I am pleased to welcome Brigitte S. Cypress, EdD, RN, CCRN, to the editorial board of Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing. Dr Cypress currently serves as an associate professor, Department of Nursing College of Health Sciences, East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania, and an adjunct associate professor, PhD in Nursing Program, Leinhard School of Nursing, College of Health Professions at Pace University in Pleasantville, New York.
Dr Cypress earned an EdD in 2009 at Teachers College Columbia University. In 2004, she was awarded an MS from Lehman College, City University of New York (CUNY), and began her career with a BSN in 1988, from Far Eastern University, Manila, Philippines.
Dr Cypress holds certification from the American Association of Critical Care Nurses as a critical care registered nurse from 1993 and is a fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine since 2015. As an educator, critical care nurse, and qualitative researcher and phenomenologist, her scholarly interests include qualitative research, phenomenology, family-centered care/family presence, patient-family-nurse experience, intensive care unit/critical care experience, evidence-based practice, concept analysis, nursing theories/theory development, and philosophy of science.
Her professional affiliations span local and international organizations such as International Merleau-Ponty Circle, International Network for Doctoral Education in Nursing, International Family Nursing Society, International Council of Nurses' Research and Nursing Education Network, World Phenomenology Institute, International Coalition of North American Phenomenologists, Council for the Advancement of Nursing Science, International Institute for Qualitative Methodology, and Philosophy of Science Association, to name a few. She also presents her research findings in numerous articles, posters, and other published works at peer-reviewed conferences and workshops and, at times, as a keynote speaker in different countries including the Philippines, Poland, South Korea, Canada, England, Ireland, Scotland, Norway, Denmark, Singapore, Mexico, Thailand, Taiwan, Czech Republic, Italy, Sweden, and many states in the United States.
Dr Cypress stated, "I am mostly proud of my community and student research mentoring work and my commitment to community-campus partnerships and collaboration. I previously mentored two Senior high school, pre-college Hispanic Americans from the Bronx Center for Science and Mathematics, a research internship and academic tutoring through the City University of New York (CUNY) and College NOW Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Institute's Research Academy at Lehman College. A research project proposal and paper entitled, 'Lived Experiences of Transformation during Critical Illness: Patients, Family Members and their Nurses' was accepted to compete for Poster Presentation at the New York City Science and Engineering Fair (NYCSeF) in 2015 at City College, CUNY, and at the 3rd Bronx SciFest and 7th Annual Research and Scholarship Day on the same year at Lehman College, CUNY. The year after, I mentored two more Senior high school, pre-college students from the High School of American Studies. A research project proposal and paper entitled 'Understanding the Lived Experiences of Patients, Family Members and Nurses during Critical Illness in the Emergency Department' was completed and submitted to compete at the 4th Bronx SciFest and 8th Lehman College Annual Research and Scholarship Day in at Lehman College, CUNY. The proposal and the poster both won Second (2nd) Place for Research Excellence. I plan to continue this work in my university."
To continue to build her research program, Dr Cypress has been increasingly interested in mixed method research methodology and empirical research and would like to find ways of connecting and collaborating with researchers in her area of expertise and related works. She also plans to continue to work locally with various groups including the young upcoming researchers to co-create new ways of thinking about family presence in critical care units.
Dr Cypress published her first article ever in DCCN in 2010. In fact, she received her acceptance letter for publication from the Chief Editor Vickie Miracle in June 2009 as she was about to receive her Best Research Award in the New Scholar Category from Callista Roy at the Roy Adaptation Association Conference at Boston College. She has been a reviewer for the journal since 2011 and has a very collegial, respectful, and good friendship with Vickie. She enjoys and loves to give her detailed comments on the qualitative and critical care manuscripts as she also learns a lot from the authors as well as from Vickie. Dr Cypress plans to continue her contribution to the journal by sharing her expertise in critical care, evidence-based practice, theory development, philosophy, and qualitative research and as a phenomenologist through reviewing manuscripts and giving suggestions and insights on how the journal can uphold and maintain its criteria in selecting quality articles for publication in these areas. She plans to meet the Editorial Board one day to collaborate and continue to support DCCN's contributions to scholarly publication. I was honored to meet Dr Cypress last summer, in Boston, when she presented at the World Phenomenology Institute Conference in Harvard University.
As a serious and very productive author who reads every day, Dr Cypress is a "globe trekker" as she calls herself. She travels at least 3 times a year out of the country since 1995 and spends 1 to 2 months in Europe during the summer months to "empty her brain." She also loves to hike and "trek" along lakes, hills, mountains, volcanoes, ice, glaciers, and other challenging areas. These adventures allow her to come back to work with a fresh perspective on her writing, professional work, and endeavors, as she stated. She has yet to go to Antarctica and just came back from a month trek in Greenland, Faroe Islands (her second time), and Iceland-her favorite country. It was her seventh time in Iceland! Dr Cypress also loves good food and the theater. She often watches operas, ballet shows, and musicals in New York (again for the same reason-empty her brain from time to time).
We are fortunate to have Dr Cypress join our editorial board. She continues to support DCCN as a reviewer, an author, and a trusted advisor. Please share our enthusiasm as we welcome her to our board.