Nurse Leader Trains Others For Military Service

Ekemini E. Emah ’09 has used her Shenandoah education to fly high in her nursing career, first as a Pentagon flight medicine nurse manager and now as a chief education and training preventionist for the U.S. Air Force.

Shenandoah gave me the opportunity to build friendships that will last a lifetime.”
Ekemini E. Emah ’09

Emah found a great mentor in former Assistant Professor of Nursing and Veteran-to-BSN Program Faculty Leader Sherry Rawls-Bryce, MSN, RN, FCN. Rawls-Bryce introduced Emah to her nursing colleagues in the area and gave her some useful information to help guide her to a successful career. When Emah told Rawls-Bryce she was going into the military after graduation, Rawls-Bryce encouraged her to apply to the United States Air Force Nurse Corps, which led her into her position as a Pentagon Flight Medicine nurse manager: “I am ever thankful that she pointed me in that direction,” said Emah.

Emah’s Shenandoah education prepared her to be a leader in her career and seek out ways to make her career field better. And, she said, her clinical rotation experiences also gave her the confidence to feel comfortable in any hospital setting. She has since earned a master’s degree in health administration, and is currently working towards a doctorate in business administration from Trident University International in Cypress, California.

As a nurse manager, she led, directed and developed nursing personnel of the clinic for its enrolled population. She ensured compliance with internal and external regulatory governing bodies, such as the Department of Defense, Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Air Force. Emah also trained and oversaw orientation and skills verification for support staff.

Now, as chief education and training preventionist, she “oversees and implements group education and training processes for 158 members in 16 work-centers” for the Air Force.

One of Emah’s most rewarding career experiences was serving as a camp nurse with the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, where family members gather to grieve and heal from the deaths of loved ones who served in the U.S. armed forces. Another rewarding experience for her was organizing and raising funds for a mission trip to her birth country of Nigeria to supply students in orphanages with sanitary items and school supplies.

Emah likes to give back to the university now through the Shenandoah Admitted Student Congratulatory Postcard Campaign.

The past two years, I have had the privilege of writing personalized welcome notes to the students who have been accepted into the school. It especially brings me great joy to welcome a student into the nursing program. Shenandoah is my family.”
Ekemini E. Emah ’09

Written by Harley Ryan ’16 and Colleen Large