Her nursing credentials are highly impressive. She has published in several journals, including Circulation, Advance for Nurse Practitioners, Nursing, and Journal of the American College of Cardiology. She has also been an Expert Peer Reviewer, an exam item writer for the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) exam review committee, a member of the AACN self-assessment exam development committee, website testing group and a member of the AACN Advisory Board. Within the Duke community, she has served on the CCU Clinical Practice Committee, the CCU Ethics Committee, and as a member of Duke AHEAD (Academy for Health Professions Education and Academic Development). She is a Fellow in the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (FAANP), an Associate in the American College of Cardiology (AACC), a Fellow in the American Association of Nurse Practitioners Leadership Program, and was an inaugural member of the North Carolina Advance Practice Leaders Consortium. She is highly respected among her peers for her strong grasp of cardiology.

This candidate personifies excellence in nursing. She began her career at Duke in the Cardiothoracic Stepdown unit, and soon after, moved into critical care in the CCU. She earned her CCRN, was a preceptor and charge nurse in the CCU; she helped co-write the Magnet Certification application and staff looked up to her as a mentor. She left the CCU and took a position in cardiology research and entered the Duke School of Nursing RN-to-MSN program. Upon graduation, she became a board-certified Nurse Practitioner in cardiology. In addition to providing care within the clinic, she has volunteered with Triangle Residential Options for Substance Abusers (TROSA), the State Medical Assistance Team, and Samaritan Health Center.

As a key opinion leader for advanced practitioners (APPs), this candidate has driven change and transformed culture. She strives to ensure APPs work to the height of their scope and licensure and designed and implemented metrics for evaluating productivity of interprofessional teams. She has also developed and implemented programs for APPs that include:  workforce optimization, retention strategies, team-based care models, and compensation. She has presented her work to various groups, including:  participation in a think tank strategizing novel ideas for lipid management; working with medical and administrative leadership to brainstorm a new structure for utilizing APPs; consulting and advising inter-professional care delivery teams.

This candidate, prior to becoming a nurse, spent many years performing as a professional musician and teaching music students. She successfully transferred her skills of working one-on-one and with a coordinated group to health care. She now works with a team of physicians, advanced practice providers and other health care staff to improve patient outcomes. She truly enjoys working with patients to help them fully understand their disease processes and how to manage their care. She also manages and advocates for other nurse practitioners and physician assistants, mentors novice nurse practitioners and teaches at the Duke University School of Nursing. She has been an inspiration to her two daughters, both of whom have become exemplary nurses.

This candidate exemplifies the Caring Theory, as evidenced by her personal quest for knowledge — first pursuing her RN-to-MSN degree, then her DNP. She continues to educate herself and others in current practice. Whether seeing patients in clinic or mentoring new nurses, she is present with that person and her attention is 100% focused on helping and making sure the patient, family, or mentee fully understands the situation. If a patient is unable to fully participate in their care, she makes sure there is family to help, or provides referrals for assistance. She is mindful of others’ beliefs and tailors her care to respect them. Her empathy and caring go above and beyond.

Florence Nightingale had this candidate in mind when describing the qualities of an excellent nurse:  she embodies the Nightingale spirit, strength and character in the care and empathy that she provides for her patients and their families, as well as the advocacy and mentoring she displays for her peers.