What is your current job title and work location?
Clinical Nurse Specialist: Wound/Skin/Ostomy.
University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics, Madison, WI.
What is your educational background?
Master’s degree in Nursing.
Certified in Wound/Ostomy/Continence Nursing (CWOCN) by the Wound/Ostomy/Continence Nursing Association.
How did you get involved in the field of nutrition support nursing within nursing?
I started in Nutrition Support in 1988, as a Clinical Nurse Specialist for Med/Surg Nursing, at a community hospital after encouragement by a well-respected clinical nutritionist colleague, who was looking for a nurse to join their newly formed multidisciplinary Nutrition Support Team.
The rest is history! It was one of the best things I have ever done in my nursing career; the pharmacist, MD, and clinical nutritionist taught me a brand new language and exposed me to a more holistic point of view. I, in turn, had the opportunity to teach them the language of nursing. Throughout my nursing career, wedding nutrition support with wound healing just made sense to me.
What specifically do you do in your current position?
I am one of the four members of the Wound/Skin/Ostomy Nurse Consult team for the UW Hospital Adult and Children’s Hospital, and I work with two nurse clinicians and another CNS colleague.
I am responsible for the planning, implementation, and evaluation of wound/skin programs at UW Hospital and the Children’s Hospital. Programs are planned, implemented, and evaluated using research-based principles. I provide direct wound/ostomy care to complex adult and pediatric patients via a consultative service model; provide clinical support to nursing, physicians, and other healthcare providers across the healthcare continuum; and provide leadership and education to Inpatient RISC (Resources in Skin Care) Nurses. I also serve on the Hospital Nutrition Committee and am Nurse Leader for the new Universal Enteral Connectors Implementation.
Are there any stand out moments in your nutrition support practice that you would like to share?
There are a few standout moments:
- First time I certified as a Nutrition Support Nurse
- First time I submitted an ASPEN Practice Poster with a clinical nutrition colleague and it was accepted
- First time I co-authored an ASPEN publication with a pharmacy colleague and it was published
- Receiving the 2016 Distinguished Nutrition Support Nurse Service Award.
Why did you become involved in ASPEN and what are the benefits of being involved?
I got involved with ASPEN because it was multidisciplinary; the care we provide to patients “is a team sport!” There were so many experts around me and everyone was so willing to share their knowledge. The networking is phenomenal and valuable; long-term professional relationships are formed.
I jumped right in to ASPEN in 1990 when I joined the Nutrition Support Nursing National Certification Board. Since that time I have been involved with other ASPEN Committees/Initiatives, e.g. Clinical Nutrition Week Planning Committee, Safe Practices Task Force: Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN) Administration, Nominations Committee, Rhoads Research Foundation, Publications Review Committee, Education/Professional Development Committee, and Chair Elect/Chair of ASPEN Nurse Practice Committee.
I also had the opportunity to contribute to multiple ASPEN publications: ASPEN Nutrition Support Practice Manual; Guidelines for the Use of Parental and Enteral Nutrition in Adult and Pediatric Patients; Safe Practices for Parenteral Nutrition; and the current ASPEN/SCCM National Clinical Guidelines Committee: Guidelines for Provision and Assessment of Nutrition Support Therapy in the Adult Critically Ill Patient.
The ASPEN Nurses should also be proud of the relationship that the ASPEN Nurse Practice Section has with the Elsevier Nutrition Support Modules (formerly Mosby Skills) , providing content expert support to pertinent nutrition support subject material.
What resources would you encourage other nurses to use to enhance their knowledge of clinical nutrition?
Take advantage of everything ASPEN has to offer!
Are there any recommendations you would give to a nurse starting in the field?
I suggest that any nurse new to the field should get involved with the ASPEN Nurses Practice Section—we are a “small but mighty” group committed to helping each other learn and grow in the field. Volunteer for a committee or accept an invitation to join a project, as one never knows how those experiences grow into other opportunities. It is so important to remember that every expert I have ever known did not start out as an expert!
