Jake Mearse: Navy Veteran Navigates a Unique Role as a Male Nurse-Midwife

May 23, 2025 By Frontier Nursing University

Military personnel are known for their discipline, preparation, and commitment to service. As a former Naval Officer, Frontier Nursing University graduate Jake Mearse, CNM (Class 137), PMHNP, DNP, continues to display those same traits as he breaks down barriers in service to those in his community.

Today, Dr. Mearse is a certified nurse-midwife with his own practice, offering home births and clinical care in Midway, Georgia. Being a male nurse-midwife does not make him one of a kind, but he’s in rare territory. The American Midwifery Certification Board’s Demographic Report released in January 2024 found that less than 1 percent (88 out of 14,198) of all AMCB-certified midwives identified as male. There’s no data on how many of those 88 served in the U.S. Navy for 25 years, but it’s safe to assume it is an exclusive group.

“I’m third generation Navy, so that was kind of expected almost. That’s what our family does,” said Mearse, who grew up in Bend, Oregon, and joined the Navy when he was 18. “While I was in the Navy, I got into the medical field as a Navy Hospital Corpsman and served aboard submarines mostly in that role. Eventually, the Navy sent me to nursing school.”

The Navy’s Medical Enlisted Commissioning Program allows sailors and Marines to earn a nursing degree and become a Navy Nurse Corps Officer. Mearse utilized this opportunity to attend Hawaii Pacific University while stationed at Pearl Harbor.

“I had absolutely no interest in labor and delivery or midwifery or anything related to that,” Mearse said. “I spent most of my time as a nurse in the ER/trauma world. I loved the ER/trauma nursing. I was deployed in the Middle East a couple of times doing Mobile Trauma Bay. Once I got a commission, I worked as an RN full time.”

Mearse met his wife April in the Navy, and in 2004, they had their first child with the help of FNU graduate Michelle Munroe, DNP (Class 11), APRN, CNM, FACNM, FAAN.

“She was our midwife for two of our kids,” said Mearse, who now has seven children. “She’s the one who talked me into becoming a midwife. She pulled me aside during a prenatal visit and said, ‘I think you might want to look into doing this. You might be good at this.’ That seed that Michelle planted in my head just kept growing. Unfortunately, if you are a nurse and you’re a 6-1, 200-pound man, every time you say, ‘I want to go into labor and delivery’, they say, ‘That’s very nice, you’re going back to the ER.’ So, I had to do it on my own time.”

During his last few years in the Navy, Mearse used his accrued leave time to finish his midwifery training. He then entered the Navy’s “Duty Under Instruction” program in which participants stay in active duty while pursuing a degree. He attended the University of Washington with plans to become a nurse-midwife, but the Navy approved him for the psychiatric-mental health nursing curriculum instead.

“The whole time I was going through my DNP program studying psychiatric nursing, I was taking extra classes in women’s health, labor and delivery, trying to get as close into that world as I could,” Mearse said. “I wanted to be a midwife.”

Inspired by Dr. Munroe, Mearse approached FNU about enrolling in the nurse-midwifery program.

“Best decision I ever made,” Mearse said. “The biggest thing that was helpful with Frontier was the flexibility of the program. I was coming to them saying, look I’ve got my DNP in a field I don’t necessarily want to spend the rest of my life, and I’m active-duty military, so I’m going to have long stretches where I can’t do school and I’ll have to jump back into it. Frontier was the only school that said, ‘You know what, tell us what you need, and we’ll make it work.’ They were just incredible.”

Still, Mearse faced more hurdles before achieving his goal of becoming a nurse-midwife. He encountered significant pushback against the idea of a man being a midwife.

“On my very first day of clinical rotations, at my first clinical site, I was with a group practice, and one of the midwives in the group pulled me aside and said, “‘Just so you know, I don’t think men belong in midwifery. I do not want to help you. Please don’t ask me for anything.”’ It was a little discouraging Day 1,” Mearse said. “I had a very similar experience in a midwifery job that I took. One of my new partners pulled me aside and said, ‘I am not working with you. I am offended that you’re here. I don’t believe that men belong here, and I will do anything I can to get you out of here.’”

Mearse said that the only times he has experienced such gender discrimination, it has come from colleagues, not patients. He noted that patients who asked for a different provider cited cultural or religious reasons.

“For the most part, in my experience, patients don’t really care what your gender is. They just want to be taken care of,” Mearse said.

