Decker Faculty grad offers again to nursing, neighborhood by educating and volunteerism Adenike Okeowo, MS ’17, DNP ’19, wins awards from the Black Nurses Affiliation and Decker Faculty for her analysis, medical follow and dedication to others
Decker Faculty of Nursing and Well being Sciences alumna Adenike Okeowo, MS ’17, DNP ’19, lately joined New York Presbyterian Hospital as a cardiac nurse practitioner within the Cardiac Catheterization Lab. She additionally has labored at Mount Sinai Coronary heart for the previous 5 years within the Electrophysiology and Coronary heart Failure unit. As well as, Okeowo is an adjunct medical professor of nursing at Binghamton College and Adelphi College and, till lately, additionally taught nursing at Lengthy Island College. She has been a member of the Higher New York Chapter of the Black Nurses Affiliation (GNYC-BNA) since 2019 and is co-chair of its Social Media and Public Relations Committee. In October, she obtained Decker Faculty’s inaugural Rising Chief Alumni Award.
BingUNews spoke with Okeowo about her profession, analysis, being a member of the Black Nurses Affiliation and extra.
Q. Let’s begin off at first: Why did you need to be a nurse?
A. Once I was possibly 8 years previous, generally my mother would say, “I’m not feeling properly,” and he or she would take a Tylenol from the kitchen cupboard. I believed: What might presumably be in that little pill that’s making my mother really feel higher? That’s when my curiosity in healthcare began.
I picked nursing as a result of nurses give direct affected person care, and it’s actually vital to me to immediately influence how somebody feels. It’s nearly like I’m that little Tylenol tablet, however I might help somebody really feel higher with my information. I can clarify what’s occurring with them and the way we’re going to assist them fight it. That human-to-human interplay is priceless.
Q. May you discuss your profession because you left Decker Faculty?
A. After working in Binghamton as a bedside nurse for nearly 4 years, as soon as I graduated with my grasp’s diploma, I moved again to New York Metropolis. I wasn’t sure the place I’d find yourself, however I knew I needed to work in cardiology after discovering this discipline was my ardour. I used to be skilled to be a main care clinician; nevertheless, I needed to do one thing the place I might incorporate that and cardiology. I utilized for quite a few cardiology-based jobs, however I didn’t get many affords at first as a result of I didn’t have in depth cardiac expertise. Nevertheless, I didn’t hand over. It took rather less than a yr to lastly land a task in cardiology at Mount Sinai. There, I began studying the foundations of caring for sufferers with cardiac illness. I began Decker’s DNP program whereas working at Mount Sinai and centered my doctoral analysis mission on rising referrals to cardiac rehabilitation.
Q. Did you benefit from the analysis you probably did as a part of your DNP coursework?
A. I began to grasp the world of analysis, and it was thrilling. I took my analysis mission to the administration at my hospital, the place I applied high quality enchancment motion plans and monitored the outcomes. That analysis expertise gave me the chance to take part in quite a few nationwide conferences. I even received the Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Affiliation Poster Award earlier this yr. [Okeowo won the first-place award for her poster: Standardizing Optimal Medical Therapy in Heart Failure Patients to Improve NCDR Metrics for ICD Implantation].
As president of the Graduate Scholar Nurses Affiliation, Adenike Okeowo introduced the graduate pupil present throughout Graduation 2017. This was Okeowo’s first time in a management place as a pupil, and he or she mentioned it was an amazing studying expertise. Picture Credit score: Jonathan Cohen. As president of the Graduate Scholar Nurses Affiliation, Adenike Okeowo introduced the graduate pupil present throughout Graduation 2017. This was Okeowo’s first time in a management place as a pupil, and he or she mentioned it was an amazing studying expertise. Picture Credit score: Jonathan Cohen. × Q. Do you’re feeling Decker gave you a superb basis?
A. Sure, I really feel like I used to be properly ready. Once I went into follow, I observed that the schooling at Decker was prime of the road in comparison with many different applications that I noticed once I got here to New York Metropolis or heard about from college students. I used to be actually grateful for my Decker schooling and for doing the DNP analysis mission. Decker actually opened doorways for me, particularly as a nurse practitioner. The school at Decker are additionally such nice mentors.
