COVID-19 and Academic Practice Partnerships: During Pandemic and Beyond

Jerry Mansfield, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, is the chief nursing officer for Mount Carmel Health System and associate dean for Leadership and Clinical Practice at the Mount Carmel College of Nursing.

Jerry has worked in healthcare for more than 35 years-from staff nurse roles in orthopedics and critical care to nurse executive roles in ambulatory services and at hospitals in both central Ohio and South Carolina.

He comes to Mount Carmel from Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), where he was executive chief nursing officer and chief patient experience officer. He was also an affiliate associate professor at MUSC College of Nursing and a clinical associate professor at the College of Medicine.

Prior to MUSC, Jerry worked as chief nursing officer at Ohio State Hospital East, previously known as University Hospital East, University Hospital and Ross Heart Hospital, for more than 15 years, as well as served as the first CNO of Ambulatory Services. He also worked in various nursing leadership roles at Select Specialty Hospital of Columbus, OrthoExcel, Grant Wound Care Center and OhioHealth Grant Medical Center.

Jerry graduated with a diploma in nursing from Saint Vincent Hospital School of Nursing in Toledo. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Xavier University. He went on to receive a Master of Science degree in nursing administration, along with a doctorate in public health from The Ohio State University. Jerry is a Robert Wood Johnson Executive Nurse Fellow and board-certified Nurse Executive Advanced from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

Jerry serves on two national boards: the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2020 to present) and the Friends of the National Institute of Nursing Research (2018 to present).

Jerry and his wife Jane have two adult sons-Erik in Scottsdale, AZ and Evan in Columbus, OH.

As President and Academic Dean of the Mount Carmel College of Nursing in Columbus, Ohio. Dr. Williamson provides oversight and leadership to direct, promote and facilitate a culture that promotes student and faculty engagement and encourages collaborations with other health professionals breaking down the educational silos. She remains active in scholarly activities and continues to publish and present her work. As an educator and researcher, she is a role model, a mentor, a consultant & a lecturer. Dr. Williamson continues to work with a variety of interprofessional disciplines in integrating the best evidence in order to influence health policy, patient/provider/system outcomes and disseminating evidence to advance the practice across all healthcare settings. Dr. Williamson continues to bring new knowledge about EBP, innovative ways to use technology, and research to faculty, students, and clinicians nationally and internationally. She is a member of the Editorial Board and Column Editor for Tactics for Teaching Evidence-based Practice in Worldviews on Evidence-Based Practice Journal. Dr. Williamson achieved her PhD from the University of Delaware.

Tener Goodwin Veenema, PhD, MPH, MS, is a Contributing Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and a Professor of Nursing and Public Health in the Department of International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. At the Center, she conducts, manages, and leads research projects to explore health systems optimization and healthcare worker protection during disasters and large-scale biological events. She also serves as an Associate Editor of the peer-reviewed journal Health Security (formerly Biosecurity and Bioterrorism). Dr. Veenema’s program of research focuses upon informing evidence-based policy related to health care systems and public health response for catastrophic events such as pandemics and radiation/nuclear disasters. She has conducted national workforce analyses evaluating emergency healthcare worker readiness and health systems coordination for disaster response in Ireland, Japan and the United States. Dr. Veenema is currently conducting studies addressing the use of personal protective equipment and the mental health burden on emergency healthcare providers during COVID-19. She is editor of Disaster Nursing and Emergency Preparedness for Chemical, Biological and Radiological Terrorism and Other Hazards, 4th Ed., the leading textbook in the field and developer of Disaster Nursing, a digital technology application (“App”) to provide decision support during disasters at the point of care. Dr. Veenema was awarded the Florence Nightingale Medal of Honor (International Red Crescent, 2013) the highest international award in Nursing for her professional service in disasters and public health emergencies. Dr. Veenema served as the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) 2017-18 Distinguished Nurse Scholar-in-Residence.