Nursing Lecturer Receives San Diego Business Journal
Healthcare Heroes Award
San Marcos, CA – Mary Baker, lecturer and director of the School of Nursing Student Healthcare Project at California State University San Marcos, was awarded the 2018 San Diego Business Journal Healthcare Heroes Award for the category of nurse.
The annual SDBJ Healthcare Heroes Awards honor individuals in the San Diego community who epitomize the spirit of the word “hero” by demonstrating exceptional leadership and innovation in the rapidly changing health care industry.
Baker oversees a network of student-run community health clinics that provide free medical care to uninsured or underinsured residents in San Diego. CSUSM undergraduate and graduate nursing students manage the weekly operations of the clinics and provide patient care with oversight from volunteer medical professionals as well as faculty and staff from the CSUSM School of Nursing and UCSD School of Medicine.
The four clinics—two in Ocean Beach, one in Normal Heights and one in Escondido—operate once or twice a week in donated spaces and with funding from donors and grants. Providers at the clinics offer holistic services ranging from urgent care and chronic disease management to social service referrals and case management. Between 2013 and 2017, the clinics had 16,500 encounters and served more than 2,400 patients. Nearly 700 CSUSM and UCSD students worked in the clinics for a combined 42,200 hours between 2014 and 2017.
In addition to managing the Student Healthcare Project, which was founded in 2011, Baker is a faculty member and clinical instructor in the CSUSM School of Nursing within the College of Education, Health and Human Services
An alumna herself, Baker holds a BSN, MSN (Clinical Nurse Specialist, Advanced Public Health) and Post MSN Certificate (Family Nurse Practitioner) from the school.
Visit the Student Healthcare Project website for more information.
About California State University San Marcos
Building on an innovative 28-year history, California State University San Marcos is a forward-focused institution, dedicated to preparing future leaders, building great communities and solving critical issues. Located on a 304-acre hillside overlooking the City of San Marcos, it is the only public four-year comprehensive university serving North San Diego, Southwest Riverside and South Orange Counties.
The University enrolls nearly 17,000 students. With approximately 2,000 employees, the institution is a Great College to Work For® (The Chronicle of Higher Education). As a recipient of the annual HEED Award since 2014—a national honor recognizing U.S. colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion—CSUSM is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment.
