Saint Therese Partners with Rasmussen University – Bloomington to Build RN Pipeline

Posted on December 1, 2022 by Libbie Chapuran

Saint Therese, a LeadingAge Minnesota member, is partnering with Rasmussen University – Bloomington to help train the next generation of nurses.

In October, Saint Therese began hosting nursing students for clinical rotations at three communities – Saint Therese at Oxbow Lake (Brooklyn Park), Saint Therese of Woodbury, and Saint Therese of New Hope. The students are in the Registered Nurse (RN) program at Rasmussen’s Bloomington Program, which includes its campuses in Bloomington, Hennepin/Anoka (Blaine and Brooklyn Park), and the Lake Elmo/Woodbury campus. In total, 24 students will do their training from Oct. 17 through Dec. 2 at Saint Therese communities. Clinical rotations involve nursing students interacting with patients under the supervision of a Rasmussen instructor.

“We’re very excited about this new partnership because it exposes students to working with older adults and the often complex and unique experiences they can have caring for this population,” says Lisa Kalla, chief operating officer for Saint Therese. “And of course, with the workforce shortage in all of healthcare, we want to do our part to train students who may eventually want to work in senior living and for Saint Therese.”

As the population of older adults in the US continues to grow, education-to-practice pipelines like the Saint Therese-Rasmussen University partnership help address the increased need for elder care.

Rasmussen nursing students will spend one day a week at Saint Therese for 13 weeks. Rasmussen University has 22 campuses nationwide, including seven Minnesota campus locations in Bloomington, Eagan, Hennepin/Anoka (in Brooklyn Park), Lake Elmo, Mankato, Moorhead, and St. Cloud.

Founded in 1964, Saint Therese has locations in New Hope, Brooklyn Park, Woodbury, and a new location in Corcoran, opening in 2024. Most communities provide the full continuum of care from independent living, assisted living, memory care, skilled nursing, and transitional care. It also has a location specializing in hospice and palliative care in Shoreview.