CMSA Today - Issue 4, 2021

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

PROFILES IN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

BY BARBARA LEACH, MS, BSN, RN, AND EDNA B. CLIFTON, MBA, BSN, RN

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L earning does not stop when you finish your degree. It must be a lifetime com mitment for you to continue in your career no matter what path you choose. Choosing to advance your career is a decision that requires significant planning. First and foremost, you need to identify your goals. Do you want to achieve specific expertise in a certain area, or do you want to move to an entirely different career path? In this article we look at how two nurses grew in their careers and what contributed to their advancement.

this point, I realized I needed more education to hone my teaching skills. I enrolled in a series of courses at the University of California Berkeley extension and obtained my community college teach ing credential. These classes were so influen tial on my success as a nurse and educator. This program required me to teach in my area of work (nursing) to my classmates who were auto mechanics, photographers, artists home economists, etc. As a result of this training, I had the chance to do education and administration on a full-time basis. This is just another example of how courses that may not lead to a degree can provide a boost to your career. When the first associate degree (AA) to bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) program in the state began, I was first in line. I knew having this BSN was an important credential that would open more doors and increase my success in achieving more advanced posi tions in nursing. I completed my BSN, and it wasn’t long until I was eligible for a director position. This provided an incentive for me to resume my learning initiative. I continued

BARBARA LEACH, MS, BSN, RN There was never anything else I was going to be other than a nurse. I loved the idea, and I was so lucky to go directly into a nursing program right out of high school. I had wonderful teachers, and they were such great examples, showing me the road to take every opportunity to learn and take chances, and I’ve done that all of my career. My first job was as a pediatric staff nurse on the evening shift. In this role, I quickly became responsible for orienting new staff because I loved teaching and with this, I had to continue my learning. When the opportu nity came up to become a cardio-pulmonary

resuscitation (CPR) instructor and teach hos pital staff, I jumped at it. Through continued study, I worked my way up to becoming an instructor trainer. That opportunity to teach CPR led to my first business venture outside the hospital. I established a company that provided CPR training in the community. I taught courses in parks, preschools, dentist offices and other venues. That business flourished for over 20 years! Soon after I was asked to teach CPR in the hospital, the opportunity opened for me to become the shift educator. In that role, I coordinated orientations for all shifts, which included teaching the required pharmacol ogy class to licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) who were learning to give medications. At

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CMSA TODAY

Issue 4 • 2021