Q. Did you all the time plan to turn out to be a medical teacher?
A. I believed I’d get a bit bit extra medical expertise earlier than going into academia, however the doorways to academia have been opened for me due to my expertise being a cardiology nurse practitioner and having my doctorate diploma. Decker supplies such a powerful basis with the superior bodily evaluation, superior pathology and superior pharmacology courses, so going into educating a few of those self same courses as an adjunct was much less difficult than I assumed.
Q. What do you want about educating?
A. Initially, I wasn’t positive I had sufficient expertise to be a school member as a result of if you take a look at Decker’s college, they’re all so skilled. They’re distinguished in some ways — successful awards and doing all types of analysis and publications. I didn’t know if I used to be there but. However, on my first day of educating, I noticed I had a lot information to present again and was a lot extra skilled than I gave myself credit score for.
Once you’re capable of educate incoming college students, people who find themselves following the same profession path, it’s very rewarding. And, the scholars are so grateful. Having the ability to assist the scholars on their path to turning into a nurse or a nurse practitioner or going into academia is actually satisfying and undoubtedly one thing I see myself doing from right here on out.
Q. Did experiences with your personal medical instructors have an effect on the way you method educating?
A. My medical instructors at Decker have been all the time open to answering our questions, and if there was one thing they didn’t know, they’d do analysis and are available again with data that was useful to the category. I attempt to do this as a lot as potential with my college students.
Decker professors additionally taught me to present college students some grace — to grasp that they may have so much occurring moreover college. Connecting with college students, understanding what they’re going by and dealing with them to be taught what their wants are, our professors did that very properly for us. They have been nice function fashions for me, and I attempt to do this for my college students.
Q. What did successful a 40 Beneath 40 award from the Nationwide Black Nurses Affiliation this yr imply to you?
A. It means the exhausting work I put into my profession as a nurse is being acknowledged, that my work is making an influence that folks observed. That’s significant to me as a result of, as nurses, we regularly aren’t acknowledged for our work or contributions to healthcare.
Q. Why is being a part of the Black Nurses Affiliation vital to you?
A. Every little thing we do is for the great of others — the motto of the group is “for the higher good”! Any request that comes our means, whether or not it’s donations, volunteers or simply exhibiting up and supporting an occasion, it’s all the time to assist Black and Brown communities or folks of colour. Meaning a lot to me as a result of these communities have so many wants which might be typically ignored. The GNYC-BNA goes to communities which might be susceptible, with actually restricted sources. Having the ability to present help and care to individuals who wouldn’t get it elsewhere is likely one of the most rewarding emotions.
There may be a lot help inside the GNYC-BNA group. On the finish of each assembly, we do one thing referred to as For the Good of the Order. The president asks if anybody has something to rejoice — a promotion, volunteering, successful an award, shopping for a home, having a child or something that members need to rejoice. They provide the alternative to do this. We are able to let our colleagues or co-nurses know, and it creates this nice bond and group of help and neighborhood.
The group additionally focuses on supporting Black nursing college students and college students of colour by recruiting them to affix the group as a result of they typically don’t discover help at work or in class. Nursing college students even have entry to scholarships, career-building workshops, NCLEX learning ideas and a lot extra. Together with college students within the group helps to indicate them examples of people that appear to be them and have achieved a lot success of their nursing careers. College students have function fashions right here and may be mentored.
Q. Do you may have recommendation for nursing college students who’re Black or individuals of colour?
A. Consider in your self, and don’t hand over! Community, community, community. There are folks of colour doing one thing much like what you need to do, you simply want to seek out them. Whether or not it’s LinkedIn or becoming a member of a gaggle, membership or committee, you by no means know who you’ll meet and the kind of help or mentorship you would possibly discover. Don’t be afraid to achieve out and ask to be mentored.
Q. The place would you wish to be professionally in 5 years?
A. Within the subsequent 5 years, I see myself persevering with to work in cardiology as a nurse practitioner, however as an alternative treating sufferers by discovering the basis causes of their illness by useful drugs. I’ve additionally been exploring nurse teaching, and I need to coach sufferers on how one can take cost of their well being in an effort to attain their optimum state of wellness. I’d additionally wish to proceed being a professor.