Mearse took a position at an Army hospital at Fort Stewart in southeast Georgia, and he and his family fell in love with the area. In 2002, Mearse opened Coastal Midwifery and Women’s Health, which was a success from day one.

“Before I had even advertised or even posted on social media that I would be doing home births, we started getting calls,” he said. “We got full really fast. Now we are at a point where we are having to turn moms away every month because we are full.”

Mearse strives to keep his schedule to five or fewer home births per month, and the clinic is open three days a week. At the clinic, Mearse provides full-scope gynecology and primary care, including IUDs, contraception management, and colposcopies.

To make access to care as convenient and accessible as possible, the clinic is open from 1:00 to 10:00 p.m.

“Our hours are based on what I remember being a dad in the military and never getting to go to appointments because all of the OB offices were always open 9-5 Monday through Friday,” Mearse said. “We decided to do things a little differently. We are open from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m., and we do two weekdays and Saturday because we really want families to be able to participate. We want to make this as family-friendly as we possibly can.”

Accordingly, running the clinic is very much a family project. Mearse’s wife, April, who is also a Navy veteran, is not medically trained but attends all the births to provide support and helps run the clinic.

“People come to the practice because they want a midwife. They stay with the practice because they meet April,” Mearse said. “Our kids are getting older now, but April is kind of the surrogate mom, especially to a lot of these young military moms who are 20, 21 years old, on the other side of the country from home. She helps set things up and take things down, but her most important role is being a hand-holder and encourager. She has that experienced mom energy where she can hold a young woman’s hand and say, ‘I’ve done this seven times. We’re going to get you through it. You’re going to be OK.’ I love the fact that a lot of our clients will text April instead of me.”

Yes, Jake and April have seven children, who are also active participants in the clinic’s day-to-day operations. They strip the beds, clean, and prepare rooms for the next client. They also help interact with the other children brought into the clinic, which features separate playrooms for older and younger children.

“We’re largely a military community, and we will have moms come in for their appointment, and they’ve got other little kids and the dad’s deployed,” Mearse said. “Because we have my kids there to help, moms can feel comfortable coming into their appointment they can relax and do their appointment without worrying about what the kids are doing.”

Mearse schedules 60-minute time slots for all his patients, ensuring ample time for questions and discussions about their care.

“We want our patients to be able to ask questions and get to know us and us to get to know them,” Mearse said. “I love the fact that we have a lot of moms who will come in and just hang out in the clinic even if they’re not being seen that day. They just want to come and sit and chat and drink coffee and be there. It’s wonderful.”

As veterans, Jake and April are particularly excited to be able to offer care to a large number of military families.

“When we first started this, one of the commitments we made is that we were going to try and make this affordable for military families,” Mearse said of the military discounts offered at Coastal Midwifery and Women’s Health. “We are just 10 minutes down the road from Fort Stewart. Even though we’re not able to do this for free for military families – I wish we could – they end up paying sometimes less than half of what they would pay elsewhere. If we’re making just enough to break even, I’m fine with that. We’re able to serve these people that are serving our country.”

Mearse hopes to be able to offer even greater access to care soon. He plans to hire another nurse-midwife as soon as she graduates.

“Right now, we are turning a number of moms away each month because we’re full, so it will be nice to be able to take more moms because there will be two of us,” Mearse said. “I’ve been on call 365 days a year for three-and-a-half years now. It will be amazing to be able to take a vacation and leave the practice in someone else’s hands for a little bit.”

2024 Distinguished Preceptor Award Recipient: Sandi Mellor

October 30, 2024 By Frontier Nursing University

The Distinguished Preceptor Award recognizes a graduate providing long-standing support and commitment to the mission and work of Frontier Nursing Service and Frontier Nursing University through precepting students. The 2024 recipient of this award is Dr. Sandi Mellor, DNP, APRN, FNP.

Growing up in her hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Dr. Sandi Mellor, DNP (Class 30), APRN, FNP-BC, knew at a young age that she wanted to pursue a career in healthcare so she could “help people get healthy and stay healthy.” Determined to do just that, she took a medical-surgical nursing class while still in high school. After high school, she worked towards her associate degree in nursing and worked as a nurse for three years for the National Health Authority in Bedford, England, where her husband was stationed as a member of the U.S. Air Force.

