Who is a Nurse Engineer?
Who is a “nurse engineer” and what the best way to achieve the goals of this initiative? Research conducted to date suggests grouping resources in the following ways – each group lends its own lens and benefit to the goals of this initiative.
Roles in the community
“Partners” are professionals that do not have formal training or experience in either the nursing or engineering professions – yet they support nurse-engineering collaborations. These are the allies that help each profession see the power of collaboration and lend skills that neither profession has.
“Drivers” are professionals that specialize and are trained in either nursing or engineering and desire to or already collaborate with one another.
“Catalysts” are professionals that have sought formal training and experiences in both professions. However, because they trained in one of the professions first, their lens into the other profession is impacted by previous experience. These professionals often have a unique perspective on specific problems they encountered in their previous experience.
“Convergers” are the newest professionals on the scene. They have been simultaneously educated as nurses and engineers and are entering the workforce with a dual trained lens.
Does the label or pathway to nurse engineer matter?
In a response that engineers will likely bristle from and a nurse will likely embrace is, “it depends”. Given the urgent need to collaborate to solve healthcare problems there is a place for every interested professional to contribute. Yet, human psychology teaches us that we will move faster in these collaborations with a shared structure that supports our mutual understanding. I will use the above suggested terminology to highlight educational and human resources. These terms are open for discussion and will be updated as the field evolves.
