Megan Brunson

Megan Brunson is the honored recipient of the Janice Nelson Scholarship Award. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) from Valparaiso University in Indiana and her master’s in nursing (MSN) with a focus on leadership (CNL) from Saint Xavier University in Chicago, Illinois. Currently, Ms. Brunson is a Ph.D. student at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) School of Nursing, in Galveston, Texas.

Some would say working on nightshift is a first nursing job right of passage and considered the least desired shift for many. Presented with her first job on nightshift, she recognized it was an instant fit and the importance of securing resources in a 24/7 environment and the noticeable gap in understanding how nursing differs after nightfall. She has sought to remove those barriers in a variety of ways internally at hospitals with the cardiovascular surgical population and externally being involved in professional organizations, especially with the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN). Her three certifications speak to her commitment to her patients and specialty as she maintains her Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN), Cardiovascular Surgical (CSC) and Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) certifications.

She welcomed the opportunity to push the boundaries of her professional development over a 20-year period by actively taking on higher and higher volunteer leadership roles with AACN. She was AACN 50th national president from 2019-2020, representing over 130,000 acute and critical care nurses at the height of the pandemic. She was challenged to rapidly bring forth nursing innovation; to advocate nationally in multiple platforms; to educate at all levels; and collaborate to transform healthcare rapidly. Since then, she has remained active and committed to professional organizations speaking regularly at the national level conferences and hospitals 100+ times in the past 5 years. This is in conjunction with being active on the ICU triage task force with the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM); being a coach for AACN Healthy Work Environment (HWE) Collaborative; and being on multiple review panels in various capacities. Brunson firmly believes these collaborations are essential to building connections in healthcare that have sustainable reach and impact.

Ms. Brunson's passion to obtain her Ph.D. in nursing is fueled by using research to openly embrace the global drivers of change in delivering healthcare. Having a Ph.D., provides the opportunity to use translational science on a large scale to close the gap between research and implementation at the point of care. Her dissertation focuses on nurses who work fixed nightshift schedules, evaluating the attribute of hardiness as it relates to being a learned characteristic as nurses remain on the nightshift.

Ms. Brunson is grateful for the financial support of NEF and the M. Janice Nelson Scholarship. This scholarship not only helps alleviate the extensive financial burden that comes with obtaining a higher degree, but it will also support her academic work, professional goals, and research endeavors.