Carol Fowler Durham () is an American Clinical Professor of Nursing and

Doctor of Education The Doctor of Education (Ed.D. or D.Ed.; Latin ''Educationis Doctor'' or ''Doctor Educationis'') is (depending on region and university) a research or professional doctoral degree that focuses on the field of education. It prepares the holder for ...

who is known as a leader in the fields of Healthcare Quality and Safety,

nursing education Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ca ...

, interprofessional education, and

medical simulation Medical simulation, or more broadly, healthcare simulation, is a branch of simulation related to education and training in medical fields of various industries. Simulations can be held in the classroom, in situational environments, or in spaces b ...

. Durham was inducted as a Fellow of the

National League for Nursing The National League for Nursing (NLN) is a national organization for faculty nurses and leaders in nurse education. It offers faculty development, networking opportunities, testing services, nursing research grants, and public policy initiativ ...

Academy of Nursing Education in 2009 and inducted as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing in 2013. Durham is a professor and Director of the Education-Innovation-Simulation Learning Environment (EISLE) for the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which r ...

School of Nursing. She is also a past president of the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning and the Sigma Theta Tau Alpha Alpha chapter. As of 2016, Durham also serves on the board of directors for the Global Network for Simulation in Healthcare.

Background

Durham was born on in

Laurinburg, North Carolina Laurinburg is a city in and the county seat of Scotland County, North Carolina, United States. Located in southern North Carolina near the South Carolina border, Laurinburg is southwest of Fayetteville and is home to St. Andrews University. T ...

, to Henry and Marie Fowler. She was the oldest of two children and they grew up in Rockfish, North Carolina. Durham’s father died when she was 13 years old after eight years with

scleroderma Scleroderma is a group of autoimmune diseases that may result in changes to the skin, blood vessels, muscles, and internal organs. The disease can be either localized to the skin or involve other organs, as well. Symptoms may include areas o ...

. He died in the VA hospital in

Fayetteville, North Carolina Fayetteville () is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city. Fayettev ...

, and Durham was inspired by the nurses who provided care to her father. That is what led to her interest in pursuing a career in nursing.

Early education and career

Durham attended Hoke County High School in

Raeford, North Carolina Raeford is a city in Hoke County, North Carolina, United States. Its population was 4,611 at the 2010 census, and in 2018, the estimated population was 4,962. It is the county seat of Hoke County. History John McRae and A.A. Williford operated a ...

, where she graduated in 1972. In 1976, Durham graduated with a

Bachelor of Science in Nursing The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN, BScN) also known in some countries as a Bachelor of Nursing (BN) or Bachelor of Science (BS) with a Major in Nursing is an academic degree in the science and principles of nursing, granted by an accredited ...

from

Western Carolina University Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...

Cullowhee, North Carolina Cullowhee
, from the North Carolina Collection website at the

. Following graduation, Durham worked as a staff nurse at CJ Harris Hospital in

Sylva, North Carolina Sylva is an incorporated town located in central Jackson County, in the Plott Balsam Mountains of Western North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 2,588. It is the county seat, taking over t ...

. Durham moved to

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the South ...

, where she worked as a

coronary care unit A coronary care unit (CCU) or cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) is a hospital ward specialized in the care of patients with heart attacks, unstable angina, cardiac dysrhythmia and (in practice) various other cardiac conditions that require co ...

nurse at Rex Hospital. Durham worked as a research data technician at the

School of Nursing while working on her

Master of Science in Nursing A Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) is an advanced-level postgraduate degree for registered nurses and is considered an entry-level degree for nurse educators and managers. The degree also may prepare a nurse to seek a career as a nurse admin ...

. Following her graduation in 1982, Durham began as an instructor in the UNC School of Nursing while working in cardiac rehabilitation and patient educator at the non-profit Orange Cardiovascular Foundation.

Simulation

While at UNC, Durham was a teaching assistant in the skills lab in 1981. The skills labs at UNC were renamed in 1996 under Durham's direction. The lab was once again renamed to become the School of Nursing Education-Innovation-Simulation Learning Environment (EISLE) where Durham has continued to grow educational methodologies beyond traditional

into interprofessional education and

. Durham is an internationally recognized expert in simulation for quality improvement, education, and assessment with simulation methodologies. Durham has been a member of the RWJFs Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) project since 2005, when she developed simulation-based educational activities to reflect cutting-edge

pedagogy Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...

