The Resilient Nurse Episode 37: Beyond Acknowledgment: Making Resilience a Priority in Nursing Education

In this episode of the Resilient Nurse Podcast, host Dr. Cynda Rushton is joined by Dr. Rita Ferrari D’Aoust, PhD, ANP-BC, CNE, FAANP, FNAP, FAAN professor, and co-principal investigator for the R³: Resilient Nurses Initiative at Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. Rita D’Aoust, is a Professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing and a nationally recognized leader in nursing education, advanced practice nursing workforce research, and military and veteran health. Her internationally recognized work centers on innovative program and curriculum development, interprofessional education, expanding practice opportunities for faculty and students, and improving access to care for vulnerable populations. She is the founder of the PRIME-NP National Consortium, co-author of the textbook Caring for Veterans and Their Families. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, and the National Academies of Practice, she is a nationally recognized voice on preparing the next generation of nurses and nurse leaders. In this episode, they explore a critical question in nursing education: If resilience is essential to nurses’ ability to navigate adversity, maintain professional integrity, and sustain their practice, why isn’t its development more intentionally taught? Together, they examine the gap between valuing resilience and actually cultivating it through curriculum, faculty preparation, and institutional culture. The conversation considers what gets in the way, what would need to change for resilience to be taken seriously in practice as well as in principle, and how nursing education can move beyond expectation toward intentional development of the personal, relational, and professional capacities nurses need to thrive.