The 1995 Philip Y. Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science graduate makes coffee and brings juice and breakfast snacks every Wednesday to make the center's visitors comfortable. They'll come in if there's food, says Curran with a laugh. Actually, we can tell it's working because right away they open up a little more and ask questions.
Food puts people at ease.
Curran helps direct and teach a group of USD nursing students who volunteer at the Community Outreach Partnership Center just off campus on Comstock Street. Funded by a federal grant, the center provides, among other services, health care for Linda Vista, a neighbor, hood that abuts campus. Curran and Mary Jo Clark, associate dean, help nursing students get practical experience at the clinic. The volunteers give blood pressure checks, make health assessments and talk with visitors about any health concerns. Some of these people might not otherwise get any medical help.