Amber Dentino
Charge Nurse at the Huntsman Mental Health Institute
I would like to express my sincere gratitude for the honor of receiving the Professional Development Award. My deepest thanks to you as this award will help me in my educational pursuit of receiving my Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree, and this award will help further my goal of supporting the psychiatric community. Being raised in a home affected by severe mental illness highly encouraged me to pursue a career in psychiatry. I believe this background will help me to empathize with mentally ill patients and their families. Though society has made progress in spreading awareness, mental illness is still often misunderstood, and many questions arise with a new psychiatric diagnosis. Entering the DNP program will provide me the opportunity to learn the tools I will need to become a quality psychiatric provider, and with these skills I can help my patients have a higher chance of success at managing their illness effectively. I am forever grateful to my amazing co-workers at HMHI who help take care of this underserved population and who have contributed in more ways than one of my continuing growth and professional development as a nurse. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity; I am proud to be a part of the University of Utah Healthcare team!