BSN Senior Gustafson Creates New Image for Nursing

Kim Gustafson '01 a media star for nursing

By Mary Boone
Communications students dream of the exposure Kimberly Gustafson '01, has received: a television commercial that debuted nationally during UW's Rose Bowl appearance, and a 60-second spot airing on National Public Radio.
Gustafson, though, isn't gunning for a big-time media career. She's simply using herpublic speaking skills to promote her passion for nursing.

"I've always known I wanted to do something in health care. I just didn't know it would be nursing until I gained hospital experience. Now, I can't imagine doing anything else," says Gustafson, who hopes to work in pediatric intensive care. After a few years of real-world experience, she'd like to enter a nursing doctoral program.

Gustafson has used her position as president of the UW Professional Organization of Nursing Students to reach out to students interested in nursing through a freshman seminar she designed and coordinated. She also coordinated a workshop at the Ethnic Cultural Center for underrepresented students interested in nursing.

The list goes on: Gustafson spoke on behalf of nursing students at a UW Visiting Committee and Advisory Board Day and represented the School of Nursing and UW Undergraduate Research Society at Legislative Day in Olympia.

She's published her findings about a prostate cancer research protocol in the American Association of Cancer Research journal, and presented at both the Mary Gates Undergraduate Research Symposium and Western Institute of Nursing Research Conference.

This year, she's busy with an independent research project exploring the infant stress response.

"There are just so many things a person can do with a nursing degree, from drug research to clinic work to teaching," she says. "It's obvious that being part of this profession is not only to have a terrific career, but to have earned an exciting privilege to have an impact on many lives."

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