2014-2015 Innovations Magazine

i nnovations • 11 Meet Our program Directors T HERESSA R OBINSON B RAHIM D.N.P., A.R.N.P., M.S.N., M.S. Program Director Entry-Level Nursing Program (Miami) Dr. Brahim received a Bachelor of Science in Nurs- ing from Florida State University, a Master of Science in Human Resources and Administration from St. Thomas University, a Master of Science in Nursing from Barry University, an Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner degree from Florida International Univer- sity, and her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University of Miami. Prior to joining the NSU faculty in 2013, Dr. Brahim amassed an enviable professional résumé that in- cluded working as a registered nurse on a cardiac unit and as a psychiatric nurse in a state institution for 18 years. She later accepted a position as a nursing pro- fessor at Miami Dade College, where she provided in- struction in psychiatric nursing for 27 years. She also has practiced as an A.R.N.P. in psychiatric mental health inpatient, outpatient, and private psychiatric of- fice settings. Currently, she is developing antiviolence e-mod- ules to be utilized in public school systems and is fi- nalizing work on articles to be published on the assessment of violence in children and adolescents and teaching nursing courses on the Miami Regional Campus in Kendall. She also serves as a member of the college’s Faculty Affairs Committee, Faculty Attire Research Committee, and the Standardized Testing Ad-Hoc Committee. P ATRICIA W ELCH D ITTMAN , P H .D., M.S.N., CDE Program Director, Ph.D. and M.S.N. Programs Dr. Dittman received her undergraduate nursing degree from Salve Regina University in Newport, Rhode Island, and her master’s and Ph.D. degrees in Nursing from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. In addition, she is is a Magnet Appraiser for the Amer- ican Nurses Credentialing Center and a nationally Certified Diabetes Educator. Prior to joining NSU in 2006, she worked as a di- rector of nursing at Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Laud- erdale for 17 years. Currently, she is involved with policy on a state level, serving on the Florida Board of Nursing, Florida Nurse Association, and Florida Or- ganization of Nurse Executives. In addition, Dr. Dittman is very dedicated to her re- search, which focuses on qualitative methods related to chemical dependency in nursing, nursing leader- ship, policy, governance, and diabetes. She is a mem- ber of the Florida Organization of Nurse Executives Research Committee, the NSU Health Professions Di- vision Research Committee, and the NSU College of Health Care Sciences and College of Nursing Re- search Committee. Currently, she is working on a grant concerning diabetes in African Americans. S USAN H OLLAND , M.S.N., R.N. Program Director Entry-Level Nursing Program (Fort Myers) Holland, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Nurs- ing and a Master of Science in Nursing from the Uni- versity of Central Florida, is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Phoenix College of Nursing. She began her nursing career as a cardiac nurse, but the majority of her career has been spent working in the maternal and child area of nursing. She has had the opportunity to practice nursing in a variety of set- tings, including public health, school health, home health, and administration. In addition, she has been an educator since 2007 and has experience in pro- gram management and accreditation. Holland, who has worked at NSU’s Fort Myers Re- gional Campus since January 2013 with a specialty in obstetrics and pediatrics, is interested in research related to the development of clinical judgment, the effects of simulation, and factors that predict NCLEX success. Continued on the next page... B RAHIM D ITTMAN H OLLAND