“I thought I wanted to be a physician, but after taking my first nursing medical-surgical class in high school, I fell in love with being with the patients,” said Mellor, who has worked as a nurse for almost thirty years.

Upon returning to the United States, she went back to school and earned a bachelor of science in nursing in 1998. While raising two sons, she worked in the cardiac intensive care unit, pediatric intensive care unit, and neonatal intensive care unit, as well as the trauma and emergency room. She recognized that many of these patients required not only emergency or urgent care but also primary care management of their comorbidities. Inspired to serve the underserved, she went back to school to become a family nurse practitioner. She earned her FNP in 2004, the same year she and her husband had a baby daughter.

They moved back to Tulsa in 2007, where Mellor began training internal medicine residents how to be providers. She also began precepting FNP students. She left the resident clinic setting in January 2010 to open her first family practice, where she found more opportunities to precept and teach BSN and FNP students while serving the underserved. At her clinic, Mellor accepts those on Medicaid or without insurance and has Spanish-speaking translators on staff to help make sure all are welcome. At the second clinic that she opened, Neighborhood Medical Clinic, Mellor provides both family and urgent care.

“I always wanted to serve the underserved and felt called to nursing,” Mellor said. “I can see the entire family and treat them, with or without insurance. I can give free care to families. I see one child that has strep throat, and I can see the other children in the family and the parents and do not have to charge each of them because I own the practice.”

Mellor’s practice not only provides essential service to the community but also serves as a training ground for others who follow in her footsteps. She is eager to precept students, including approximately a dozen from Frontier Nursing University, with a time commitment of nearly 600 hours per student.

“I decided to earn my DNP from Frontier Nursing University as I had precepted so many students from there and found it to be a very prestigious program,” said Mellor, who earned her DNP in 2019. “Their FNP students were prepared and knowledgeable. I also researched the DNP program, and it was and still is one of the top in the nation. (FNU Director of the Doctor of Nursing Practice Program) Dr. Khara’ Jefferson (DNP, APRN, FNP-C, CHC) was patient and guided me to “trust the process”, and I was able to complete a project I was truly proud of that is still in use today. I was able to make a change in a vulnerable population and serve the underserved. It has helped me guide Quality Improvement projects at my clinic, teach in the FNP/DNP programs, and always encourage others to maintain the highest standards of nursing by continuing their education.”

Not only has the passion that Mellor had for nursing and helping others as a child never waned, but it has grown stronger and deeper as she has seen the impact that she can have in her community and beyond.

“I enjoy teaching and precepting because I get to see the ‘aha’ moments where the theory/didactic and practice guidelines make sense in clinical practice,” Mellor said. “I get to see the growth of a student becoming what they dreamed of earning – their RN or FNP qualifications. I get to influence and help the next generation of nurse practitioners to maintain our high standards and continue to improve the quality of healthcare for all. I get to be part of the positive change in healthcare as NPs increase their presence and roles in providing care for everyone.”

In addition to teaching through precepting, Mellor also has ventured into course development and classroom teaching. She wrote the FNP courses and taught the first three graduating classes from the University of Tulsa FNP program. She has also worked with Oral Roberts University and the University of Oklahoma.

“It is a way to give back to the nursing profession that has given me so much and fulfilled my calling,” Mellor said. “I want to write a book about nurses, and I hope I can continue to work as a nurse practitioner, precept, and teach all levels of nursing as well. I am interested in earning my PMHNP certification as well as continuing to serve my community. I will continue to advocate for full-practice authority and showcase the benefits nurse practitioners bring to bridging the gap in healthcare.”

Her advocacy efforts have included volunteering for the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) FNP content expert panel. To date, she has served on the panel for six years, including two as the elected chair of the panel.

“Nurses have to be the change we need in healthcare,” Mellor said, explaining her interest in being an advocate. “We are the largest population and the most trusted for many reasons. So we must be the ones to lead those positive changes towards improvement.”

And to help people get healthy and stay healthy.

Alumni Spotlight: Nurse and Educator Dr. Tarnia Newton Teaches Nurses to be Advocates for All Patients

May 10, 2024 By Frontier Nursing University

At the heart of Frontier Nursing University is a talented and diverse community of students, alumni, faculty, staff, couriers and preceptors. Spotlight blogs feature members of our FNU community who are focused on the mission of educating nurse-midwives and nurse practitioners to deliver quality healthcare to underserved and rural populations.

