The physical, emotional and spiritual needs of people are foundational to Heather Dewitz鈥檚 approach to nursing.
Dewitz graduated from 91福利社鈥檚 Master of Science in Nursing and Family Nurse Practitioner programs and is currently working on her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree with the goal of graduating this August.
鈥淢y passion is education. I got part-time jobs with USC Upstate and 91福利社 doing some nursing education on the side and I just fell in love with it,鈥� Dewitz said. 鈥淭he driving force for obtaining my DNP was mainly to serve in a full-time capacity for that job with a doctorate, then I would be able to teach master鈥檚 level with my doctorate.鈥�
Dewitz feels that her 91福利社 education is preparing her well as she looks to advance her career in nurse education. She currently teaches nursing students the fundamentals at USC Upstate. Having her DNP will open the doors for Dewitz to be able to teach at the master鈥檚 level.
鈥淚 call them my baby nurses because they are first-semester nursing students. You鈥檙e introducing these students to the entire world of nursing,鈥� Dewitz said. 鈥淵ou get to really talk to them about building rapport and you get to the basics of nursing, but I think more of it is teaching them how to be professional and how to communicate and treat people with respect, a lot of those concepts you have to build on in nursing school.鈥�
When she鈥檚 not teaching, Dewitz is a nurse practitioner at a holistic health medical spa, treating patients with an approach that encompasses patients鈥� physical, emotional and spiritual care.
鈥淚 love to care for people; I feel like that鈥檚 a calling on my life whether it鈥檚 through nursing or ministering in church,鈥� she said.
When Dewitz was in high school, her mother had breast cancer. During that time she gained an appreciation for the nurses and other medical professionals involved in her mom鈥檚 treatment and felt led to pursue a nursing career.
鈥淚 feel it鈥檚 been a calling on my life probably since I was a junior and senior in high school. It鈥檚 just kind of grown and evolved, and layers have been added to it as I change seasons of life,鈥� Dewitz said.
鈥淚 love Anderson because they teach the Christian worldview of nursing 鈥� not just how to care for this patient, how to get them through this acute phase of illness, they teach how we care for them emotionally, physically and spiritually as well. I still like that all-encompassing, holistic mindset that illness is not just physical. It really opened my eyes,鈥� Dewitz said. 鈥淎 lot of programs just don鈥檛 look at the whole person, they鈥檙e just looking at the physical. I think that鈥檚 where Anderson differs in preparing nurses.鈥