The oldest continuous operation optometry university in the country hopes to be also the first institution at the doctorate level to offer a hybrid title online / in person, according to the president of the New England Optometry College and the CEO Dr. Howard Purcell, who is leading the effort to bring medical education online at his 127-year-old university.
dr. Purcell has been associated with Noodle, an online program management platform that is invoiced as "Google for Education" and that was designed to compete directly with 2U and other online program managers when creating a network of technology and other providers of Services that accept a set of technology and business standards.
Now, neco and noodles are starting their march to accreditation, driven by a shared interest in the increase in access to optometry education, which, as it is only available in 23 institutions in all the country. Thirty-three states are without an optometry school, said Dr. Purcell.
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Optometric education is famous, as anyone who has been in a doctor knows. Dr. Purcell said that the vision of him for the hybrid program is based on part on the creation of a network of what he calls "clinical homes" throughout the country to ensure that students who want to remain in rural and unattended areas They can still enroll.
Neco is part of about 150 students a year on their Boston campus, and Dr. Purcell said he hopes that he finally have 55 additional students a year attending from afar through the hybrid model. The goal is to launch in the autumn of 2023 with 25 students, said Dr. Purcell, and added 10 students a year from there.
dr. Purcell said approximately 1,000 optometry positions remain unchanged throughout the year each year, mainly in rural areas. An objective for the new hybrid program, he said, will be able to train people as optometrists who can stay in their houses and "serve their local communities" when they have finished their education. googleg.cmd.push (function () googleg.display ("dfp-ad-article_in_article"););
Online nursing programs have been offered for more than a decade; The first elite school will offer online nursing instruction was the Nursing School of Georgetown University, which began its program about 10 years ago. Physical therapy schools began offering online education about six years ago. The noodles are currently being associated with the Physical Therapy School No. 1 in the country, the School of Health Sciences and Rehabilitation of the University of Pittsburgh, to design an online Doctorate Program on Physical Therapy.
Lee Bradshaw, the official Noodle's main strategy, said the challenges of designing hybrid programs that capture clinical experience are part of what prevents many medical and health science programs to try what Neco is chasing with its hybrid model.
Institutions generally have a network of hospitals, offices and agencies in their region, maybe within 30 miles, Bradshaw said, and do not know how to think about clinical education outside of his region.
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"These are titles and practices where you are with humans", said Bradshaw. "Your competition is based on what you can do in person, the full stop, always. Our ability to find high quality clinical placements in the states that currently do not have any optometry program is a huge part of where we are delivering."
Bradshaw said the noodles will begin to investigate the options of the clinical house in a die
