Doris Jackson is a registered nurse and Director of Nursing at Lone Star College—Kingwood in Texas. She is completing her dissertation in the Doctor of Health Administration (DHA) program at Capella University. In July 2015, Jackson was appointed by Texas Governor Gregg Abbott to be Board Member of The Texas Board of Nursing, and in August 2016, she was promoted from professor for the associate degree nursing program at Lone Star College to Director of Nursing. She shares why her DHA program has been so important in her career achievements.
Q. How did your health care career begin?
A. My mother was a nurse. She helped everyone—at her job or just the people on our street. That’s just how she was. I was also a military brat and met lots of military nurses. I started work as a unit secretary, but eventually became a licensed practical nurse (LVN) at Texas Children’s Hospital. I knew it was where I belonged—I was born to help!
Q. What drew you to advanced education?
A. In 1999, I got my bachelor’s in nursing (BSN). After working in the field for a while, I realized that to advance in my field, especially into leadership roles, I needed a master’s in nursing (MSN) like so many of the directors I knew. To get to their level and open up more career opportunities for myself, I earned my MSN in 2006.
Q. Up to that point, you focused on nursing, but when you enrolled for doctoral studies, you chose health care rather than nursing. What inspired that decision?
A. When I was asked to teach at Lone Star College-Kingwood, I knew I’d eventually need a doctoral degree not only to teach associate-degree nurses but to advance in academia. I also realized I needed to know more about health care administration. I decided to go with the health administration program rather than nursing because I thought (and I was right) that it would give me a different perspective on the field. I’d been a nursing manager for several years, but to look at the field from the perspective of health care overall gave me greater insight.
Q. Why Capella?
A. I researched several universities, both traditional and online. Just seeing the rigorous requirements and depth of classes offered made me want Capella. And I’m not the only one in my family! After learning about my experience, my brother and sister-in-law are both enrolled at Capella now.
Q. What was the Capella experience like?
A. In the beginning, it was scary. But my enrollment counselor was so patient. The courses and instructors were awesome, and it ended up being a fantastic experience. The advisors were all particularly helpful. I have had three different mentors for my dissertation, but from what I understand, that’s true of most doctoral programs.
Q. Did achieving the DHA help your career?
A. Having this degree has definitely made a difference in my personal and professional career.
I remember in my Leadership for Health Professionals course, one of the objectives was to outline why the study of leadership is important to professionals in the health industry and what challenges in the industry would require quality leadership. I knew in order for me to answer this question, I had to define what I thought leadership meant. I learned as a leader that I perform two roles—one as a practitioner, directly in touch with the delivery of quality care in health care organizations, and the other to create change as a process for improvement.
The challenges in the health care industry are many, but the most important to me is the demand for quality nurses to fill the 2 million shortage of nurses that began in 2015. Part of this challenge includes educating nursing students with the necessary tools they need to become critical thinking, passionate, knowledgeable, and caring nurses.
In my new role as Director of Nursing at Lone Star College North Harris campus, that course was one of several that provided the tools I needed to be successful. I feel I have gained the confidence to become a great leader.
Q. You were recently invited to join the Texas Board of Nursing. Did your DHA help you with that?
A. I would not have applied to the board in the first place without the DHA. I was in the dissertation phase, and I think, if I hadn’t been that far along, I wouldn’t have been invited. They were looking specifically for someone with a DHA to represent associate degree nursing teachers. Without the DHA, the Board appointment would not have been possible.
Learn more about Capella’s Doctor of Health Administration degree program.
