At the Urban Health Program, we believe in recognizing healthcare leaders, and today, we want to shine a spotlight on one of our outstanding leaders, Dr. Liz Aquino. Dr. Aquino currently serves as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at UIC College of Nursing, boasting over 16 years as a registered nurse with clinical expertise in surgical-trauma critical care nursing and over a decade in nursing education.
Raised in Berwyn, Illinois, by parents from New Mexico and Mexico, Dr. Aquino's desire to help others was cultivated early. Her parents encouraged her to pursue higher education and explore various healthcare professions. Considering Dr. Aquino had no one in her family with a healthcare background to help provide guidance, she gained hands-on experience by volunteering at local hospitals during high school and undergraduate studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to better understand the various healthcare roles.
Based on her experiences, she realized that she enjoyed direct patient care and discovered her true calling in nursing, with its myriad of opportunities.
“After undergrad, I started researching other healthcare professions and learned more about nursing. I was excited about the different things you can do within nursing, the different settings you can work in, and obtaining an advanced degree was appealing.”
Dr. Aquino's journey led her to complete the master’s entry to nursing program at DePaul University and then worked as a surgical trauma ICU nurse at Advocate Illinois Masonic. Simultaneously, she enrolled in the Bridge to the Doctorate program at UIC College of Nursing, focusing her doctoral work on cardiovascular disease risk among Mexican Americans.
Her parents' innate caregiving spirit and her community's culture of looking out for one another deeply influenced her desire to help others.
“I said that I didn’t have anyone in my family who was a nurse or in healthcare, but then I think about my parents…they always took care of other people. I remember, there were two older adults who each lived on their own on our block, and my parents always made sure to check on them, take them food, and help take them to their appointments… They were always the caretakers of others. I think that instilled values of the importance of helping others, being more attentive to what other people are going through, and trying to support them however I can.”
As a nurse leader, Dr. Aquino influences multiple levels of the community, especially as a voice of Hispanic/Latinx nurses. Dr. Aquino represents nurses on regional and national bodies, currently serving as president of the American Nurses Association-Illinois. In addition, she serves on multiple state-level and national-level boards. She served as the National Association of Hispanic Nurses' former treasurer and former President of the organization's Illinois chapter. She co-founded the Society of Latinx Nurses, which aims to expand and empower the pipeline of Hispanic/Latinx nurses. She takes great pride in representing nurses and her work to increase the pipeline and mentorship of Latinx nurses who are greatly underrepresented in nursing.
Dr. Aquino shared that many of her achievements were also tagged as “the First” to do things or “the only person” at the table who “looked” like her. She has great pride in her achievements and milestones, knowing they significantly impact future generations of nurses, especially the Latinx community. She is grateful to her ancestors who made sacrifices that have enabled her to be where she is today, and she sees her success as an opportunity to open doors for future generations. Dr. Aquino also recognizes the important perspective she and other nurses bring to create positive change:
“I’ve always been involved in different associations and organizations, and I think it’s really important for nurses to serve on boards... I have taken this very seriously. I think having nurses’ voices at every table is so important. And not just in nursing organizations, but everywhere… Nurses have great perspectives that should be shared. Essential skills nurses learn to use at the bedside can be applied to many other settings, especially advocacy and evidence-based decision-making. I enjoy serving as a voice for nurses in organizations to help transform healthcare.”
Lastly, we asked for encouraging words for the students who will be reading this blog.
“Finding my passion and finding my support system has helped me move forward… Anytime you are doing something new, there are always challenges, growing pains, questions, uncertainty, a broad spectrum of emotions. So it’s really important to have people you can trust around you, that can support you and encourage you to keep going.”
Also, she encouraged students to be open to new opportunities, this is what helped her along her journey to becoming Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at UIC College of Nursing.
At the end of the interview, Dr. Aquino shared one of her favorite quotes which reminds us of how important it is to be mindful of the way we interact with one another:
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” - Maya Angelou
Resources about Hispanic or Latin American heritage, or Hispanic Nurses:
