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Alumna reflects on a career of nursing and advocacy

By Amanda Brower

After Sept. 11, 2001, Colleen Leners, an emergency trauma nurse in the U.S. Navy Reserve, was asked to volunteer for active duty with the U.S. Army. Answering the call, she served in the Middle East with the U.S. Army Nurse Corps as the sole female provider at an outpatient facility in Tikrit, Iraq. She remembers it as a challenging and life-changing experience.

“Nobody goes to war and comes back the same way. I saw horrific things,” Leners said. “But I also saw heroes that so few people know about.”

While serving in Iraq, Leners was awarded the Bronze Star, but it came at a cost: She developed follicular lymphoma after being exposed to toxic burn pits during military service.

Throughout her three years of cancer treatment, Leners—who holds a bachelor’s in nursing from California State University Dominguez Hills and a master’s from University of San Diego—provided care to wounded warriors at the Navy Medical Center San Diego. During this time, she went on to earn her Doctor of Nursing Practice from �ǿմ�ý.

“With a nursing degree, you can pursue various career paths, such as becoming a flight nurse, hospital administrator or healthcare provider—even the FBI,” Leners said. “Having a nursing degree opens up a world of opportunities.”

Leners, DNP (NUR ’12), saw firsthand the challenges service members faced during their transition to civilian life. She became increasingly frustrated with the lack of care, and how long some veterans were forced to wait to receive it. Many were left in limbo for years, unable to move on with their lives.

“I was caring for Marines getting blown up in Fallujah and coming back with no arms or legs,” said Leners. “They needed somebody who understood what war was like. I had been there and understood.”

Even after shifting to serve roles in health policy—including a fellowship at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation where she was the first DNP to hold the position—Leners never forgot the veterans for whom she cared and advocated. Just last year, in fact, she helped to found 1stCallHEALTH, a primary health care provider for veterans in Washington, D.C, Maryland and Virginia.

“My career has come full circle,” she said, “and I am caring for the people I wanted to care for when I initially went  to Washington.”

This article appears in the print edition of Forefront magazine, summer 2024. Find more stories from Forefront at case.edu/nursing/news-events/forefront-magazine.