{"id":40222,"date":"2021-11-01T13:14:47","date_gmt":"2021-11-01T13:14:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/adv\/alumni-news-media\/?p=40222"},"modified":"2023-01-27T21:25:53","modified_gmt":"2023-01-27T21:25:53","slug":"yvette-conyers-07n-pursuing-social-justice-through-nursing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/adv\/alumni-news-media\/2021\/11\/01\/yvette-conyers-07n-pursuing-social-justice-through-nursing\/","title":{"rendered":"Yvette Conyers \u201907N: Pursuing social justice through nursing"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Yvette Conyers \u201907N: Pursuing social justice through nursing<\/h1>\n

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\"Yvette

Yvette Conyers \u201907N, DNP, MS, RN, FNP-C, CTN-B<\/p><\/div>\n

In high school, Yvette Conyers \u201907N, DNP, MS, RN, FNP-C, CTN-B, dreamt of becoming a neonatologist. She excelled in the sciences and already had a fire in her to serve others. Then, as a 17-year-old senior at Penfield High School, she got pregnant.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecoming a young mother changed my life, but not my focus on college,\u201d says Conyers. \u201cI listened to the advice of people I trusted, including my high school counselor. She talked to me about a career in nursing, which seemed like something I could pursue, even with a baby.\u201d<\/p>\n

That advice set Conyers on a path. After she graduated from high school, she participated in a summer college preparatory program offered through SUNY Brockport\u2019s Rochester Education Opportunity Center. She then enrolled at Monroe Community College where she earned an associate\u2019s degree and became a registered nurse.<\/p>\n

In the beginning<\/strong><\/h3>\n

For the next seven years, Conyers worked at Highland Hospital, starting in its gynecological oncology unit. She loved her work and wanted to offer more advanced care to her patients. With that in mind, she enrolled in the School of Nursing\u2019s (SON) RN to BS program. Conyers was doing it all\u2014working full-time as a young mother and nurse and part-time as a student.<\/p>\n

\u201cThroughout her academic and professional career, Yvette has shown a fierce determination to serve as a role model in the African-American community,\u201d says Kathy Rideout, EdD, PPCNP-BC, FNAP, dean of the School of Nursing, professor of clinical nursing, and vice president at the URochester Medical Center. \u201cShe has used adversity as a motivator for herself to serve as teachable moments for her students about the ups and downs of nursing school, professional practice, and life in general. Her background has also inspired her mission of creating equal access, opportunity, and treatment for people from underrepresented groups.\u201d<\/p>\n

Conyers thrived in academia as well as in a clinical environment. So much so that after SON, she went to Roberts Wesleyan College and then to St. John Fisher to earn her doctorate. Her doctoral thesis was entitled \u201cThe effect of an evidenced based cultural competency educational program on a registered nurse’s cultural competence.\u201d Her work then, and now, is focused on reducing health care disparities, helping to ensure that nurses incorporate culturally relevant approaches into their care, and underscoring the need for social justice in nursing education and clinical work.<\/p>\n

A commitment to serve<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Over the course of her nearly 20-year career, Conyers has taught in academic settings, provided acute and outpatient care, and led community health outreach programs. She\u2019s worked in hospitals and as an in-home care nurse. She\u2019s completed hundreds of in-home risk assessments in communities that consistently lack health information and access. Conyers also received SON\u2019s Josephine Craytor Nursing Faculty Award, which recognizes outstanding nursing educators and provides support for their research and professional development.<\/p>\n

In 2018, Conyers founded the Rochester chapter of the Black Nurses Association, where she continues to serve as its president. Today, she\u2019s on faculty at St. John Fisher and she serves as a nurse practitioner with Signify Health. She\u2019s also a volunteer leader within organizations such as the African American Health Coalition and the University\u2019s Black Alumni Network, where she serves as program committee co-chair and regional leader.<\/p>\n

At the center of her work<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Providing preventative care to complex patients and populations; leading conversations around equity, diversity, and inclusion; and addressing the social determinants of health are all key to Conyers\u2019 work.<\/p>\n