. In 2009, Durham completed the

program at

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universi ...

concentrating on adult and higher education. The

invited Durham to a "Debriefing Strategic Think Tank" in 2014 to provide guidance for "Debriefing Across the Curriculum". This event was held in collaboration with International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning. In 2015, Durham was invited by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) to join the eight member task force that developed simulation guidelines for state boards of nursing in response to the NCSBN Simulation Study. The North Carolina AHEC sponsored a Faculty Development Institute with Drs. Durham and Gwen Sherwood providing webinars to improving continuing interprofessional education in 2015. In 2016, Durham’s team continued their interprofessional work with North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine. The team’s

One Health One Health is an approach calling for "the collaborative efforts of multiple disciplines working locally, nationally, and globally, to attain optimal health for people, animals and our environment", as defined by the One Health Initiative Task For ...

case submission was recognized in a national competition by the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) and Association for Prevention Teaching and Research. Durham served on the Terminology & Concepts Working Group for the

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ; pronounced "ark" by initiates and often "A-H-R-Q" by the public) is one of twelve agencies within the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The agency is headquartered i ...

's "Healthcare Simulation Dictionary". As of 2016, Durham also serves on the board of directors for the Global Network for Simulation in Healthcare.

Sepsis survivor

Durham was diagnosed with

sepsis Sepsis, formerly known as septicemia (septicaemia in British English) or blood poisoning, is a life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage is foll ...

in November 2010. Surviving this critical event sparked Durham’s desire to raise awareness of septic shock and how it is treated. In 2016, Durham was the Honorary Event Chair for the Third Annual Step-On-Sepsis™ awareness event. BioMérieux opened a plant in the

Research Triangle Park Research Triangle Park (RTP) is the largest research park in the United States, occupying in North Carolina and hosting more than 300 companies and 65,000 workers. The facility is named for its location relative to the three surrounding citie ...

that will focus on production of bottled sepsis blood cultures in 2017. Durham was a speaker at this event and shared her experience as both a nurse and sepsis survivor.

Awards

Durham was inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau Honor Society Alpha Alpha chapter in 1982. She was recognized with the Outstanding Faculty Award in 2000. In 2005, Durham was awarded the Nurse Educator of the Year from the NC Nursing Association. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs VISN 8 Patient Safety Center of Inquiry awarded Durham their Educator Award in 2006 for Safe Patient Handling for its outstanding efforts to change nursing curriculum, including evidence-based approaches for safe patient handling. The North Carolina Center for Nursing featured Durham in a nurse educator profile on their web site from 2006 to 2007. The healthcare simulation company METI presented Durham with their Innovative Educator Award in 2007. Durham received the Alumni of the Year award from both the University of North Carolina and Western Carolina University in 2008. Durham was inducted into the highly selective

(NLN) Academy of Nursing Education in 2009. Durham is also a member of the Simulation Innovation and Resource Center (SIRC) project headed by the NLN. The third Laurel Archer Copp Literary Award was presented to Durham in 2009. This award is “given to faculty for outstanding scholarly writing”. The

Drexel University Drexel University is a private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a financier and philanthropist. Founded as Drexel Institute of Ar ...

BAYADA Technology Award was also presented to Durham in 2009. Durham received the 2010 Academic Achievement Award from Western Carolina University. The American Academy of Nursing inducted Durham as a Fellow in 2013. In 2017, Durham received the Society for Simulation in Healthcare Presidential Citation at their annual scientific meeting for her continued efforts in the field.

Personal life

Durham met her husband Stephen McCoy Durham while in college and they married in 1976. They share an interest in simulation and her husband is a standardized patient at UNC. They have two children, Brandon Durham and Rebecca Cozart. In 2016, Durham collaborated on a One Health project with Cozart who is a

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

. They currently reside in Hillsborough, North Carolina.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Durham, Carol Fowler 1954 births Living people American medical researchers American nurses American women nurses Leaders of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill People from Hillsborough, North Carolina Nursing educators North Carolina State University alumni UNC School of Nursing alumni University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty Western Carolina University alumni People from Laurinburg, North Carolina People from Hoke County, North Carolina Women heads of universities and colleges American women academics 21st-century American women