Editorial Staff Board 

Patricia Moulton Burwell, PhD: Managing Editor

Dr. Moulton Burwell has over 22 years experience working with nursing workforce centers. She is the current Director of the National Forum of State Nursing Workforce Centers and is a Research Consultant for the Washington Center for Nursing. She also created and led the ND Center for Nursing for 11 years. She has conducted nursing workforce research in multiple states and at the national level.  She has close to 100 peer-reviewed publications and white papers and has presented at over 120 local, state, national and international conferences. She has served in a leadership role on over $15 million of foundation, state and federal grants supporting health services projects including nursing workforce.  She is currently serving on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Advisory Council on Nursing Education and Practice. She received her PhD in Experimental Psychology at the University of North Dakota in 2002.

Yetty Shobo, PhD: Review Editor

Jana Bitton, MPA: Website and Layout Editor

Katie Gaul: Copy Editor

Katie Gaul directs the South Carolina Office for Healthcare Workforce, or SCOHW, a division of the South Carolina AHEC Program Office. The SCOHW team has a broad scope of work that includes assessing the supply and characteristics of health professionals in South Carolina, measuring educational capacity, describing demand, and identifying other health workforce issues. Katie oversees SCOHW’s research and service portfolio, supports the efforts of South Carolina AHEC, and helps stakeholders across the state with their healthcare workforce data needs. Her areas of expertise focus on educating data consumers on available data and data literacy, communicating health workforce analyses and issues, and connecting stakeholders with the data and information they need to support effective program development and decision making. Prior to her current role, Katie served as a senior policy analyst at the Center for Best Practices at the National Governors Association, a research associate at the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at UNC Chapel Hill, and the deputy director of the HRSA-funded Health Workforce Technical Assistance Center.

Dawna Cato: Copy Editor

Dawna L. Cato PhD., RN, NPD-BC currently serves as the Director of the Nurse Residency Program at OpusVi a Healthcare Workforce Solutions Company. Dawna has 28 years of nursing experience in the U.S. with 3 years in China. Dr. Cato obtained her Ph.D., specializing in Nursing Education from Capella University in 2013.  In 2009, she received her Master’s in Nursing Science, specializing in Nursing Education from Grand Canyon University. In addition, Dr. Cato holds a Board Certification in Nursing Professional Development (NPD-BC) with the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Dr. Cato has implemented best-practice nursing academic and workforce development programs at local, national, and international levels.  These include the development and implementation of Nurse Residency Programs, Perioperative Specialty Fellowship Programs, Cardiovascular Specialty Fellowship Programs, and preceptor training for physicians and nurses as well as curriculum design and development for pre-licensure and graduate nursing programs.   In 2019, she launched the United States (U.S.) Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) Immersion Program in collaboration with U.S.-based hospitals in Arizona and GuoLong Hospital in Yinchuan China. She also facilitated the design, implementation, and evaluation of a 600-bed hospital-wide initiative to onboard 700 employees using interdisciplinary simulation scenarios. She has facilitated frontline leadership workshops and China’s participation in an International Nurse Job Satisfaction Study. Dr. Cato served on the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation from 2013-2022 and was a key contributor to the 2024 Practice Transition Accreditation Standards. Dr. Cato is nationally and internationally published and a recognized nurse leader in both practice and academic education.

Monaco Briggs, Ed.D., M.B.A., B.B.A: Copy Editor

Monaco Briggs is a distinguished leader in healthcare and nursing advancement, currently serving as the Project Director for the Tennessee Center for Nursing Advancement. In this role, she oversees large-scale initiatives, spearheads marketing efforts, and ensures operational excellence to elevate nursing standards and healthcare outcomes across the state. With extensive experience in healthcare information systems and quality improvement, Monaco has previously led multi-disciplinary teams and technology projects across diverse healthcare settings. As an Adjunct Faculty member at East Tennessee State University, she develops cutting-edge curricula and mentors graduate students in digital media. Holding an Ed.D., M.B.A., and B.B.A., Monaco combines academic rigor with a hands-on approach to leadership. An accomplished speaker, writer, and researcher, she has presented at national conferences on healthcare quality, social determinants of health, and technological innovation. Her contributions have been recognized with honors like the HIMSS Davies Award of Excellence, reflecting her unwavering dedication to advancing healthcare and nursing excellence.

Marcia Proto M.Ed, CAS: Marketing and Communications Editor

Marcia B. Proto, M.Ed, CAS enjoys a successful career in State & National Association leadership, nursing education & workforce development, healthcare fundraising, and statewide coalition building.  She has built a national reputation as an innovator in creating healthcare and nursing workforce development strategies; and is the Principal of Marcia Proto Consulting, LLC having previously held the role of statewide Executive Director for The Connecticut Center for Nursing Workforce (CCNW) for 18 years transitioning from that role in June 2024.  Marcia has a unique ability to analyze and operationalize concepts and ideas to create successful initiatives that support healthcare leaders with identifying strategic priorities & next actions, developing competency-based professional development interventions to foster a positive and productive workplace, and aligning state and federal resources and funding to support the recruitment and retention of healthcare professionals. Her life’s work has involved connecting people through education and skills training toward fulfilling career paths, particularly in the nursing field. Marcia has spent the past 25 years ensuring that the nursing workforce will meet the nation’s growing healthcare needs by contributing to and engaging in state and national task force activities such as the Center to Champion Nursing in America, a national initiative funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in collaboration with AARP. In addition to her leadership role with the CCNW, she has held management positions at The Connecticut Hospital Association, Junior Achievement of South-East CT, Flath & Associates Consulting, and The National League for Nursing (NLN).  Marcia is currently a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council for Quinnipiac University School of Nursing and Providence College School of Nursing.

Anna C. Fry, MPH, RN: Copy Editor 

Anna C. Fry, MPH, RN is a Public Health Nurse with 20 years of maternal-child experience, ranging from perinatal acute care to home health, Ob/Gyn office to home visiting. She has 7 years of experience as a Nurse Home Visitor in Philadelphia, PA with the Nurse Family Partnership, and continues to serve clients and nurses as a Clinical Nurse Educator at the National Nurse-led Care Consortium. Concurrently with her nursing career, she owned a medical writing business for 5 years, specializing in advisory board executive summaries, fact packs, disease state presentations, and CME needs assessments, and medical editing and proofreading in Microsoft Office and Adobe. Prior to becoming a nurse in 2005, she owned a catering company and sculpted furniture and vessels in clay and wood. She is passionate about supporting nurses to have long, fulfilling careers in public health while enjoying the diversity of pursuits a nursing career has to offer.