Inspired by longstanding family ties to healthcare and academia, Amy Bell, DNP, is bringing her years of clinical nursing and leadership experience to the classroom and showing the next generation of nursing leaders that nursing opportunities expand far beyond the bedside.
When Bell started nursing school in 1994 at what is now Cabarrus College of Health Sciences, she says the range of career opportunities in nursing looked much different than it does today. Since then, both the profession and the college – now celebrating its 85th year – have grown and expanded, opening new paths for nurses in leadership, quality improvement, education and beyond.
That evolution has shaped Bell’s own career, and today, as an educator at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, she is helping doctoral students see those same possibilities for themselves.
“There are so many opportunities for nurses, and it is great if nurses can stay at the bedside because we need experience at the bedside,” Bell says. “But we also need experienced nurses in the boardroom, in those meetings where financial decisions or decisions about quality are being made. We need all of that to happen.”
The family business
From an early age, Bell felt destined to work in either healthcare or education.
As a child, she has vivid memories running through her father, Bob Davis’, science lab at Cabarrus College of Health Sciences. Davis worked there for 35 years as a science instructor, registrar and associate dean for support services. He was known around campus as “Biology Bob.”
Bell’s grandmother was a house mother at the school’s dorms, an aunt graduated from there in the 50s, and her sister-in-law graduated in the 80s. Bell’s mother worked in administrative roles at Atrium Health Cabarrus for 17 years.
Her family came from humble beginnings and had a strong work ethic that she's carried through her life.
“It was always ingrained in me that you find a way to be independent, that you work hard and you do what you need to do to be a contributing member of society, always," Bell says. "And you try to figure out how you're going to make things better anywhere that you serve."
In 1994, Bell started nursing school at Louise Harkey School of Nursing at Cabarrus Memorial Hospital, which later evolved to become Cabarrus College of Health Sciences, an academic partner of Atrium Health. She remembers fondly the lessons she learned there.
“I really appreciated the style of learning that the associate of nursing degree gave me, which was a lot of clinical hands-on experience,” Bell says. “I had faculty members who were kind and compassionate, had a sense of humor and were nurturing. I think that stuck with me throughout my career — no matter what seat you’re in, it’s all about your relationships and how you treat others.”
Open doors to opportunity
She carried these sentiments into her career post-graduation, which began as a nursing assistant at Cabarrus Memorial Hospital, now Atrium Health Cabarrus, on the progressive coronary care unit and later, in the emergency department. She married, had two children and then returned to the PCCU for a couple of years before landing her dream job in labor and delivery (L&D). During her time on L&D she earned her bachelor’s degree at UNC-Chapel Hill, en route to her master's degree.
She worked at the bedside for three years before becoming an assistant nurse manager then a nurse manager. Bell loved working as a clinical nurse, building relationships with patients and colleagues, and leading as a nurse manager for over a decade.
“I think it’s just taking advantage of those opportunities when they come up,” Bell says. “It’s about getting out of your comfort zone, being brave and seeing where it leads."
She could have settled there, but Bell had bolder aspirations and made a career transition into a corporate quality improvement. She led initiatives across Atrium Health, gaining national recognition for care focused on obstetrical (OB) hemorrhage reduction, managing hypertension in pregnancy and reducing the rate of cesarean births among first time mothers.
In 2017, Bell earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree from Duke University and her executive experience culminated as assistant vice president for performance improvement at Atrium Health. During her tenure, she's also served in distinguished positions with a variety of professional organizations, on national boards, and in other influential roles.
But another calling to become an educator had been taking shape for years. It was rooted in memories of her father, inspired by faculty mentors at Louise Harkey School of Nursing and driven by a desire to help shape the future of nursing leadership.
Educating from experience
She first tested the waters at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic by teaching an online module in Wake Forest University School of Medicine’s DNP program. One opportunity led to another, more modules, then a course director role, until she realized education was something she wanted to enjoy full-time.
“From the time I was little, my two career options were either that I wanted to be with moms when they had their babies or I wanted to be a teacher,” Bell says. “Now, I've morphed all of that and I feel like that's just what I was put on this earth to do was those things.”
By bringing real-world leadership into the classroom, Bell introduces doctoral students to the full range of nursing opportunities, giving them a broader view into healthcare. She is mentoring students by connecting classroom concepts to actual situations she's encountered and does it all with a sense of understanding and compassion.
"I enjoy giving back to my students, sharing lived experience and watching those light bulbs turn on and seeing them think about things completely differently than the lens they brought into the classroom,” says Bell, who is a past nominee for the School of Medicine's Model Teacher award.
Bell also serves as vice chair for SPARC, the school's committee that assists undergraduate medical education students facing difficult circumstances, bringing an understanding and nurturing perspective to help students succeed.
From her family's early inspiration, to building and advancing her career at Louise Harkey School of Nursing and Atrium Health, to her current role at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Bell exemplifies what it means to grow into a nationally recognized healthcare and education leader. Over 30 years into her career, she's still inspiring, learning and advocating for the advancement of healthcare quality and delivery.
“I went to nursing school to be a labor and delivery nurse, but my career kept opening doors I didn’t even know were there,” Bell says. "Most roles that are out there today did not exist when I was a child running through my dad's lab. I want students to understand that nursing can take you from the bedside to the boardroom, leadership roles, quality improvement, education and places you may not even be able to imagine yet.”