M. Patricia Hawley, PhD, RN
I am a graduate of St. Francis Xavier University (BScN), Dalhousie University (MN), and the University of Alberta (PhD in Nursing). I hold a tenured position as an Associate Professor in the School of Nursing at St. Francis Xavier University. I also hold an adjunct appointment in the School of Nursing at Dalhousie University.
Since my academic appointment in 1989, I have taught several courses in the four-year generic BScN program (e.g., Nursing Care of Adults I and II, Nursing Care of Children, Pharmacology in Nursing). On one occasion, I also taught Hospice Palliative Care Nursing in the Post-RN BScN Distance Nursing Program. I currently teach Nursing of Adults II and, as of September 2006, I have held the position of Curriculum Coordinator in the School of Nursing.
Prior to my academic appointment, I practiced nursing in a variety of acute care settings, working as a staff nurse on several general and specialized medical and surgical units, in the emergency room, and in the neurosurgical intensive care unit. I have conducted research and presented my work locally, nationally, and internationally. I have also published in peer-reviewed national and international journals. Several of my publications are on topics that are of particular interest to emergency room and critical care nurses. I participate as a reviewer in the journal peer-review process. My program of research, which includes nursing art and comforting in nursing, is directed toward furthering an understanding of the nature of artful nursing and expert practice, scholarship which, I believe, is essential to the pursuit of excellence in nursing practice. It is my hope that through my scholarship, practitioners and students of nursing will discover meaning in and come to understand nursing in a way that is enlightening, affirming, and empowering. Relational ethics, nursing philosophy, and the experience of illness are among my other scholarly interests.
Over the years I have served on many university-wide committees (e.g., Senate, Rank and Tenure, Committee on Studies, Faculty Development Committee) and I have been involved in a number of professional activities at the local and provincial level (e.g., CRNNS Educational Advisory Committee). I currently hold a variety of professional memberships, including a long-standing membership with the Canadian Nurses Foundation and the International Association for Human Caring. I am an inductee of Sigma Theta Tau’s International Honor Society of Nursing (Mu Sigma Chapter). I have been awarded several research grants and I have been the recipient of several educational awards, including scholarships and fellowships, during my pursuit of advanced education in nursing. My vision emphasizes the pursuit of nursing excellence. Achieving this vision will involve my continued commitment to nursing scholarship, preserving my passion for nursing, and actualizing my potential as a catalyst for the next generation of nurses.