when he came to Carroll, with a three-year tour in the Army behind him. While stationed in Fort Hood, Nick was in a serious car wreck, breaking both legs and needing the Jaws of Life to cut him from the vehicle. During his long hospital stay following the accident, Nick was inspired by the nurses who cared for him and decided to pursue nursing. Carroll was his top choice. During Nick’s years at Carroll, he was a standout student and a mentor to other cadets in Carroll’s small (at the time) ROTC unit. Nick was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army upon graduation and has spent the last 25 years serving his country, through multiple deployments at home and abroad.
Q & A with Nick Pacella '04
It’s been a crazy journey since 2004, I have literally circled the globe more than once and had the privilege of providing care on three continents. As busy as I was, my time at Carroll was truly a blessing and something to look back on with such joy.
I am currently the Assistant Deputy Commander for Nursing at Evans Army Community Hospital. I will be getting out of the Army next year and moving on to the next chapter in life, possibly a nursing instructor at a university here in Colorado.
What skills or knowledge did you learn throughout the nursing (and ROTC) program that you found most useful in your career?
Nursing taught me the value of seeing people as people and truly caring, and a solid foundation rooted in science. ROTC taught me critical thinking, the tenacity to not give up, and the value of being a leader worth following.
What skills have you found most useful in your professional life? Do you have advice on how current students can cultivate these skills?
Listening and the ability to truly understand is a skill that will serve you anytime, anywhere, and in any location – never forget that! But, when the time for action comes, do not hesitate or waver – indecisiveness will sow fear among your team. If you’re wrong, admit it, learn from it and move on. Humility mixed with a willingness to try is the best way to cultivate this.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out in the nursing profession?
Don’t be afraid to volunteer, seek out new experiences, surround yourself with the smartest people and they will make you better, and take care of each other… health care is a team sport and can be overwhelming if you don’t have a trusted crew who is always there for you. The things you will see in health care can challenge you to the core, I have seen more people die than is likely healthy but a hardship shared is easier to process with people who understand what you’ve been through.
What are the current or upcoming challenges in your area of nursing?
Bureaucracy . . . it’s a struggle to not get lost if caring for the medical record instead of the patient, treating the algorithm and practice guideline instead of applying a personal treatment.
What brings you joy?
It may seem a bit cliché but my faith truly has sustained me through the ups and downs so faith brings me joy, and a close second is my wife and kids! Kellie is and will always be my best friend and I am lucky enough to have really cool kids who still like to hang out with me.
100% Pass Rate!
Congratulations to our recent graduates for their 100% NCLEX pass rate!
Between Carroll’s undergraduate nursing program and its Accelerated Nursing track, the college graduated 54 new Bachelor of Nursing RN students this past spring and summer with an overall NCLEX pass rate of 100% for those who tested in both tracks, traditional and ACNU.
Carroll graduates significantly outperformed the national NCLEX RN pass rate for June of 88% and the statewide pass rate which was 91%. Proud of our Saints!
Wear It With Pride
We are excited to announce that the Carroll College Student Nurses Association (CCSNA) is now selling Carroll College nursing t-shirts, crewnecks, and zip-up hoodies! Our sale dates are October 28 - November 12, so make sure to get those orders in soon! Orders can be picked up on campus for students, but can also be shipped to alumni as well. 
We are also offering an option to make a donation to the Krutar family, who are going through a challenging time with Meredith's recent passing. She is survived by her husband and seven children. Your generosity will go a long way in helping them during this difficult time.
To place your order, visit our online store at ccsna23.itemorder.com/shop/home.
Thank you for your support!
Sincerely,
CCSNA Officers