Meet Amy Winkler: Our November Leading Woman

Name: Amy Winkler

Major: Nursing, with a minor in Spanish

Hometown: Overland Park, Kansas

What are your career/life goals?

I want to be a nurse practitioner and care for my patients to the best of my ability. I want to change lives through healthcare.

What is your favorite part about your major?

I love nursing because it combines intellectual, independent thinking with compassionate, personal interactions.

Tell us about why you chose your major.

I chose nursing because I love to learn, and I love to interact with people.

Why did you decide to get research this topic, and where was it recently presented?

I got the opportunity to work on this research with my mentor Dr. Powell. We wanted to research telehealth implementation in nursing homes during COVID-19 because it is so important to learn how this rapid change in technology affected nursing homes. Improving telehealth use will be essential to keeping the growing elderly population safe and improving patient outcomes during future infectious outbreaks. I presented this research at Mizzou’s Health Sciences Research Day.

What is your favorite part about the research you do?

My favorite part about nursing research is getting to investigate how we can care for patients better. The research I did with telehealth was all about identifying how we can make telehealth easier to use for healthcare workers in the future. It’s exciting to be able to advance the knowledge of my future field.

What other organizations or hobbies are you passionate about?

I love playing sports. Especially intramural sports with the Thetas. It’s so fun to stay active and hang out with some of my favorite people. I am passionate about Tour Team. I love getting to interact with prospective students and talking with them about how much I love Mizzou. I am also passionate about my faith. I love spending time at the Newman center volunteering with the high schoolers or in Bible study.

How have your experiences in Theta changed you?

Being in Theta has made me more confident in myself and what I can do. Being around such a talented, opinionated, funny group is really good for the soul. The Thetas are inspiring. They build me up wherever I am on campus.

What does Theta mean to you?

Theta means a supportive group whenever and wherever you need it. Theta is a group of unique and beautiful minds. Theta is a space to find your best self and be supported on your way there. Theta is a laugh and a home.

Do you have any advice for the underclassmen?

Don’t be afraid to say hello and introduce yourself to other Thetas. You belong in our sisterhood. Thetas are some of the most talented people on campus, use this network and invest in it.

Do you have a specific favorite Theta memory?

During work week we had a sisterhood event at an alum’s house out in the country. It was so much fun just to hang out with everyone and relax together outside of school and recruitment.