Gina DeShazer, RN, Named Diversity Fellow

Nursing Administration welcomes Gina DeShazer, RN, BSN, a BWH Nursing Diversity Fellow, who joined the department’s ranks in July. DeShazer comes from MGH, where she worked in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. DeShazer began her career at another Partners entity, North Shore Medical Center. Born in Ecuador, DeShazer moved to Miami, Florida, with her family when she was 10. She came to Boston in 1996 to attend Boston College.

Launched in 1998, the Diversity Fellowship program is designed to train talented nurses of minority populations for management positions at BWH, while focusing on increasing the number of minority nurses at the hospital and enhancing culturally competent care for patients. To be eligible for the fellowship, applicants must show leadership potential and have completed or be working toward a master’s degree.

“Each fellow has shared her unique talent, enthusiasm and commitment to the nursing practice at BWH,” said Nancy Hickey, MS, RN, director of Personnel and Resource Applications, BWH Nursing Administration, who oversees the fellow’s appointment and activity. “Over the last five years, the fellows have developed the Diversity Mentorship Program, the Cultural Nursing Care Conference and training in Cultural Health Assessment. “They’ve also expanded our recruitment at local colleges and our outreach efforts at the local community level,” she added.

In her capacity as Nursing Diversity Fellow, DeShazer will oversee various Nursing Administration projects, including the Nursing Cultural Grand Rounds, which run monthly from September through May.

“This is a terrific opportunity for me because I want to build a career in nursing administration. Already, I can see that this is a wonderful learning environment,” said DeShazer. “People have been very welcoming and supportive.”

DeShazer is also pursuing a master’s degree in Nursing Administration at Northeastern University.