For Dayton Livingston, BSN ‘19, RN, CMGT-BC, serving as an IU School of Nursing (IUSON) capstone preceptor changed two lives. He not only helped a nursing student graduate, but he also realized his own true calling as a nursing educator. This fall, he will continue his journey as a graduate student in the IUSON Master of Science in Nursing Education program.
Even before his days as a preceptor, Dayton looked for opportunities to help others learn. In his current role as a public health nurse for the Marion County Health Department, he provides community-based care to pregnant women and new mothers, and people managing chronic illness. Through home-based visits, he teaches people how to take care of themselves and connects them to the information and resources they need to improve their health.
“Everything I've enjoyed doing up to this point in my life has involved education and teaching,” said Dayton, who graduated with a BSN from IU School of Nursing in 2019. “With this decision to pursue a master’s degree in nursing education, I feel like I’ve come full circle, getting back to what I’ve enjoyed doing from the start.”
Dayton’s passion for education is part of why he likes public health nursing.
“My favorite part of working with my patients is teaching them—explaining what is going on with their health and making sure all of their questions are answered,” he said.
Since many of his patients are non-English speaking, Dayton has learned how to introduce himself in multiple languages when he arrives at the first home visit. He creates booklets with photos and drawings to illustrate important concepts like medication adherence.
“Seeing patients get to the point where they are able to take control of their own health care is very rewarding.”
Dayton expects his career as a nursing educator to be equally satisfying. He has already received an endorsement from his first capstone student who nominated him for a DAISY Preceptor Award. With a nomination that stood out among more than 30 submissions, he was selected as the recipient and is one of the few non-inpatient preceptors to earn the award.
“As an incoming graduate student, I'm excited to be immersed in nursing education— to see how a professor thinks and what exactly they are looking for to know that a student has met a competency and is succeeding,” Dayton said. “I want to be an instructor that students can count on to provide a great learning experience.”