ALUMNUS RETURNS TO HIS FIRST LOVE
NURSING IN HIS BLOOD
Kenneth Kirsner, B.S.N. '79, J.D. '90, can readily testify to the varied
career paths open to nurses.With his degree in hand, Kirsner began
work as a nurse at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical
Center.According to Kirsner, who subsequently decided to pursue a specialty
track, "I enrolled in a nurse anesthesia program that offered a master's
degree, which ultimately afforded great independence while maintaining close
contact with patients."
Kirsner practiced anesthesia for several years at UM/Jackson and in the
Jackson Memorial Hospital Maternity Center but again sought to expand his
knowledge.This time he took a departure from nursing and enrolled in the
University's School of Law. Kirsner became fully immersed in the law and
upon graduation, went to work as a trial lawyer with the National Labor
Relations Board (NLRB).
Kirsner says,"After some time with the NLRB, I realized that I really
missed nursing and took a position teaching nurse anesthesia at the University
of Kansas.This gave me the opportunity to write, lecture, and consult on
legal issues in anesthesia. But the basic principles that were engendered during
UM's B.S.N. program stuck with me: the focus on the patient, the need for
communication, and the desire to seek new knowledge and share with colleagues.
First and foremost, I am a nurse, and that focus has never failed me."
Kirsner is now a faculty member teaching nurse anesthesia at the University
of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.A dedicated alumnus, Kirsner
supports the School of Nursing through gifts to scholarship funds, and he
credits UM for his success. "I have been fortunate to publish papers in both
nursing and legal literature and also to make presentations at state, national,
and international nurse anesthesia meetings," he says. "I will always remember
all the doors that opened to me based on the foundation I built as an
undergrad at the School of Nursing."
