Dr. Uzo Nwankpa, DNP, MSN-PH, RN, Educator | Nurse | Artist | Researcher has made her mark in the world of wellness with her holistic and cultural approach to arts, education, and public health. Dr Uzo is a fourth-generation descendant of healers who moved to the West from Southeast Nigeria. With a Bachelor’s and Master of Science degree in Nursing, she has completed her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) with a focus on communal healing.

Dr Uzo faced difficulties, anxiety, and stress when it came to adjusting to her new surroundings while being away from her country. She then decided to try to find a balance in her life through the indigenous practices of her ancestral roots. She bridges the gap between Africans and the West, and as a first-generation immigrant, works towards decolonizing wellness using her Uzo Method.

Dr Uzo Nwankpa diligently works to reduce burnout among healthcare workers. Just like any other individual, healthcare workers go through a lot of stress that needs to be addressed and taken care of for their well-being. Her innovative ideas of blending arts, culture, and framework to tackle the wave of mass resignation of nurses and healthcare workers enabled the healthcare industry to handle their workforce instability. Dr Uzo’s workshops are life-changing, and they motivate and inspire the nurses to work towards healing. Through this method, she gives a public health solution to individuals and public health nursing. To decolonize wellness, one must center ancestral knowledge, challenge systems of oppression, and uplift diverse cultural practices that honor collective healing and lived experience.

On Changing the Face of Public Health Nursing and Healthcare Workers

Public health nurses help keep communities healthy by preventing illness, promoting wellness, and making sure everyone has access to care and support.

As a public health nurse, Dr. Uzo Nwankpa has effectively addressed modern mental health challenges among nursing students, new graduates, and healthcare professionals through her Uzo Method. This approach integrates the power of connection and healing as essential components of well-being. Combining intentional rhythm, movement, and storytelling, the Uzo Method helps individuals build resilience and transform their health. Dr. Nwankpa is also recognized for her five-step RICHER Model, which promotes inclusive health and wellness across diverse communities.

Dr Uzo’s unhealthy way of coping with the stress in her life is what made her make the changes in the system. Her decision to make changes and be the change when it came to her healing process, revolving it around the cultural practices of her Igbo heritage, gave her the breakthrough to find solace in dance, music, and storytelling. It was her personal journey of finding happiness in her ancestral beats and traditional foods that made her realize that those were her medicine. It is then that she decided to take it as a mission and make others understand how they could benefit from intentional rhythm and movement.

Her personal journey was then converted and formalized through educational and interactive workshops, performances, and seminars. Health profession students, individuals, public health nurses, and healthcare workers were made to understand how the richness of culture and traditions can become tools for well-being. All this led her to develop the Uzo Method in 2010 that integrated rhythm and movement for healing, the RICHER Model in 2015 that centered around artistic expressions, embodiment, and reflection as forays to healing and wellness, and Wellness Promotes LL in 2021 that enabled a wider audience to know more about her work. Dr Nwankpa has been successful in incorporating her ancestral wisdom and has successfully used music, movement, and storytelling to address issues of burnout and stress effectively among current and future health workers.

Dr Uzo’s success story is because she prioritizes human well-being, she understands that self-care and community are interconnected, and she emphasizes that. She spreads love through her acts of helping those who are in need, healing, and serving. Most importantly, her holistic and cultural wellness is woven around culture, music, and dance, and empowers everyone, be it an individual or a healthcare worker, to prioritize their health and well-being.