Tarnia Newton, DNP (Class 28), FNP-C, has seen a shift in nursing and the understanding of the importance of culturally concordant care in healthcare outcomes.

A self-proclaimed “disruptive innovator” and an educator of students she calls “JEDI nurses,” Dr. Newton understands that change does not occur without action. It is a lesson she is instilling in her students at the University of Arizona College of Nursing, where she is an Assistant Clinical Professor and a member of the Equity, Diversion, and Inclusion (EDI) Committee.

“I think nursing as a whole had to really pause and honestly think about systemic and structural racism and the role it plays in health outcomes and what nursing institutions are doing about it,” Dr. Newton said. “I have successfully integrated Safe Zone Training into the DNP program. This introductory workshop provides an overview of LGBTQ+ terminology, health disparities, and issues facing the LGBTQ+ community. It is truly believing, as a practitioner, the importance of offering affirmative care for all.”

Originally from the Bahamas, Dr. Newton had numerous aunts who were nurses, and her great-grandmother was an informal midwife for the rural island community of Andros in the Bahamas.

“It (nursing) may be in my genes,” Dr. Newton said. “I always liked to help people.”

Dr. Newton embraced her nurturing manner and healthcare ancestry and pursued a career in nursing. She started as a Licensed Practical Nurse, working in pediatric home care. After obtaining her RN, she went into critical care. For 16 years as a critical care nurse, she worked in several specialties, including open heart, neurology, trauma, pediatric medical, and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation perfusionist. She then went on to become a Family Nurse Practitioner.

When Dr. Newton decided to pursue a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), she picked Frontier Nursing University.

“I chose Frontier because it was an online program that genuinely focused on the DNP essentials and gave me the skills I would use in the clinical environment,” Dr. Newton said. “I always say it was the best money I spent on education. I would not be where I am today if it was not for Frontier. They have a great way of creating community and fantastic faculty. I have recommended many of my colleagues to attend Frontier to get their DNP, and just like me, they drank the Kool-Aid. Frontier gave me the tools to be a disruptive innovator. It inspired me to be at the steering wheel of change, therefore truly preparing me for my current role.”

Though Dr. Newton did not formally become a professor until after completing her DNP, she had always enjoyed teaching others. She taught advanced cardiac life support and basic life support and assisted in her hospital’s annual clinical skills fair. Completing the DNP at Frontier in 2018 fully opened the doors to her current career in academia. Dr. Newton began working at Galen College of Nursing in December 2018.

True to her nature, Dr. Newton jumped right into her new career, soaking up knowledge and distributing it to others with equal enthusiasm. She has quickly become a leader in higher education diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

I recently completed the AACN Diversity Leadership Institute, and my capstone project was focuses on creating a resource toolbox but also training faculty on culturally responsive pedagogy and how they can integrate it into their syllabus and classrooms,” Dr. Newton said. “As an educator, advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging through culturally responsive pedagogy is an alternative to improving cultural humility, thus improving community health.”

Data demonstrates that culturally concordant care improves healthcare outcomes. Providing culturally concordant care means increasing diversity in the healthcare workforce and educating healthcare professionals about its importance. It is a tall task, to be certain, but an essential one. It calls for the skills of a JEDI.

“My future goal is to actively participate in changing the landscape of nursing,” Dr. Newton said. “I am so passionate about nursing education to be transformative for students and creating JEDI nurses – meaning Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. It will take JEDI nurses to make a difference in healthcare to be patient-centered, creating inclusive environments for patients and healthy work environments for nurses that are nourishing and not toxic.”

Unfortunately, there is still far too much toxicity in the political climate, which ultimately spills over into other areas, including healthcare and education. Pushback and even legislation against university-driven DEI initiatives are becoming more common nationwide. Those actions demand a response, not a retreat.

“With the new anti-DEI legislation happening across the country, it has become worrisome, especially when considering the importance of health outcomes and how they genuinely relate to diversity, equity, structural racism, and biases,” Dr. Newton said. “Anti-DEI is truly not an option in educating future healthcare providers. The social determinants of health, equity, and justice have to be the focus. This is a time more than ever when we need to take a stand and recreate the nurses we need for the future. We need JEDI-nursing warriors to advocate for all patients. We need health policy, population health, JEDI attributes, and quality improvement skills to be fundamental to the vocational, associate, and bachelor’s level nursing curriculum. We often leave it to the master’s or even doctorate level, but it needs to be at a grass root level. We need to develop nurses who can transform communities by addressing inequity in healthcare practices to improve health outcomes.”

