Dr. Bradley has worked in education, staff/professional development, and academia for over 30 years. She has been an inservice educator, consultant, mentor, manager, director, Vice President and Chief Clinical Learning Officer, assistant professor, and associate dean. Over the years she became known for her expertise in program evaluation and measurement. She has authored articles on various aspects of nursing professional development (NPD) practice and currently serves on the Journal for Nurses in Professional Development Editorial Board. She chaired the 2010 NPD scope and standards revision and was a recipient of the Belinda Puetz award. She describes herself as "always considered a bit on the lunatic fringe," and she received a large grant to create a globally accessible virtual center for learning and innovation. She is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing. Most recently, she is focusing on developing and mentoring NPD leaders of the future.
1. What are the significant professional milestones in your career journey?
DB: I have been so fortunate to have an exciting and sometimes very challenging career trajectory. My NPD career started when I was assigned to inservice after sustaining a significant injury during a code. I experienced the joy of seeing "light bulbs" come on and realized I had a knack for challenging the norm and creating meaningful and fun "training." Later, I became an inservice educator.
Thinking about significant milestones, the one that stands out as a catalyst to my career occurred in my PhD program. I was assigned to work as a research assistant on the school's program evaluation plan. To my total surprise, I loved outcome evaluation. Little did I know at the time that this passion would take me down the unexpected path.
I met Dr. Barbara DiCarlo, a national leader in continuing nursing education. She discovered my expertise in measurement and sponsored me as a project's analyst for an American Nurses Association and National Nursing Staff Development Organization (NNSDO) collaboration to identify advanced competencies for a Nursing Professional Development-Advanced certification. Not only did the opportunity let me use my growing expertise at a national level, but I also met many leaders in the specialty including Dr. Belinda Peutz, who became a constant in my career.
After finishing my PhD, I "reentered" the NPD practice world. My first presentation at an NNSDO conference was "Making a Molehill out of a Mountain[horizontal ellipsis]Measurement in Staff Development." I found out that my passion for measurement and program evaluation, presentation style, as well as my sense of humor were unique-unexpectedly, I had found my NPD "niche." A couple of other highlights were coauthoring an article on validating competency at the bedside that was awarded the Helen Tobin writers award and serving as a director on the NNSDO Board and many task force and projects since.
Unexpectedly in 2008, I was asked to chair a phenomenal team of nurses across the nation to revise the 2000 Scope & Standards. The 2010 publication outlined an entirely new NPD system model focusing on the unique practice of NPD within organizations and articulated the outputs of NPD practice as learning, professional growth, and development and change. It is with great joy that I continue to see how the work continues to influence NPD practice and has been refined in the 2015 Scope & Standards.
More recently, my career took an unexpected yet exciting turn; I received a 6.4-million-dollar grant to develop a virtual center for global learning and innovation. A highlight was working with what I affectionally referred to as the "Dream Team." Through them, I learned that I don't have to be an expert in everything; instead, as a leader my role is to support the team, keep the vision in sight, and remove barriers. There is nothing more rewarding than seeing a team exceed their own expectations. Looking back at these milestones, I have been truly blessed by having many unexpected opportunities; but more importantly, none of it would have happened without wonderful mentors, colleague, visionary leaders, friends, as well as my husband Jim-to whom I am very thankful.
2. How have you seen the specialty of NPD grow/evolve/change during your career?
DB: All I can say is WOW! I have witnessed remarkable growth in the NPD specialty. Yet most of all, I think NPD practitioners themselves are changing. When I started, many nurses went into "inservice" near retirement; now, it can be a lifelong career. NPD practitioners are highly educated with more of our practitioners getting master's, DNPs, and PhDs. We are making incredible strides in advancing our knowledge and science. NPD practitioners are finding their way "to the table" and are being viewed as influential proactive learning leaders. Definitely evolutionary!
3. What do you see as significant trends or gaps in NPD practice from your perspective as an expert in NPD practices, leadership, and innovation?
DB: The expansion of cognitive sciences and technology is going to "rock our world," and we need to embrace them. I envision the cognitive sciences becoming foundational for NPD practice. I think we will see the concept of "adaptive learning" actualized as a viable means to operationalized 24/7 "personalize learning." Yes, we are going to see virtual and augmented reality become part of our learning facilitation toolkit. So, as forward thinkers, NPD practitioners must begin forecasting and testing these new concepts and technologies and be ready to create a more vibrant and impactful learning environment soon. "We need to BOLDLY go[horizontal ellipsis]."
4. What insights can you share related to the value of NPD in healthcare organizations now and in the future?
DB: Today's organizations are dynamic and complex requiring constant practice change. Consequently, it is a wise NPD practitioner that capitalizes on the NPD outputs of learning and change. NPD needs to develop compelling messages regarding our contributions to effective change. In that light, I challenge each of you to develop sophisticated assessment skills to ensure you can truly "diagnose" the problem and successfully articulate the best change solutions organization, which may or may not be education. Otherwise, we will relegate ourselves to developing ineffective education, which will lead NPD departments to be perceived as offering non-value-added work. Remember, we are learning experts and know the best learning practices to create "sticky" change.
5. What advice do you have for NPD practitioners in the context of today's healthcare and learning environments?
DB: Recognize yourself as "Learning Leaders." Almost everyone think they can "teach"; however, NPD practitioners have specialized skills and knowledge to efficiently and effectively facilitate learning, change, and professional role competence and growth. In today's healthcare environment, do not underestimate the value of these outputs for nurses, patient care, and the organization. Expect learning to be a key differentiator for practice in the future. Remember, always be ready for the unexpected!