| | UAHuntsville clinical professor among first to receive doctorate in HomeLand Security Nursing(4/09/2009)
When Steven Busby, a clinical assistant professor of Nursing at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAHuntsville) graduates in a few months, he will be the first person in the state of Alabama — and one of six people in the United States to complete a PhD, with a specialty in Homeland Security Nursing (HSN). Busby, who began teaching at UAHuntsville in 2003, discovered the HSN program at The University Tennessee Knoxville (UTK) while visiting surrounding universities trying to decide where he would pursue his advanced degree. "After contacting UTK, I found out about the Homeland Security Nursing program and it really seemed to be a good fit for me with my paramedic background." Busby said the HSN program at UTK started with federal funds from a Health Resources and Services Administration Grant. At UAHuntsville, Busby is the coordinator of nurse practitioner programs and teaches in the classroom and clinically, in primary care of adults for nurse practitioners, and clinically in pediatrics and women's health. "The recent experiences of Hurricane Katrina, and the 9/11 terrorist attacks made me realize that since nursing is the largest individual healthcare discipline in the country, as first responders for potential mass casualty disasters and public health emergencies we need to be highly involved at the state, national and international levels of response," he said. Busby began his nursing career while serving as a paramedic in the Tampa Bay area several years ago, when males in the profession were scarce. "The local community college began offering a paramedic to registered nurse (RN) program based on emergency workers' unusual schedule: 24 hours on, and 48 hours off. I have always been interested in improving and advancing my critical care knowledge and skill. Although I can't say that I was one of those people who always dreamed of being a nurse, I thought it would be a great opportunity and it has been." When Busby began researching his dissertation topic, "Situational Awareness (SA) in Multi-Casualty Incidents: Theory Development from the Field," he quickly realized that although the term is used often, very little has been written about SA except in aviation, military and business applications. "I felt it could be applied to large scale civilian incidents. However, there was virtually no literature," he said. "I realized the best way to get a grasp of the concept, would be to start with smaller more antecedent-sized incidents. You can't do theory testing until there is theory, and there wasn't any. So, I set out to develop a theory of situational awareness in multi-casualty incidents." He said state officials, and staff at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center were instrumental in helping him develop an interest in situational awareness by allowing him to assist with some aspects of the development of a new statewide SA tool. "Everyone involved was very helpful to me and I learned so much." This program is called "Virtual Alabama and is ‘a first of its kind in the nation' SA tool. It is built on a Google Earth platform, and acts as a visualization engine that delivers urgent data to hundreds of state and local officials from police and fire departments, to health care providers and emergency operations center officials" he explained. The Alabama Department of Homeland Security launched Virtual Alabama in the summer of 2006. "One of the critical things that needs to happen in a mass emergency event such as a natural disaster or other public health emergency, is that first responders and managers need to have access to the same data. Virtual Alabama offers excellent topographical features and so much more. It allows views of high-resolution imagery, with many added layers," Busby noted. "These layers include, flood plains, video of the inside of critical infrastructure, sketch-ups of the insides of buildings which allow a virtual walk-thru to be done and much more." For Busby, nursing is a nurturing and caring profession, one he refuses to label as feminine or masculine. "Nursing is taking a genuine interest in another person and approaching the care provided with real empathy. It's having someone's best interest in mind while providing care that's needed," he said. "Another way of visualizing nursing is treating others the way you would want you or your family member treated," he explained further. "But, caring is not enough. Nurses are highly trained to provide care in very high-tech environments. The equipment, medication and advanced procedures required in today's fast-paced medical and nursing world are very challenging …. nursing is a very noble profession and we must keep up with constant changes. I frequently tell my students, ‘We're not baking cookies here.'" Busby's devotion to his students is evident. "I am truly interested in my students' ability to reach their optimal level of professionalism, knowledge and skill. I take a genuine interest in them and that makes a difference." In the future, Busby plans to become more involved in community emergency preparedness efforts, in addition to his teaching responsibilities at the UAHuntsville College of Nursing. "I really would like to develop an HSN course, maybe as an elective at first." Meanwhile, Busby isn't allowing grass to grow underfoot. He has been appointed to the Alabama 1 Disaster Medical Assistance Team with the federal National Disaster Medical System (NDMS). The NDMS is a federal team that will respond wherever dispatched in the United States, and internationally should a public health emergency or mass casualty disaster occur worldwide. Busby is a native of Tampa, Fla. He moved to Huntsville from Dothan a few years ago. He and his wife, Mary, are the parents of two children, Eric 13, and Carly 9. Both attend Madison County Schools. Busby will receive his PhD from UTK this summer. For more information: Joyce Maples, (256)824-6414 |
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