I began my journey in health care working as a health management consultant interacting with nurses. I learned about the many opportunities available in nursing and aspired to care and advocate for patients as the nurses I interacted with daily did.
Before deciding to apply to DUSON, I attended a lecture on health disparities at the School and was encouraged that DUSON was interested and committed to helping the health disparities issue through hosting this forum. Additionally, DUSON encourages students to explore and nurture their own interests while also providing the flexibility to seek out a variety of opportunities for research, leadership and community engagement—further solidifying my decision to be a part of the DUSON community.
DUSON provides solid mentorship from experienced and knowledgeable faculty members. The curriculum and resources help my peers and I develop skills in grant writing, collaboration, critical thinking, independent inquiry, study design and research methods—all important and necessary skills in becoming a strong nurse scientist.
Through DUSON, I’ve had the opportunity to be a part of Bass Connections, an interdisciplinary student team aimed at improving physical activity at Duke and in the Durham community. This experience has been a great opportunity for me to learn and apply principles of implementation science, community engagement and project management to improve community health.