(October 2020) – The spread of COVID-19 is a stark reminder of just how critical highly educated, qualified nurses are to the health and safety of our country – which is why the Organization for Associate Degree Nursing (OADN) and CastleBranch have partnered together to help protect and advocate for Associate Degree Nursing students nationwide.

Expanding on earlier negotiations between OADN and CastleBranch, which provided all nursing programs with no-cost access to CastleBranch’s TEAM (temperature and symptom monitoring) toolset, a one-year membership to OADN will now be included for all Associate Degree Nursing programs who purchase an advanced CB COVID-19 Compliance managed services package. Advanced managed services packages may include iQ (isolation and quarantine), Contact Tracing and COVID-19 Diagnostic Test Tracking, which can be used to help programs implement their COVID-19 safety plan, mitigate the risk of COVID-19, protect faculty, and help students return to clinical experiences. As a member of OADN, programs will join a nationally recognized organization and leading advocate for the advancement of associate degree nursing.

“The COVID-19 crisis underscores how important the Associate Degree Nursing pathway remains to our healthcare workforce. These programs ensure that all communities across the country have access to safe, high-quality nursing care.” said Donna Meyer, CEO of OADN. “Our partnership with CastleBranch will allow us to provide nursing programs the tools they need to protect their students and faculty, and their membership will allow OADN to continue to advocate on their behalf across the entire country.”

To respond to the COVID-19 crisis, CastleBranch developed and launched CB COVID-19 Compliance, a software as a service, managed service platform designed to help organizations mitigate the risk of COVID-19. Including temperature and symptom monitoring (TEAM), quarantine and isolation protocols (iQ), diagnostic test tracking and contact tracing, the application is designed to protect people from the threat of infectious disease while helping organizations manage the logistical, legal and liability challenges when implementing their COVID-19 safety plans.

Associate degree nursing programs will be given the opportunity to join OADN at no additional cost with the purchase of a CB COVID-19 Compliance package that includes, at a minimum, the temperature and symptom monitoring tool (known as TEAM), and the isolation and quarantine protocol (known as iQ). The cost of membership will be covered for one year and is available to both existing and new members of OADN.

“OADN is absolutely essential in its work to advance Associate Degree Nursing education, programs and students. Its ability to advocate for nurses is critical at a time when nurses are needed now more than ever,” said Greg Larnder, president of CastleBranch. “We stand together with OADN as we both look to protect the safety and wellbeing of nursing students and faculty everywhere.”