Monica Mbugua, DNP student in the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Track
“I chose UMass Chan because of its reputation for academic and clinical excellence, and for the community involvement. I’m grateful to UMass Chan for supporting students like me who include English as their third or fourth language.”
The health disparities that Monica Mbugua, RN, DNP'23, witnessed while growing up in Kenya led her to pursue the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Track at the Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing at UMass Chan Medical School.
Mbugua’s earliest understanding of illness and health stemmed from the lack of adequate medical resources in her rural village.
“I experienced firsthand the loss of relatives and neighbors to illnesses such as complications of heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and most often cholera and malaria,” said Mbugua. “These diseases could have been prevented or treated if resources were available.”
Mbugua moved to the United States in 2010. After graduating from Mount Wachusett Community College and earning her bachelor's degree in nursing from Framingham State University, Mbugua worked as a registered nurse in multiple settings. She has seen patients struggle with chronic illnesses and aided in end-of-life care.
“I want to ensure that individuals who have generously given themselves to family and community for decades enjoy their twilight years in comfort and dignity. I enjoy working with the geriatric population and listening to their stories.”
Mbugua identified transportation as a social determinant of health and used a screening tool to assess clinic patients’ transportation challenges. She found joy in helping others at UMass Chan, whether she was volunteering to administer COVID-19 vaccines as a member of UMass Chan Medical School’s Vaccine Corps or working as a teaching assistant.
“I chose UMass Chan because of its reputation for academic and clinical excellence, and for the community involvement,” said Mbugua. “I was pleasantly surprised by the support I received from my classmates, my clinical preceptors and my professors. I’m grateful to UMass Chan for supporting students like me who include English as their third or fourth language.”
Mbugua looks forward to providing evidence-based care in primary care clinical settings, especially in underserved communities. She hopes to conduct research on improving care and outcomes for her patients and to become engaged in instructing and training future generations of health care providers.
