Sacramento Nurse's Online Master's Degree Propelled Her Career

Lucinda Wiseman worked as a nurse in 10 different states across the country while earning her associate's and bachelor's degrees. Now with a master's degree in nursing from University of Phoenix, Wiseman is the senior director of medical surgical nursing at Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Sacramento. In this leadership role, she helps nurses provide the best possible care for the patients in this award winning facility.

How did education impact your life and goals?

Wiseman began studying nursing when her family urged her to do something practical, but had a revelation while in school on a clinical rotation. "It dawned on me that I was happy," she says. "Since then, nursing has been my passion, my life." Schooling turned what had merely been an occupation into a true calling, and helped her understand "the value of human connection."

In addition to learning job skills, what else did you gain by earning your bachelor's degree?

This step in Wiseman's education helped her search for and define "core values, both personally and professionally." Students, she notes, were taught to be patient-centered, with a strong sense of teamwork and dedication to excellence. "We learned that nursing is an art as well as a science," Wiseman says. These were building blocks upon which her career was built that have guided her professional life ever since.

How has having a master's degree benefited your career?

The leadership and administrative skills learned while earning the advanced degree have been invaluable, and have helped ensure a better outcome for the patients cared for by her and her staff. Instead of directly caring for four or five patients herself, Wiseman's guidance helps nurses positively impact all of the patients and their families in the 158-bed facility. Being able to earn her degree online rather than on a campus was very helpful. "I moved around a lot," Wiseman says. "And school went with me."

Valerie Heimerich is a freelance writer out of Sacramento. She typically covers animals and community issues. She has volunteered and worked for many organizations helping animals and people.
Her work can be found at Examiner.com.