What career accomplishments are you most proud of?
My career accomplishments that I am most proud of are my induction as a Fellow into the American Association of Nurse Practitioners as it is such an honor to be recognized by the leaders of my profession. I am also very proud of my work at Dartmouth, Geisel School of Medicine as both the Clinical Research Director of the Dartmouth Primary Care Research Network, the oldest PBRN in the country and my work as a teacher and preceptor to 1st, 2nd and 3rd year medical students. For this work several years ago I was inducted into the Geisel Academy of Master Educators. I am also very proud of my career as a Family Nurse Practitioner where I continue to see patients in clinic 4 days a week, and am Director of Clinical Quality.
What key lessons did you take from the UT College of Nursing into your professional life?
The key lesson I took from UT College of Nursing into my professional life is that I could take what I learned and create the career I wanted. My first preceptor was a UT College of Nursing NP graduate who purchased a rural health clinic in rural Tennessee and was running it on her own as one of the first NP owned and run clinics in the state of Tennessee.
What are your most memorable moments as a nursing student at UT?
My most memorable moments as a nursing student at UT were my clinical experiences with the preceptor I mentioned above and then the very long days spent at the school of Nursing on Tuesdays. When I received my MSN from UT the College of Nursing had the schedule arranged so all classes were held on Tuesdays from 8am to 7pm. We were a very small group at the time and we really bonded over those long academic days.
What can the College do to help support you?
The college can help support me by continuing to reach out to me and all the others like me to find out what we are doing with our careers and continue to make us feel connected to the University Tennessee College of Nursing.