With Dr. Newton’s expertise, commitment, and passion, perhaps, in her case at least, those last two letters of “JEDI” nurse should stand for “Disruptive Innovator.”

Learn more about advanced nursing degrees and specialties at Frontier Nursing University. Subscribe to our blog for the latest news and events at FNU and to get inspired with stories featuring our alumni, students, faculty, preceptors and staff!

Frontier Nursing University Names Dr. Nancy Pesta Walsh as Clinical Director of the Department of Family Nursing

March 25, 2024 By Frontier Nursing University

Dr. Nancy Pesta Walsh, DNP, FNP-BC, PMHNP- BC, Clinical Director for the Department of Family Nursing

Frontier Nursing University has announced that Dr. Nancy Pesta Walsh, DNP, FNP-BC, PMHNP- BC, has accepted the position of Clinical Director for the Department of Family Nursing. Dr. Walsh has been a faculty member at FNU since 2010.

“We are very excited to announce Dr. Pesta Walsh as our Clinical Director for the Department of Family Nursing,” said FNU Dean of Nursing Dr. Joan Slager, CNM, DNP, FACNM, FAAN. “In this role, her experience and expertise as a clinician and educator will be of tremendous value to our students and to the university as a whole.”

Dr. Pesta Walsh, who also serves as a family nurse practitioner at Hutchinson Health in Hutchison, Minnesota, earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the College of Saint Benedict in Saint Joseph, Minnesota. She went on to obtain both her Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) and her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degrees from FNU in 2008 and 2010, respectively. She obtained a post-doctoral certificate as a Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner from Brandman University in 2020.

“I am thrilled that Dr. Pesta Walsh has accepted this very important role at Frontier,” said FNU President Dr. Susan Stone, CNM, DNSc, FAAN, FACNM. “There is an urgent need for more highly skilled and trained nurse practitioners and nurse-midwives to help address healthcare gaps and shortages across the country. Dr. Pesta Walsh’s great passion for teaching will help prepare our students to provide highly skilled and compassionate care.”

Dr. Pesta Walsh started her teaching career at Frontier in 2010 as a course faculty member and later course coordinator in the Family Nurse Practitioner program. Since 2014, she has served as a Regional Clinical Faculty member and, most recently, as the Interim Clinical Director in the Department of Family Nursing.

“It is my great privilege to accept the position of Clinical Director for the Department of Family Nursing at Frontier,” Dr. Pesta Walsh said. “The impact of quality clinical education for our students ultimately extends into the communities they serve. It is both a privilege and an honor to be part of an institution that is dedicated to preparing family nurse practitioners who are not only competent but also deeply compassionate and committed to providing high-quality patient-centered care.”

Student Spotlight: Ashley Parker selected for SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program

March 25, 2024 By Frontier Nursing University

FNU DNP Student Ashley Parker, MSN, PMHNP-BC

Frontier Nursing University student Ashley Parker, MSN, PMHNP-BC, was recently selected for the 2023-2024 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration (SAMHSA) Minority Fellowship Program. A first-year doctor of nursing practice student at FNU, Parker’s selection is a testament to her dedication toward advancing mental health care, particularly for underrepresented minority groups.

The SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program aims to increase the number of post-baccalaureate behavioral health nurses from underrepresented ethnic minority groups. By fostering leadership, evidence-based research and culturally competent services, the program strives to eliminate health disparities in behavioral health disorders. The program emphasizes integrated approaches, acknowledging the mental and physical health needs of all ethnic/minority populations.

Through her selection, Parker will benefit from stipends, dissertation support, mentoring, career guidance, research workshops and interactions with experts in various disciplines. The program is designed to shape the careers of Fellows, providing leadership seminars, conferences and career enhancement opportunities.

Parker serves as the lead psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) at a 60-bed extended acute care behavioral health facility.

“I always tell my clients , ‘You’re the expert on you, you lead, I help.’,” said Parker. “It’s the way I build rapport and give them choices so that they can have a sense of autonomy in their treatment planning.”

With a rich educational background, including a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Temple University, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Drexel University, and a Master of Science in Nursing from Wilkes University, Parker brings a wealth of knowledge to her doctoral studies.

