Terry Pope takes nursing continuing education to new heights

After a stint as an ICU charge nurse, Terry Pope, MSN, RN, NPD-BC, knew that leadership was her calling. From that point, she took on various leadership roles, from nurse manager to vice president to chief nursing officer. She loved coaching nurses—helping them grow, learn, and gain new skills—which led her to do something she had never considered: She started her own business in nursing continuing education. The American Nurses Association (ANA) spoke with Pope about her unique career journey.

Pope’s early nursing career traveling as an ICU nurse fueled her sense of adventure and honed her knack for flexibility.

“It was a great exposure to the larger healthcare world,” said Pope, an ANA-Ohio member. “I was never the same person after that. I wanted more.”

When she later found herself at a career crossroads, she took a chance and started NICE, the Nursing Institute for Continuing Education, in 2009, and became an approved continuing education (CE) provider.

“My mission statement is ‘Nurture the leader in every nurse,’” she said. “I’ve always believed that no matter what role they’re in, every nurse is a leader.” She’s committed to improving patient outcomes by providing continuing education sessions that nurture leadership.

As president and CEO, Pope constantly looks forward; she’s revised her business plan several times to suit her needs and make better use of her time. “I started out creating conferences, which meant spending all my time doing event management, which is not what I wanted to do.” She switched gears and became a speaker for hire, growing demand for her services through word-of-mouth.

“The nursing world is constantly changing,” Pope said. “I’m always educating myself, listening to others, and learning about new things to keep my content fresh.”

Becoming an appraiser for the American Nurses Credentialing Center helped expand her reach and led to roles with the Ohio Board of Nursing CE Advisory Group and the North Caro-lina Nurses Association. She also serves as ANA-Ohio’s Accredited Provider Program Director and chairs the association’s CE Committee.

Pope is happy to help meet nurses’ needs for CE credits. But she advises nurses to take advantage of education to expand their horizons and skill sets, rather than just to fill a requirement.

“When I was a practicing RN, I looked for education that was relevant to what I was doing at that moment,” she said. “If it didn’t involve my area of expertise or specialty, I wouldn’t be interested.”

She soon realized how short-sighted that was. As a head nurse in a cardiac surgical intensive care unit, she led others who cared for surgical patients with contributing secondary diagnoses. She soon learned that seeking additional knowledge about medical conditions improved her ability to lead and support others who were providing direct patient care.
Today, Pope encourages nurses to diversify their knowledge. “Don’t just focus on your own practice area or specialty,” she said. “Learn everything you can because you never know when that information will help you care for your patient.”

Being NICE’s sole business owner means Pope has all the responsibility for making it work, and she admits being in this position can get lonely. But it’s been the most fulfilling work she’s done.

“I’ve ended up in a place that I’m super excited about,” she said. “People ask me when I’m going to retire, but I’m not ready. There are too many fun opportunities out there.”

—Elizabeth Moore is a content creator at ANA.