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Debra Buck, DNP, MSN, RN, is part of the nursing faculty of Kellogg Community College, Spring Arbor University, and Walden University. She began her nursing career directly out of high school, graduating with an associate degree from a local community college. She worked in critical care and the emergency department for 14 years, transitioning to home care. During her time in home care, she completed her BSN from the University of Michigan.
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After several years working in the community, Buck returned to the hospital setting as a nurse recruiter. During her tenure, she made the decision to obtain a master of science in nursing with the goal of teaching nursing. Prior to completing her MSN, she returned to the emergency department as a clinical manager, during which she was instrumental in the department’s adoption of an electronic medical record as part of a hospital-wide initiative. After the completion of her MSN, Buck was approached by a colleague with an opportunity to teach at the BSN level for a local college. Developing the curriculum for a community nursing course launched her career in the world of academia. After she began teaching, the opportunity arose to become the Director of Student Health Services for a local liberal arts college. This position allowed her to better accommodate her teaching schedule while becoming immersed in the college life.
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Buck made the decision to obtain a DNP in executive leadership to allow her the opportunity to teach at all levels. She completed her degree in 2014. Since then, she has been teaching at the ADN, BSN, and MSN levels. She teaches courses in the areas of nursing ethics, leadership, health policy, nursing research methods, community nursing, and medical informatics at the undergraduate and graduate levels. She is currently working with ADN students in the program she initially graduated from, teaching psychiatric nursing and leadership as well as fundamentals in the clinical setting.
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Holly Jo Langster, DNP, MHA, MSN, BSN, FNP-C, HCA, CENP, CPHQ, is an Assistant Professor at the University of Central Arkansas. She is a small-town girl from central Illinois who selected nursing as a career three years after high school graduation. The profession of nursing has allowed Langster to advance and grow her career in a variety of different ways, experiencing several venues of the profession and applying that ever-expanding knowledge to each new adventure. When passionate about nursing, nothing is unachievable.
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Langster has worked in many nursing fields—including medical/surgical, emergency department, and cardiac nursing—and thrives on challenge, new opportunities, discovery, program development, and executive nursing leadership. As a family nurse practitioner, she specialized in breast cancer. Administratively, she has worked in executive nursing and leadership for at least a decade. Finally, as a faculty member at the University of Central Arkansas School of Nursing, Langster educates future DNP-level family practice nurse practitioners. Legal nurse consulting has been an ongoing sideline career, as she works to assist the healthcare industry in defense against false accusations of mistreatment or neglect.
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Langster holds a doctor of nursing practice in executive leadership from American Sentinel University, a master’s in healthcare administration from Southern Illinois University, a master’s in nursing as a family nurse practitioner from the University of Illinois-Chicago, a bachelor of science in nursing from Bradley University, and a nursing diploma from Methodist Medical School of Nursing. She is board certified as a family nurse practitioner, as an executive nursing leader, and in healthcare quality. She is the widow of an emergency department physician whom she claims was the best ED physician who ever existed, and the proud mother of Lucas. Langster is the daughter of an RN, the granddaughter of an LPN, and the great granddaughter of the town midwife (she isn’t sure there was actually training for that back then).
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Rusty McNew, DNP, MLS, RN, CENP, is an established health system leader with significant experience in healthcare operations, performance improvement, regulatory and accreditation, and medical error prevention. Most recently, he served as the system Chief Nursing Officer of United Surgical Partners International, responsible for the nursing vision, quality, patient safety strategy, and clinical performance for hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers.
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Prior to joining United Surgical Partners International, McNew served as the corporate Vice President for Quality and Patient Safety at Tenet Healthcare, where he led the delivery of safe, quality nursing and clinical care, clinical research, healthcare regulatory and accreditation programs, and the enterprise clinical auditing processes. Before that he held multiple leadership roles at the Parkland Health and Hospital System and worked as a registered nurse in the intensive care units, operating suites, and Level I trauma emergency departments.
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McNew has published 22 editions of the Emergency Department Compliance Manual with Aspen Publishing (now Wolters Kluwer). He also co-chaired the Homeland Security Healthcare Sector Coordinating Council and was a member of the Homeland Security Healthcare and Public Sector Clinical Infrastructure Partnership Advisory Council. McNew earned a doctor of nursing practice degree from American Sentinel University, a master of liberal arts from Southern Methodist University, and a bachelor of science in nursing from the University of Texas at Arlington. He is also a certified Executive Nurse Professional from the American Organization of Nurse Leaders.
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James C. Reedy, DNP, MBA, MHA, RN, NEA-BC, CPHQ, CHFP, FACHE, is a tenured nursing executive leader and a co-chair for the Northwest Organization for Nurse Leaders Leadership Commission. He has served in the role of Chief Nursing Officer within St. Charles Health System and Sutter Health, as a Neuroscience Service Line Director at Sutter Health and SSM Healthcare, and as Manager of the Neuroscience and Abdominal Transplant Intensive Care Unit for St. Louis University Hospital.
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Clinically, Reedy was initiated into healthcare early on as a lifeguard and instructor for multiple Red Cross classes and trained as an EMT before beginning his storied nursing career. As a clinical nurse, he was proud to have learned the core values of teamwork and evidence-based practice working in trauma and surgical intensive care, emergency departments, and various intensive care specialties at St. Louis University Hospital, New York University–Tisch Hospital, and Barnes-Jewish Hospital. Working with colleagues, he achieved system standardization in areas such as quality, safety, growth, and affordability, and merging Lean, Six Sigma, shared governance, and the nursing process to amplify frontline nurses’ engagement to meet organizational goals.
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Reedy received his undergraduate nursing degree from St. Louis University School of Nursing, a master’s degree in both health and business administration from Webster University’s George Herbert Walker School of Business and Technology, and a doctor of nursing practice focused on health systems executive leadership from the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Nursing.
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Reedy’s husband is an award-winning leader in the advancement of population health for diverse and high-needs populations in Southern California. Reedy believes that nurses are the key to creating tomorrow’s functional healthcare system, but to get there they must embrace innovation and technology and lean into caring differently: at the bedside, in the clinic, in the home, as leaders, and at the boardroom table. Reedy will serve on the Leadership Succession Committee for Sigma Theta Tau’s Eta Chapter.