Recognized for her exceptional compassionate care, Parker received the Daisy Award while working with an Adult Psychiatric Crisis unit at Thomas Jefferson University in 2020. With 15 years of experience in mental health, she specializes in thought and mood disorders, particularly bipolar and schizophrenia, with comorbid substance use disorder.

Parker is an active member of prominent organizations such as the American Nurses Association, American Psychiatric Nurses Association, and the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. She also leads mental health clinicals for Bachelor of Nursing Students at Kennesaw State University.

Passionate about reducing stigmatization, Parker focuses on educating patients and their families on navigating newly diagnosed mental health disorders. Her commitment to crisis prevention is evident through her certification in crisis prevention training, where she has imparted knowledge to numerous employees at major psychiatric crisis hospitals.

As a SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program Fellow, Parker will contribute to the program’s mission by integrating the science of early intervention and prevention, treatment and recovery into her doctoral research. Her focus on reducing crisis hospitalization aligns with the program’s goals of promoting culturally relevant care and addressing mental health disparities.

Thank you, Ashley, for your dedication to mental health care, as exemplified through your participation in this distinguished fellowship.

To learn more about the SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program, visit emfp.org.

FNU’s DNP program reaches 15-year milestone

October 31, 2023 By Frontier Nursing University

FNU welcomed its first DNP students in October 2008. In the 15 years since the first class enrolled, FNU’s DNP program has continued to grow and excel. In 2022, 190 students graduated from the DNP program, while 202 more students enrolled in the DNP.

FNU completed a re-accreditation process for the school’s DNP program in 2022 through the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN). ACEN site visitors issued their recommendation for re-accreditation, along with special recognition for the strength of FNU’s DNP program, including the Frontier mission, faculty, and organizational capacity.

“ACEN’s thorough re-accreditation process is a great opportunity for us to measure the successes of the program while also gaining valuable expert external recommendations for areas of improvement,” said FNU Dean of Nursing Dr. Joan Slager, CNM, DNP, FACNM, FAAN. “We are very proud to have earned re-accreditation with high praise from ACEN and are excited to see the continued growth and success of the DNP program at Frontier.”

The decision to add the DNP to FNU’s program offerings in 2008 came in response to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s endorsement of the Position Statement on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing, which called for advancing the level of preparation for advanced nursing practice roles from the master’s degree to the doctorate level by 2015.

The DNP is the highest degree for clinical nursing practice and is designed for clinicians who want to expand upon their leadership skills and clinical expertise. FNU’s DNP curriculum provides education in evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and systems leadership.

“One of the advantages to a DNP is that it specifically sets you up to be a change agent and a leader,” said clinical faculty Dr. Diana Jolles, Ph.D., CNM, FACNM. “This degree specializes in preparing people to make a change in their community and to serve the needs of the people, which is very, very complicated. Our program is designed to help mentor, support, nurture, and really build resilience and grit so that people have the skills and the tools to make the changes that need to happen in this healthcare environment that we know is so broken.”

“Our expectation is to teach you leadership and quality improvement skills that you can apply to any other problem you see in your environment,” said DNP Program Director Dr. Khara’ Jefferson, DNP, APRN, FNP-C, CHC. “I think that’s what makes us really special.”

Dr. Jefferson’s passion for FNU’s DNP program comes naturally, as she herself completed the program in 2017.

“I enjoyed my entire experience so much that I’ve never left,” she said.

As part of the curriculum, DNP students complete an eight-week Quality Improvement Project, generally in the hospital or clinic where they are currently working. This allows the student to tailor their project to their practice and the patient population which it serves.

“Students implement their Quality Improvement Project for the larger community that they live in, but the unique thing for our students is that probably 98% of them are actually doing their project at the place where they work,” Dr. Jefferson said. “They know the inherent problems that they see every day. By collaborating with the quality department and other key stakeholders, they are able to really narrow in on what is needed, not just something that they’re passionate about, but something that can truly drive change and impact care.”

Learn more about FNU’s DNP program in this Q&A video:

FNU alumnus Dr. Elizabeth Akinyemi, DNP (Class 39), FNP, said that the DNP program opened her mind to a different way of thinking. Her DNP quality improvement project focused on improving hypertension in patients at the family medical clinic in which she worked.

