What is a Hopkins Nurse?

M.LOUISE FITZPATRICK
EDD, DHL (HON), RN, FAAN, ’63

“Receiving the honorary doctorate degree from Villanova University, where I have served as the dean of the College of Nursing for nearly 37 years, was an overwhelming honor. Reflecting on my career, I must credit Hopkins with creating the foundation for it. It was there that I embraced an appreciation of nursing’s history, and it was my student experience in the East Baltimore Health District that led to my passion for community health nursing. Following in the steps of Adelaide Nutting, my next stop was Teacher College, Columbia University, where I studied and later taught graduate students community health nursing and guided doctoral students pursuing historical research dissertations. My many years as a dean have been fulfilling in many ways—especially my work with international students and the development of international experiences in the curriculum. I have never forgotten that I am a Hopkins nurse and that it all began in Baltimore.”

During Louise Fitzpatrick’s tenure as the Connelly Endowed Dean and Professor of Nursing at Villanova University’s College of Nursing, the academic programs have grown and three centers have been established: the Center for Nursing Research, the Center for Global and Public Health, and the MacDonald Center for Obesity Prevention and Education. She sought to globalize the Villanova College of Nursing community while being active in community and professional affairs as chair of National League for Nursing’s Accreditation Committee and its Accreditation Appeal Panel, as well as president of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Nursing Schools Association.

PAULA S. KENT
MSN ’05

“I never imagined when I graduated from nursing school in western New York that I would be able to have the best of both worlds … working as a nurse in patient safety and traveling in the U.S. and abroad to share the safety story. After I finished the MSN/MBA in 2005, I moved into a position in patient safety and was delighted to have some clinical focus in the patient safety arena. Within the first year, I had an opportunity to present in Vietnam at the Hospital Management Asia Conference, and the following year I presented in South Korea. When the Patient Safety Department partnered more closely with the Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality several years ago, new opportunities became available. We are encouraged to partner with writers and researchers to publish and conduct research, support the patient safety programs on grants, and develop advanced skills. I now work in the hospital helping new Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program (CUSP) teams and for the Armstrong Institute, where I provide support and lead a variety of programs including teaching CUSP and the Patient Safety Certificate Program in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and across the U.S.”

TINA CHIKOVANI
BSN ’11

“The clinical experiences during my time at Hopkins showed me all that I could accomplish as a nurse and inspired my interest in critical care transport nursing. When I was a student at Hopkins, my pediatric clinical instructor was a former transport nurse and I learned so much from her during that rotation. I graduated from Hopkins in 2011 and began working in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. I enjoyed being a PICU nurse from the start, and with each year I enjoy it more and more. After a few years of ICU experience I joined the pediatric critical care transport team, which by far is where my heart is as a nurse. I have grown immensely both personally and professionally and feel so lucky to love what I do.”