SCHOLAR DIRECTORY

Timothy Burns is a registered nurse and firefighter/paramedic for many years. He graduated from Broome Community College with his Associate’s Degree in Nursing (1994), followed by his Bachelors of Science in Nursing from Utica College (2013) and Masters of Science in Nursing with a nurse educator focus from the University of Central Florida (2016). He is a current PhD student at Saint Louis University. In the past, he has been employed as a registered nurse in the intensive care unit and level II Trauma Center Emergency Department at Wilson Memorial Hospital in Johnson City, New York and is currently a firefighter/paramedic with the City of Binghamton Fire Department. Concurrent to his employment as a firefighter/paramedic, he is also employed as a registered nurse in the emergency department at Binghamton General Hospital. Twice he was awarded the Marion Bender Scholarship at Saint Louis University. He has been the recipient of the Deans and Directors of Nursing Programs in the Greater St. Louis Area scholarship, and is a member of Sigma Theta Tau, Alpha Sigma Lambda and Phi Kappa Phi. As a lifelong provider of emergency services, Tim has experienced firsthand the mental health strain, in particular stress and anxiety, that plagues emergency care providers. Moving forward, his research agenda will focus on the effects of this strain and the coping related to stress and anxiety in emergency department nurses.

Kirk Butler is currently a Doctor of Nursing Practice – Nurse Anesthesia student at the University of Minnesota. Kirk attended the University of Missouri on an ROTC scholarship and commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Army. While stationed in the Pacific his experiences recognizing the impact an anesthetist could have on a Soldier’s health led him on a career trajectory towards critical care and nursing anesthesia. When a leadership opportunity with a combat unit was available, he transferred to JBLM, Washington to join the 3-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team surgeon cell. This experience exposed him to the damaging effects of war on Soldiers coming back from deployment. These experiences would gravitate him back to the bedside to pursue nurse anesthesia. Veterans represent a unique population where chronic pain issues affect the population with higher prevalence rates than non-veterans. Often chronic pain is the most common denominator to many of the deleterious effects on Veterans mental health space resulting in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, depression, substance abuse, and addictive behaviors. Veterans with untreated chronic pain can lead to non-healthful coping alternatives such as misuse of alcohol, drugs, and risky lifestyle choices to deal with the negative consequences of persisting pain. Better pain management strategies can prevent the damaging effects that unremedied chronic pain can have on a Veteran’s health. As a CRNA, Kirk has the novel perspective of being a Veteran seeking to support improved pain management modalities to taper the effects of chronic pain leading to mental health compromise.

I am a PhD student in the College of Nursing at the University of Utah. My research interests are primarily in better supporting patients, family caregivers and clinicians in end-of-life settings. I am most interested in understanding how to foster growth through trauma and loss. I am a licensed clinical social worker with a Masters in Social Work from Portland State University. I previously worked at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City with an organization that specializes in treating children who have suffered abuse, neglect or who have witnessed a traumatic event. I currently work as an oncology social worker at Huntsman Cancer Institute where I provide psychosocial support to patients, families and staff members. During my studies in the School of Social Work at Portland State University, I served as the student representative on the Executive Board of the National Association of Social Workers. During this time I was also awarded the Winkel award for excellence in Social Service Administration and Leadership. Before graduate school, I obtained Bachelor’s degrees in Community Health and Spanish at Tufts University. I graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2008. During my undergraduate career, I served as the Community Health Team Leader with Engineers Without Borders where I assisted in developing, administering and analyzing health surveys among populations in El Salvador and Honduras.