“The way I think about healthcare has definitely been transformed, and this is a result of going through Frontier’s very objective DNP program,” Dr. Akinyemi said. “I came out of the program feeling more confident about my ability to contribute positively to any clinical quality improvement initiative. The DNP helps you become more analytical and a problem solver who tries to figure out root causes and solutions.”

Dr. Akinyemi’s analytical mindset directly aligns with FNU’s data-driven, evidence-based approach to program and curriculum development. The success of the DNP program is an important part of FNU’s mission “to provide accessible nurse-midwifery and nurse practitioner education that integrates the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion. We transform healthcare by preparing innovative, ethical, compassionate, and entrepreneurial leaders to work with all people with an emphasis on rural and underserved communities.”

“As a DNP student, you don’t just leave Frontier Nursing University with a DNP degree,” said Dr. Jefferson. “You leave it with your DNP degree, quality improvement and leadership skills, new friends, and a whole community of support.”

To learn more, visit the DNP program page on our website.

Medical Mission Trip an ‘Important Experience’ for Megan Gagner

August 28, 2023 By Frontier Nursing University

As a nurse-midwife at St. Lawrence Health System in Potsdam, New York, Dr. Megan Gagner, DNP (Class 30), APRN, CNM, is accustomed to working in a rural, underserved area. Potsdam is located in upstate New York, close to where Gagner grew up in St. Lawrence County, just 30 minutes from the Canadian border.

Gagner worked as a labor and delivery nurse at St. Lawrence Health for four and a half years while completing her nurse-midwifery degree at Frontier Nursing University.

“I fell in love with pregnancy and how fascinating it was,” Gagner said. “I decided to attend Frontier after the birth of my second child was delivered by Heather (Donovan) Hogan, DNP, CNM (Class 50), a Frontier alumnus who inspired me. I wanted to do what she did for other women. She was patient with me. She saw me at every visit and was there when I needed her the most at the delivery. She never seemed rushed. She reassured me and was full of empathy and compassion.”

Gagner has practiced as a nurse-midwife since 2018 and continued her journey at Frontier by completing the Doctor of Nursing Practice in 2019.

“I always wanted to have a Plan B, and I love teaching, so I did the companion DNP,” Gagner said. “It only made sense to continue to climb the ladder.”

Advancing her skills and knowledge has meant not only additional coursework but also the opportunity to go on a mission trip to Nicaragua earlier this year. It was a nine-day adventure that changed Gagner’s life.

She was invited on the trip through her connection with a local physician assistant (PA) program offered by Clarkson University in Potsdam. Eleven of the PA program’s students – seven of whom Gagner has precepted – and three preceptors were on the medical mission trip. The trip was organized in partnership with Los Rayos De Esperanza, a local non-governmental organization, as part of a six-year partnership between Clarkson’s Students Without Borders group and Los Rayos.

“We traveled to Diriomo, Nicaragua, to provide medical care to medically underserved communities,” Gagner said. “We provided care to more than 500 people in four days and gave away 150 vision glasses. We went to multiple areas in Nicaragua where we walked door to door offering medical assistance. We had a clinic set up on the base where people from the community could come. We visited communities and provided a pop-up clinic for people in the area. We offered a children’s health fair that served about 60 children between the ages of 4-14 years old, mommy-and-me classes, and education to the community health members. The community was very thankful and welcoming to us coming. They provided chairs for everyone at home visits, and the whole family would observe. It is a way of life that they accept.”

It was an eye-opening experience for Gagner, who hopes to return to Nicaragua on another mission trip next year. In the meantime, she is embracing what she learned and using it to become an even better nurse-midwife.

“It was an important experience that has changed my perception of healthcare and also my life,” Gagner said. “We don’t realize the things that are so basic for us that we take advantage of. For one week, we had cold showers, walked miles a day, and experienced no power for a couple of days. Time was nothing when we were in Nicaragua. It could take all day to be seen, and no one was upset. They would wait weeks or months to be seen and would be grateful.”

Even as we face healthcare provider shortages and many in the U.S. struggle to find accessible and affordable healthcare, Gagner said that her experience was a reminder that there is much to be grateful for.

“The mission trip changed my daily scope of practice by learning patience with myself and my patients,” Gagner said. “I returned as a more thankful, patient, and caring provider and mom.”

Learn more about advanced nursing degrees and specialties at Frontier Nursing University, including our online Doctor of Nursing Practice. Subscribe to our blog for the latest news and events at FNU and to get inspired with stories featuring our alumni, students, faculty and staff!

