Meet Diane Reed

Today we’d like to introduce you to Diane Reed.

Hi Diane, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My story begins with the fact that I’m a twin, I grew up with 6 brothers and 4 sisters, including my twin sister, and I shared a bed with my twin sister until I graduated high school. I never realized being so close with my family and having to share ‘everything’ was unusual until I began college. My home was full of laughter, love, and the belief that if you practiced important spiritual lessons such as Honor your father and mother, the Family that prays together stays together, Love your neighbor as yourself, etc., then you could accomplish anything your heart desired. My Father was & still is so funny and my Mother was so serious and disciplined. Their personalities were exactly what we needed as a family and what I needed to strive to achieve my desires. Specifically, my heart desired very early on to have two careers: one in the entertainment business and the other in nursing. From a very early age, I remember my Mother sharing very intriguing stories about her experiences at her job as a Surgical Scrub Technician. The stories were so interesting and inspiring, which led to my asking a lot of questions. These same stories created a spark in me, which began my interest in the healthcare field.

Simultaneously, I started cultivating a serious reading habit and love for books that opened my eyes to so many things, but also introduced me to all things entertainment including, singing, dancing, theater, the business of the business…all of it, as well as health-related topics. My oldest sister joined the Air Force and always had cool stories about her travels, which encouraged me to be fearless and not be afraid to leave home. My oldest brother would tell me to go as far as I could go in anything I wanted to do, because I was “so smart”. Additionally, I developed Scoliosis when I was 13 yrs.-old and had to wear a brace made of steel, leather, and hard plastic. This body brace was made specifically for me and it was not a pleasurable experience. However, having to wear that brace for 5 yrs. from basically the beginning of my teens to the end of my teens, prepared me for the future when I would need to persevere.

Perseverance is a necessary skill for the entertainment and healthcare professions. I used this skill regularly when I auditioned and accepted the opportunity to participate as a member of one of the finest equity summer stock theaters in the country, when I was admitted to nursing school, when I worked for a major music production company while in nursing school, when I graduated nursing school and when I moved to Los Angeles to work in the entertainment business and the nursing field. I persevered until I accepted the reality that Nursing is truly an art and a science…and I loved it! I loved it more than I enjoyed the entertainment business.

I loved Nursing so much that I reversed a verbal agreement I made with myself to never return to school after nursing school graduation. Consequently, after working 10 years as a Mother-Baby or Maternal Child Registered Nurse (RN), I took the advice of my Labor & Delivery Manager to expand my skill within my nursing department education and became a part-time nursing school clinical instructor. I recognized that I had a passion for educating the students and learned I needed a graduate degree in order to advance my skills from the clinical to classroom. Subsequently, this led to my earning an MBA, PhD, and MSN graduate degree in the areas of Business and Nursing. My advanced education has allowed me to presently work as a Tenured Nursing Professor at Valencia College and has helped considerably with the development of my nursing podcast called The Nurses ROCK! Show.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Nothing in life worth earning will be easy, but it can be so worth every challenge you must face. When looking back it has always been healthy and very encouraging. To illustrate why it was encouraging…when I first began teaching I was asked to partner with a colleague to design an innovative program to help high school students understand how to navigate their high school courses so that they could meet the rigors of nursing school. While developing this special program, I earned my MBA. However, while the program was attempting to earn accreditation, which at the time I did not understand, it did not achieve accreditation by the time I graduated. Without accreditation, my educational achievement simply left me with a degree that was not recognized at Valencia because it was not accredited by an acceptable accrediting organization. This led to my inability to receive an increase in pay, as well as teach nursing in the classroom. After this realization, my choices were to stop attempting to earn any advance degrees, begin earning a Master’s in Nursing (MSN), or earn a PhD. I could continue the PhD because the MBA program was prepared to achieve their accreditation. They just hadn’t achieved the goal yet. So, I chose to continue my education by earning an accredited and innovative online PhD, which was just starting to become popular.

Prior to beginning the PhD, I was informed by the admissions office that the average PhD was earned in 7 to 10 years. However, if I was willing to work consistently and persistently, I could earn it quicker. I was in control. Therefore, I challenged myself to earn my PhD in 5 years…and I did it! The beauty of this experience taught me so much. But, overall it taught me that I had power within me that I never believed existed and I really did have control over it.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Presently, I’m a Tenured Nursing Professor & I love it! I have been honored to be a part of nursing education for over 25 years. And for over 20 years, I have been directly connected to preparing nursing students to take care of a human being when they are primarily, at their worst. Also, as a Nursing Professor, I’m focused on helping the School of Nursing evolve its learning strategies to benefit my nursing colleagues and students. Nursing Educators are well aware that programs across the nation, if not the world, must evolve our antiquated methods of teaching nursing students. COVID illuminated this need even more. My personal skillset thrives on creativity and innovation. By using and refining these skills I have been allowed to lead the design and development of specified nursing programs oat my job. Additionally, I have created necessary and focused faculty and student committees, which could guide the School of Nursing towards new & improved teaching methods. Particularly, one program was created to help students understand how nursing school relates to becoming a nurse before they begin their first day. Helping nursing students before they start their first nursing class will provide them with necessary information essential for their success. Nursing faculty participate in this program as guides and allow students to hear their personal nursing stories.

I am passionate about the Nursing profession and the Nurses stories. The 21st Century nurse is not understood as it relates to individuals embarking upon nursing school or nursing as a career. The reason nursing is not understood is because nurses haven’t traditionally marketed ourselves in the best way that we can. Our future marketing must involve the profession and individual nurses sharing who & what we are. When nurses share their stories, the world will recognize nursing as the empowering profession that it is. And the sharing has begun.

I have started sharing the reality of the nursing profession by creating and hosting The Nurses ROCK! Show podcast. It is truly a labor of love and I enjoy sharing nurses’ stories, interviewing nurses, informing the public about professions that nurses collaborate with, interviewing nursing students, and so much more.

I truly believe the nursing profession tag line, which states “Nursing is an art and a science”. If my students learn the basics of what I’m trying to teach them, they will have the ability to provide the kind of care that they or their loved one deserves. If the public learns even a little about nursing or nurses, from listening to The Nurses ROCK! podcast, then I have done what I set out to do and that makes me extremely proud.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
My connection with God, my 2 sons, my husband, my 89 yr. old Dad, my husband’s 85 & 89 yr. old parents, my siblings, my husband’s siblings, my nieces, my nephews, Nursing, the beach, and books! I am so Blessed and Thankful for all that I have learned through living my life. I aspire to share my knowledge and love for life and learning with any and everyone that is open to it. I’m especially privileged to be a true guide for my sons. All of this makes me happy because I believe loving life is the key to living it. I know that all I have and all that I am is directly connected to my love for living. All experiences we have are had for our personal learning and I embrace all of it. Without embracing the whole, I wouldn’t have the pieces that led me to the knowledge I gained by accepting the lessons learned. I know I am directly linked to everyone I interact with and the older I get the more I try to be as authentic through these relationships as I can. Living authentically ensures that my happiness will convert into joy, especially if I’m open to it and embrace it.

Contact Info:

• Email: drdrnursesrock@gmail.com
• Website: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1939290
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drdrnursesrock/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrDRtheNurse