Advanced Practice Providers at St. Jude
The St. Jude Center of Advanced Practice leads, supports and inspires more than 150 advanced practice providers caring for patients with life-threatening diseases.
Nurse practitioners and certified registered nurse anesthetists hold master’s or doctoral degrees from nursing schools. Physician assistants generally receive their graduate training through programs affiliated with medical schools.
- Nurse practitioners (NPs) are licensed, independent health care professionals who provide a wide range of clinical services. These services include diagnosing and managing acute, chronic and complex health problems as well as prescribing medications. NPs can practice autonomously while coordinating with other health care professionals.
- Physician assistants (PAs) diagnose illness, develop and manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and often serve as a patient’s principal health care provider. With thousands of hours of medical training, PAs are versatile and collaborative.
- Certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) provide anesthesia and symptom management to patients in every practice setting, and for every type of surgery or outpatient procedure. CRNAs may work independently or practice in collaboration with surgeons, physician anesthesiologists or other health care professionals.
Each St. Jude NP, PA and CRNA benefits from the Center of Advanced Practice. These individuals collaborate with physicians, scientists, nurses, pharmacists and ancillary staff in 19 departments, divisions and clinics.
Learn more about our advanced practice providers
Research
Advanced practice providers participate in a range of clinical trials and research projects at St. Jude. Advanced practice providers present these research findings at local, national and international conferences; through oral and written presentations; and through publications in peer-reviewed journals.
Education, Training and Mentoring
St. Jude is committed to supporting both new and established advanced practice providers as they increase their skills and knowledge through a transition to practice program.
Through a structured training process, the Center of APPs promotes growth as providers move toward autonomy and excellence in their clinical and professional practice. APPs accomplish many of these goals through serving as members and leaders of hospital-wide committees and participating in nursing shared governance.
The Advanced Practice Provider Student Clinical Placement Program
St. Jude provides world-class clinical placements as leaders in the field of rare pediatric diseases for NPs, PAs and CRNAs.
It is a tremendous opportunity for a student to be at an innovative research hospital. Each student is assigned a specially trained APP preceptor with skills in clinical education. Interested applicants must be enrolled in an accredited advanced practice provider program and must complete an online application.
The Center of Advanced Practice Providers will assign students with preceptors who have attended preceptor training and who align with the student's professional goals, ability and alignment with curriculum.
For more information on the APP Clinical Student Placement Program, email Tonya.Ureda@stjude.org or DaMaris.Heidelberg@stjude.org.
Due to COVID, this program has limited student placement at this time. Clinical spots are competitive.
The Transition to Practice Orientation Program for New Advanced Practice Providers
This structured training program focuses on helping new providers apply their skills and knowledge to the specialized care of children with catastrophic diseases.
The three-phase framework used in this program is based on knowledge acquisition versus traditional time-based methodologies. A quarterly educational series also enables new advanced practice providers to increase their knowledge on a range of clinical and professional development topics.
This program pairs new advanced practice providers with preceptors and mentors:
- The preceptor assists with the departmental clinical orientation process throughout the individual’s first year of practice at St. Jude.
- The mentor fosters the individual’s professional development, with a focus on long-term career ambitions beyond clinical care.
Professional Development Recognition Program
The Professional Development Model for Advanced Practice Providers (PDMAPP) is a St. Jude program that recognizes advanced practice providers for their professional development, promotes their professional contributions, and rewards them for exemplary performance beyond their essential job responsibilities.
Advanced Practice Provider awards
Our advanced practice providers are regularly recognized for their service to the hospital and the profession.
The Advanced Practice Provider of the Year Award is given to a St. Jude advanced practice provider who serves as a role model and mentor, promoting positive change in the nurse practice environment.
Other recent award recipients:
Belinda Mandrell, PhD, RN, director of the St. Jude Nursing Research Division and an associate faculty member, was named to the 2020 Class of Fellows of the American Academy of Nursing.
Carla London, DNP, APRN, CFNP, was the 2020 recipient of the Advanced Practice Nurse Hero Award given by the University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s College of Nursing.
Hayley Arceneaux, PA, was selected to be one of four crew members aboard the first all-civilian space mission Inspiration4.
Center Leadership
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Suzette Stone, PhD, MSN, MDiv, PPCNP-BC, NEA-BC, RN
Stone
- Senior Director of the Center of Advanced Practice Providers
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Rachel Turner, MSN, CRNA, RN
Turner
- CRNA and APP Operations Manager
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Kimberly Woody, MSN, PPCNP-BC, RN
Woody
- APP Operations Manager of Acute Care
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Carly Meredith, MSN, FNP-BC
Meredith
- Advanced Practice Provider
- Ambulatory Operations Manager
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Tonya Ureda, MS, RN, FNP-BC, NE-BC
Ureda
- Mgr-Advanced Practice Operations-Tier II
