Contact Us:

Member Spotlight

Betty R. Clark, RN, BSN, MEd, CRRN

Current Employment:            RehabCare Group, Inc in St. Louis, Missouri

Position:                                  Clinical Nurse Educator

Develops and teaches programs for two levels of rehabilitation nursing and two interdisciplinary neuro courses across the country in 140 cities.  Level 1 is a Nursing Orientation and Level 2 is an advanced level and can be used as a CRRN exam review.  In addition to writing and presenting these classes, is also the administrator for the Continuing Nursing Education.

ARN Member Since:              1987

SETX Chapter ARN Member Since:  1987

SETX Chapter ARN Involvement:        President:  1992

                                                                      President:   part of 1993 (to complete Mary Overall’s term)

                                                                      Chairperson for Rehabilitation Review.

Workshop for 10 years and now continues as committee member. Has also chaired/served on the membership, scholarship, and June fundraiser committees.

 

Why did you decide to join SETX Chapter ARN?

“When I started my employment with TIRR in December, 1987, the person I was replacing was the outgoing President.  She invited me to the annual Holiday dinner; I met many new colleagues that night and was welcomed with open arms to join their group.  I knew from the beginning that ARN would be an arena for knowledge, networking and fun.”

 

National ARN Involvement:        Competency Committee 1992 and later co-authored the Competency Manual for Rehabilitation Nursing  in 1994.

                                                            Region 5 Director 1994-1997

                                                            Co-authored curriculum for the PRN Course (the ARN CRRN Review course) and has taught the PRN course for the past seven years.

 

Awards Received:                        -SETX Chapter ARN Educator of the Year

                                                           -SETX Chapter ARN Administrator of the Year

                                                           -SETX Chapter ARN won the Chapter Excellence Award while President – the beginning of repeated recognition for Chapter Excellence.

 

Community Involvement:            -Currently teaches CRRN review course across the country for other ARN chapters.

                                                            -Volunteers for Project Joy and Hope – a hospice service for children with terminal illnesses.

                                                            -Volunteers at church by teaching a class in sexuality to the adolescents.

 

 

Exceptional Accomplishment:            “I presented a course entitled, “Sexuality Issues for

Persons with Disabilities” in Tokyo, Japan in 2002 at the Metropolitan University. Before

 the conference, I submitted a chapter on sexuality for the book, Nursing Research. To

 my surprise, my chapter was translated in Japanese and the book was presented to all

 conference attendees.  After my presentation, the conference chair had arranged for a

 reception and an autograph party.  They made me feel like royalty.”

 

Hobbies, Special Interests:                    Betty writes, “ My hobbies are designing greeting cards, writing poetry for a special card or event, gourmet cooking and traveling.  I have traveled all 50 states except Alaska, many parts of central Europe, Scotland and the Caribbean, and am planning a June trip to Australia.  Of course, my present position allows me to see both urban and rural America.”

 

Previous Experience:                            Betty writes, “ I have wanted to be a nurse since age 3 playing with my dolls, pretending they had fallen and broken their leg.  I strongly believe my grandmother had a great influence on me as well.  I had the opportunity to be her nurse when she broke her hip and then again when she had a stroke.  My mother always says I started my nursing career at age 13 when I worked as a candy striper at the local nursing home.  

One of my very first patients as a RN was Robin, a 16 y.o. individual with C4 tetraplegia.  I will never forget what she taught me about community re-entry.  Later I became a plastic surgery rehab nurse working with burn patients as well as cosmetic surgery patients.  That led to a very unique position as a consultant to transsexual clients.  After graduate school, I embarked on my academic nursing career.  Over the next 6 years, I continued to use my rehabilitation techniques as a geriatric instructor.

In 1981 I moved to Texas.  My role as a Regional administrator for a home health agency took me to a higher level than I had ever anticipated.  I was appointed to the national committee to formulate the “485”, a Medicare admission document for HCFA.  WOW – those days in Washington with the “Feds” were exciting.

In 1987 I began my 17 year tenure at TIRR as a clinical educator and later became Director of Staff Development.  In 1995 I moved to Human Resources as a recruiter and later organized the department of Occupational Health.  Even as an administrator, I maintained my patient contact as one of the patient/family educators.  I left TIRR in 2002 to take my present position with RehabCare Group, Inc.

 

What Rehabilitation Nursing Means to Me:

“I have a passion for Rehabilitation nursing as evident in the above summary of my nursing career.  Rehabilitation nursing is a way to practice holistic nursing and yet become specialized at the same time.  I have developed an expertise in spinal injury and brain injury but also love the field of geriatrics.  Even though I spend most of my time teaching, consulting or mentoring a wide range of subjects, I still feel very comfortable in providing direct care.  Over the last year, I have created a new clinical challenge for myself in the area of Multiple Sclerosis.  I received a compliment on an evaluation that stated: “Your passion for rehabilitation is quite evident in all of your lectures”.  I smiled and said to myself, “Yes, I am proud to be a Rehabilitation Nurse.”

 

And on a final note:

“ It is a good thing that I do not need much sleep – I admit I am one busy person.  Thank goodness for great organization skills.  Thanks for the opportunity to be chosen to share in the member spotlight.”

[Top]