\u201cHealth care professionals have a responsibility to ask\u2014and find out\u2014what kinds of educational access have our patients had?,\u201d she says. \u201cDo they have access to primary and specialty care? What about access to health insurance? Do our patients have access to quality food, water, and air? Are their neighborhoods safe? Can they access transportation and get to appointments? What kinds of conditions do they work in? Do they have more than one job? Have they been incarcerated? Are they living below the poverty line? Answers to questions like these help us form new policies and adopt new ways of working with patients. All of this is critically important, especially now in the time of COVID.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking action<\/strong><\/h3>\n

During COVID, Conyers has been involved in many community-focused COVID outreach programs. For instance, she serves on the Finger Lakes COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force. This group of 70 health care professionals from throughout the region have been focused on equity, transparency, and efficiency as it relates to \u00a0COVID-19 education, testing, and vaccine rollout. They strive to build a foundation of trust in marginalized communities by being active and visible in them.<\/p>\n

Their grassroots efforts have made a difference, too. For instance, Conyers says that in the high-risk zip code of 14605, where there have been some of the highest rates of COVID infection, she and a small team have provided information along with masks and hand sanitizers to more than 150 people. They also tested and vaccinated more than 500 people in other underserved zip codes, as identified by Common Ground Health. Conyers adds that one-to-one contact at churches, empty store parking lots, and places where communities gather are important ways to reach and connect with people, and, ultimately, reduce risk, infection, and isolation.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo bring more equity into our system and into people\u2019s lives, we must we ask ourselves what barriers exist for them right now, we must take action, and we must break through existing ceilings and systems,\u201d she says. \u201cDoing so will lead to better outcomes and improved health for so many in our community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Conyers adds that nurses are in an excellent position to do all of this. \u201cWe are trained to listen and educate, and we are our patients\u2019 first point of contact and most trusted health care professional.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”25px” image_repeat=”no-repeat”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”grid” text_align=”left” css_animation=”” box_shadow_on_row=”no”][vc_column][vc_row_inner row_type=”row” type=”full_width” use_row_as_full_screen_section_slide=”no” text_align=”left” background_color=”#e9e5d7″ css_animation=”” box_shadow_on_row=”no”][vc_column_inner][vc_empty_space height=”25px” image_repeat=”no-repeat”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

More from Yvette Conyers<\/strong><\/h3>\n

What advice do you have for those entering the nursing field?<\/strong> Find a mentor and join a professional organization so that you can build your professional and personal network.<\/p>\n

How are you able to toggle so many responsibilities? <\/strong>I try to remember that my work is greater than me\u2014that\u2019s what keeps me going. I work hard for the community, for the Black population, and for the nurses who will come after me. That\u2019s the legacy I\u2019m trying to leave.<\/p>\n

What are you reading? <\/strong>I’m reading\u00a0A Terrible Thing to Waste:\u00a0Environmental Racism and Its Assault on the American Mind<\/i>\u00a0by Harriett A. Washington \u201976. It\u2019s about environmental racism, public health, and injustice, a must-read for those in healthcare.<\/p>\n

What are you most proud of?<\/strong> Being able to raise my son as a single parent. He\u2019s seen me grow through challenges and break through barriers to be where I am today.<\/p>\n

Do you have a favorite quote? <\/strong>It comes from the Bible (The Gospel of Matthew, verse 19:26), \u201cWith God all things are possible.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”25px” image_repeat=”no-repeat”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_empty_space height=”16px” image_repeat=”no-repeat”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”grid” text_align=”left” css_animation=”” box_shadow_on_row=”no”][vc_column][vc_row_inner row_type=”row” type=”full_width” use_row_as_full_screen_section_slide=”no” text_align=”left” background_color=”#e9e5d7″ css_animation=”” box_shadow_on_row=”no”][vc_column_inner][vc_empty_space height=”25px” image_repeat=”no-repeat”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Community action milestones<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Conyers has been involved in many high-impact community programs. Here are just a few from the last few years:<\/p>\n