St. Luke’s University Health Network Nursing School Review
With more than 150 settings throughout the region, St. Luke’s University Health Network (SLUHN) offers a wide range of medical treatments to acute and chronic patients. The location of its flagship hospital is in Bethlehem in Pennsylvania and provides complex and specialized services as well as meaningful training to future health professionals. This maintains a high level of quality and superior care to area residents.
Nursing Program Review
The St. Luke’s Hospital School of Nursing (SLHSON) is proud to be only the fourth program of its kind in the history of the nation. Today it is the oldest continuously operating School of Nursing offering a Diploma Program in a hospital setting. Established in 1884, the School began with only nine students. Less than half a century later the school was thriving and enjoying popularity. In the late 1960s the school expanded the curriculum to include a core of liberal arts and sciences general education courses that were later established as necessary prerequisites to the formal Nursing Program.
Registered Nursing (RN) Diploma Program
The Registered Nursing Diploma Program at St. Luke’s Hospital prepares students for careers as medical generalists providing basic bedside and recuperative care to a variety of patients. Registered Nurses directly supervise Licensed Practical Nurses and work cooperatively with physicians, dentists and other medical professionals to design and implement care and treatment plans for each individual patient. Graduates of this program will earn a Diploma and be qualified to sit for the NCLEX-RN to earn licensure and be eligible to enter the workforce.
How Long Will it Take?
The St. Luke’s Nursing Program is structured into 5 semesters. Each semester is comprised of 14 weeks, with the entire series being completed in 20 months. Students are expected to complete a minimum of 120 hours of classroom lecture instruction and 180 hours of clinical experience instruction each semester. Clinical hours are offered primarily at the main St. Luke’s Hospital. These hours provide hands-on experience for students to apply concepts learned within the classroom portion of the course. Material in both lectures and clinical application increase in complexity throughout the program, with the most complex concepts being offered in the last semester, along with discussions regarding the issues facing contemporary Registered Nurses.
Admission Requirements
In order to include only those students who exhibit the qualities that will ensure competitiveness in the fast-paced and aggressive healthcare workforce, St. Luke’s maintains highly selective admissions procedures. Though these are the basic requirements for all applicants, St. Luke’s understands that some individuals have the potential for greatness within the nursing field even if they do not exhibit all specified qualities. Because of this students are evaluated on an individual basis and the admissions faculty retains the right to dismiss certain requirements in situations that merit such accommodations. Each year between 60 and 90 students are accepted into the Nursing Program, though not all will maintain the performance and demonstration of personal merit worthy of remaining in the program until graduation.
As a basic procedure for admission, applicants must offer a completed application with documentation of appropriate previous education, fulfilled prerequisites, satisfactory aptitude and placement testing scores and acceptable references. These references should address the applicant’s personal and professional experience and capabilities and should only be obtained from teachers, employers or similar. Members of the applicant’s family or peers are not considered appropriate references.
Contact:
St. Luke’s University Health
801 Ostrum Street,
Bethlehem, PA 18015
Phone: (484) 526-4000
