“While people in Omaha may see ‘Serious Medicine, Extraordinary Care’ as a slogan; we see it as a call to action.”
As a nurse, I feel that I am constantly changing and growing. I chose nursing because of the endless career possibilities. I knew that I would never be bored or stifled as the medical field is constantly changing and discovering new therapies. This constant evolution and pursuit of knowledge is thrilling to me. I truly enjoy the interaction with people that is a part of nursing which I could never fully sever from my job. I have a passion for the first-hand care of people.
I started my career as a certified nursing assistant on a medical-surgical unit while I was studying at Creighton University. At that time, I was planning to pursue medical school after my undergraduate work. However I fell in love with nursing and could not see myself doing anything else. I continue to feel the same way today. I am able to work closely with patients and provide all their basic cares. The close, personal care of the patient is what makes me excited to come to work every day.
After graduation from the BSN program, I started in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at another Omaha hospital. At first, I worked the night shift and developed time management and critical thinking skills. The work was challenging and exhausting, both mentally and physically. These patients required acute care. It was exciting and rewarding to see the rapid changes in their health based on our interventions. However after working for three years, I felt the need to return to a higher level of academics without walking away from the clinical setting.
Jillian Negril is a nurse practitioner at Nebraska Medicine
I enrolled in the Acute Care Nurse Practitioner program at Creighton University but continued to work full-time. At that time, I also added a focus in cardiovascular care. It was an intense, rigorous program that tested me on every level but I enjoyed the expansion and depth of new knowledge that I gained. Working with nurse practitioners and physicians helped to apply this new knowledge into the care of the patients. My physician preceptor even commented that he enjoyed working with students because it kept his practice up to date with the latest literature for evidence based care. I worked with a multidisciplinary team of students in a root cause analysis competition. This opened a whole new world of strategies for healthcare that were more associated with systematic care and infrastructure over the day-to-day work of the nurse that I had become accustomed. We traveled to Minnesota and presented our root cause analysis in a competition format. I was then invited to travel to China with a multidisciplinary group to consult at the Third Hebei Hospital. We were able to learn about the healthcare structure and patient care in this part of the world. It gave me a new understanding of the global healthcare community and how that impacts the healthcare that I deliver. I graduated excited to start my new role with my new knowledge base.
As a novice in a new role, I did not feel prepared for the immense responsibility as a nurse practitioner. Choosing your first job with a new role is difficult and fraught with pitfalls. I felt that choosing a position with a hospital medicine service with an established group of both physicians and nurse practitioners was the optimal placement. The internal medicine focus allowed me to see the specialist point of view from their notes and understand their thought process on each particular disease state. This position also provided a good transition from student to provider as there were other providers available for immediate consultation.
About a year after graduating with my masters’ degree, I took a position as an adjunct faculty member at Creighton University in the graduate program. While my work is mainly limited to online grading and site visits, it opened my eyes and heart to teaching. I have also enjoyed having students in the clinical setting and expanding my educational workflow. I enjoy seeing a student improve and become a competent provider.
As my family expanded during that time, I required a more stable work schedule. I was offered a job as a Vascular Surgery Nurse Practitioner at Nebraska Medicine. The challenges of working with such an ill, refractory, and, at times, defiant population is exciting. The passion of my life is the cardiovascular patient and I was happy to return to this population. I am also able to work with the poor, indigent and needy. As a nurse, I feel called to provide service for the people that others may overlook. My job is challenging and difficult but I love it.
Working with the academic vascular surgeons has inspired and encouraged me to expand my own research career. The surgeons I work with are heavily involved in ongoing research and I find their research fascinating. We, as a team, continually try to apply the results of new research to our clinical practice. The support of research is truly unbelievable here. I am able to pursue patient care as a provider in the clinic as well as the research role. In addition, there are opportunities to speak to other NPs, PAs, and other disciplines about my work. This sharing of knowledge and education is optimal for providing the highest level of evidence based practice and patient care.
I feel passionate about caring for people and I feel that passion is a requirement to work at Nebraska Medicine. While people in Omaha may see “Serious Medicine, Extraordinary Care” as a slogan; we see it as a call to action. I chose Nebraska Medicine for the commitment to research, the care of the indigent, and the cutting-edge patient-care therapies that require continual work. I chose Nebraska Medicine to improve my practice and expand my knowledge base. I feel lucky to work with APP and physician colleagues that feel similarly.
To learn about career opportunities as a nurse practitioner at Nebraska Medicine, click here.