Community Engagement
Transforming care, driving change
Our commitment to improving health and well-being extends beyond the classroom and clinic into the communities we serve. The school’s community engagement initiatives show our dedication to advancing health equity, innovating nursing practices to support public health, and building trust through compassionate, high-quality care. Through partnerships, outreach and research, we bring together faculty, students, and community members to address important health needs and prepare the next generation of nurses in community-centered care.
Key Initiatives
Mobile Health and Wellness Program
The Mobile Health and Wellness Program (MHWP) is the cornerstone of our community engagement, delivering access to health and wellness resources for medically vulnerable communities across Central Virginia. The program uses a nurse-led, interprofessional model—bringing together experts from nursing, medicine, pharmacy, social work and more—to provide culturally competent care tailored to each person’s unique needs. Serving both urban neighborhoods and rural areas, our mobile unit reaches communities that might otherwise lack regular healthcare access, breaking down barriers and empowering individuals to take charge of their health.
Services Offered
- Health consultations and exams
- Medication and care management
- Health resources and referrals
- Accessing community resources
Community-Engaged Research
We are deeply committed to community-engaged research, working closely with communities to address health disparities and develop meaningful, evidence-based solutions. Guided by inclusion and responsiveness, our research begins with listening to the communities we serve. This collaborative approach ensures that participant insights and perspectives shape the direction, implementation, and impact of our work, resulting in findings that are both relevant and actionable for real-world needs.
Our research priorities include co-creating studies with community input, addressing social determinants of health, developing culturally aware or aligned interventions, and applying findings in everyday settings. Our evidence-based approach advances nursing knowledge, bridges healthcare gaps and strengthens community well-being. By integrating these insights into our academic programs, we equip students with a deep understanding of social and cultural contexts, preparing them to make a meaningful impact from day one.
Mission Driven
At the heart of the school's mission, vision and core values is our dedication to collaborative care, innovative solutions and responsibly educating tomorrow's nursing workforce. Our initiatives include wellness clinics for vulnerable and underserved communities, providing back-to-school physicals for local public school systems, free health screenings in remote-area clinics and preventive health coaching and education programs.
Developing Tomorrow's Providers
VCU nursing students learn alongside and collaborate with students from other VCU health science programs and disciplines, building a strong foundation for their future in interprofessional health care. Our students learn to deliver culturally competent and inclusive care, integrating their classroom lessons into their community experiences.