Three reasons to pursue a DNP

June 30, 2023 By Frontier Nursing University

Frontier Nursing University’s clinical doctorate is designed for registered nurses who want to take their nursing career, leadership skills and clinical expertise to the next level.

If you hold a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), you may be curious about the growing trend of nurses opting for a DNP degree and whether pursuing one would be the right decision for you. In recent years, more and more nurses are choosing to advance their careers by earning a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP).

Frontier Nursing University’s clinical doctorate is designed for registered nurses with certification as a nurse-midwife or nurse practitioner who want to take their nursing career, leadership skills and clinical expertise to the next level, with an emphasis on rural and underserved communities. Below are three reasons why you may consider taking this step.

“I decided to become a DNP to gain confidence in being a leader and advocate for my patients and community,” FNU DNP alumni Carrie Baker said.

“I decided to become a DNP to gain confidence in being a leader and advocate for my patients and community.”
– Dr. Carrie Baker, FNU Alumni

Advance your skills.

The DNP is the highest degree for clinical nursing practice and is highly valued in preparing nurses for advanced practice. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), changing demands of the complex healthcare environment require the highest level of scientific knowledge and practice expertise to assure quality patient outcomes.

FNU’s Post-Master’s DNP program is designed for certified nurse-midwives and nurse practitioners, combining coursework and clinical/practicum experiences to build on knowledge acquired during their master’s program. Students gain new experience in evidence-based practice, quality improvement, systems leadership, and more.

FNU faculty member and alumni Dr. Kristin Gianelis says earning a doctoral degree taught her to think differently.

“It opened my eyes to quality improvement, developed leadership skills and gave me the confidence to be an agent of change in my community,” she said.

“The DNP program is pushing me to become a better leader. I’m used to staying in the background and putting my head down, but I’m being challenged to engage more on a political stage and with stakeholders in my community to make sure my patients get the kind of care they deserve.”
– Dr. Kamil El, FNU Alumni

Improve the standard of care in your community.

A 2022 study by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) found widespread agreement that DNP graduates have great potential to impact patient and system-level outcomes by translating evidence into practice and health policy and by using leadership skills and interdisciplinary collaboration.

FNU’s DNP Program prepares nurses to impact health care nationwide, starting with improving health care outcomes and the delivery of primary health in their communities. The DNP Project guides students through the process of working within a healthcare delivery system to translate evidence into practice.

Past FNU DNP Projects

Our DNP students complete 500 hours planning, implementing and disseminating the results of a rapid cycle quality improvement project using the Institute for Healthcare Improvement model. The clinical project hours involve application and demonstration of The Essentials by AACN including person-centered care, population health, quality and safety, systems-based practice, and personal, professional and leadership development. Many of our alumni consider it a life-changing experience.

“The DNP program is pushing me to become a better leader,” Dr. Kamil El, FNU DNP alumni, said. “I’m used to staying in the background and putting my head down, but I’m being challenged to engage more on a political stage and with stakeholders in my community to make sure my patients get the kind of care they deserve.”

“It opened my eyes to quality improvement, developed leadership skills and gave me the confidence to be an agent of change in my community.”
– Dr. Kristin Gianelis, FNU Faculty Member and Alumni

Shape the future of healthcare.

DNPs are needed in practice, as well as education. Those who earn a DNP can use the degree to educate the next generation of nurses by working as university faculty or precepting. FNU has more than 150 doctorally prepared certified nurse-midwife and nurse practitioner faculty and a network of nearly 16,000 preceptors nationwide.

FNU student Mara-Joanne Derinor was motivated to pursue her DNP in an effort to improve clinical education. She credits her decision to pursue a DNP at FNU as one of the best she’s ever made. Derinor feels that too often nursing students are not given adequate encouragement in their education.

“I want to be the change that I want to see. I want to encourage and motivate future clinical students. I also want to make new discoveries in clinical research.”
– Mara-Joanne Derinor, FNU Student

“I want to be the change that I want to see,” she said. “I want to encourage and motivate future clinical students. I also want to make new discoveries in clinical research.”

A DNP can help you shape the future of healthcare in many ways. At Frontier Nursing University, DNP students complete their coursework online, complete 30 credit hours in 18 months, lead a rapid cycle quality improvement project in collaboration with a chosen clinical site, and participate in a three-day campus immersion experience. To learn more, visit the DNP page on our website.