Today, we’re turning the spotlight on Donna Williams, a digital health and research nurse from Silicon Valley. She’s based in Palo Alto, CA, and has a lot of wisdom to share. Among some of her advice is insight into where the healthcare industry will be in the future.

Q: TRUE or FALSE Nurses eat their young?

A: True & False, nurses like anyone all have personalities, and those personalities come out at work! I once worked with a surgeon (Pat Lamparello @ NYU) who said that there are 2 personalities of nurses: helpers and obstructors. It is overly simplistic, but possibly his experience. I find that there are nurses who see their role as teachers, mentors, and caregivers - the helpers. Then there are those who like policy and procedure, like to chastise people to let them know they are “senior” or “smarter” than them. In my mind, these individuals either have low self esteem or low empathy, and in the new economy, EMPATHY is a super power!

Q: Any self care or mental health tips for new nurses?

A: Yes! You can't fill others from an empty cup, so if you want to be an uplifter, mentor, and amazing caregiver - be sure to take care of yourself. NO is a very powerful word. How can you tell patients to self care, if you can't do it for yourself?

Q: What current events in the nursing field are you most passionate about?

A: Digital health and wellness, precision medicine, genetics and genomics. We need to pivot from a sick model in healthcare to a well model in healthcare. Nurses (and MD's) need to understand nutrition, microbiome and be able to coach individuals on diet/exercise from a place of authority. I find too many MD's and RN's are not as knowledgeable as many of their patients in this area. Also healthcare is moving out of the hospital and into the home (just as education and work are). For the first time ever, MD's and RN's are able to work remotely seeing pts over the internet. What is lost is the ability to take vital signs so digital devices will become far more important in healthcare, and offer the ability to evaluate aggregate data and understanding the role of data science and genetics will become a very important piece of healthcare going forward. Education needs to adapt to grow into these emerging fields as they relate to health care.