What excites Dr. Cindy L. Munro about health care and the field of nursing today is not only the caliber of people who are choosing to enter health care professions, but also the shift in practitioners’ approach that emphasizes health and the prevention of problems, she says.
“An ounce of prevention has always been worth a pound of cure, and the health system is catching up to that idea!” says Munro, a renowned health care researcher, nursing leader and professor and dean of the School of Nursing and Health Studies (SONHS) at the University of Miami (UM).
Munro’s research and practice have resulted in reduced complications for intensive care unit patients and changes for the better in patient care, a legacy she is proud of. Much of this work has focused on the connections between oral health and the prevention of systemic disease.
A glimpse of the more than 150 publications Munro has authored or co-authored reveals her authority in a range of areas such as the optimal frequency of toothbrushing in mechanically ventilated adults or the efficacy of using oral chlorhexidine to prevent ventilator-associated pneumonia, among other topics.
She is currently co-editor in chief of the American Journal of Critical Care and is the recipient of the 2016 Apex Award for Publication Excellence in Editorial and Advocacy Writing, as well as the American Society of Healthcare Publication Editors’ 2016 Best Commentary Silver Award. That same year, Munro was inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Research Hall of Fame.
The researcher – who says she has always liked science and health care – also has three patents, including an international patent for a vaccine to prevent streptococcal endocarditis. Munro notes that she was inspired to pursue a calling to improve patients’ lives after spending a semester working with Planned Parenthood.
“The nurses and nurse practitioners there were remarkable. They were entirely patient-focused, and committed to supporting women’s health,” she says. “Seeing them work made me realize that I wanted to have the deep connection with patients and ability to impact their lives that nurses have.”
