My Scope of Practice: She’s Got (and is Giving) the Power

“Knowledge has to be improved, challenged, and increased constantly, or it vanishes.” — Peter Drucker, author

  For Coni Ellis, RN, MS, CWOCN, the motto “Knowledge is Power” has been the basis for a career. The former director of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (UTMDACC) Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nurse Education Program (WOCNEP) and current self-proclaimed “nurse navigator” for friends undergoing cancer treatment is a life-long champion of proliferating knowledge to create well-educated clinicians and patients.

  Coni graduated from Incarnate Word College (San Antonio, TX) with a Bachelors of Science in Nursing in 1969 and worked as an oncology nurse and a nursing staff development instructor for 17 years at St. Joseph Hospital (Houston, TX). In 1987, she earned her Masters degree in Nursing from Texas Woman’s University (Houston, TX).

  She joined the Nursing Staff Development Department of the UTMDACC in the Texas Medical Center as the General Surgery/GYN Clinical Instructor, where she met two certified enterostomal therapy nurses (CETN): Dorothy Smith, RN, MSN, CWOCN, FAAN, the first director of the UTMDACC ETNEP; and Beverly G. Hampton, RN, MSN, CWOCN, then director. These two women mentored her regarding wound and ostomy care through working with oncology patients who often presented with complex problems. “Experiencing these challenges and seeing the relief the patients expressed made me want to be a CETN,” Coni says.

 In 1993, Coni graduated from the UTMDACC WOCNEP and became its Co-Director. During this time, she also was involved with the Nursing Outreach Program and the Texas Nurse Oncology Program, traveling throughout rural Texas teaching wound and ostomy care. “Bringing resources to nurses and seeing how they care for patients from the beginning of life to the end of life was inspirational,” she says.

  Coni’s efforts were not limited to the United States. She coordinated a 6-week oncology course on ostomy care for nurses in Madrid, Spain. She was selected to present at the World Council of Enterostomal Therapy Nurses (WCETN) in England, Italy, and Hong Kong, and she presented in Australia in 2007 for the Australian Stomal Therapy Nurses.

  From 1988 to 2007, Coni served as adjunct faculty for the University of Texas School of Nursing and North Harris County Community College, teaching ostomy and wound care. Through these endeavors, she was able not only to educate future nurses, but also to introduce them to the role of a CWOCN. She was invited to share her expertise as a member of the Oncology Nurses Society (ONS) conference as a planner for the Fall Institutes and later the Institutes of Learning. Additionally, as a former WOCN Society education chair/continuing education committee chair, Coni served on the National Conference Planning Committee from 2007 to 2011. She says the WOCN/WCET Conference in Phoenix was the most exciting. “It was enlightening to meet nurses from around the world, learn new solutions to common patient problems, and reconnect with nurses I’d met at past WCETN Congresses.

  Coni’s role as Director of the UTMDACC WOCNEP (2003–2007) encompassed overseeing the curriculum and preceptor development. She and Co-Director Janet Davis, RN, MSN, CWOCN, presented preceptor workshops for WOCNs. Retiring from this role in 2007, Coni has worked for the last 6 years as a nurse consultant for ConvaTec (Skillman, NJ), teaching about ostomy and negative pressure wound therapy products. She often encountered former students and was always grateful to hear how they were enjoying their role as CWOCNs. “A typical remark was, ‘It was the best choice I’ve made in my career’,” Coni says.

  For the past 4 years, Coni has been the conference-planning chair for the South Central Region of the WOCN Society. Along with Janet Davis, she presented on “The Professional Image of the CWOCN” at the 2013 WOCN conference in Seattle. “I think the WOCN Society has done a remarkable job of striving to meet the continuing education needs of its members through its various products and the Global Learning Center,” Coni says.

  Sharing knowledge through publication is also important for Coni. She has written about pain management, psychosocial issues, stress management, spirituality, and sexuality. Her research efforts include a multisite retrospective study of Joint Commission Pain Standard Documentation with the Houston ONS in 2000.

  Now retired from the industry side of WOC nursing, Coni fills her days as a “nurse navigator” for friends with cancer undergoing chemotherapy and radiation. She is involved with the Girl Scouts as the co-leader for her granddaughter’s troop and as a day camp unit leader/nurse. She encourages nurses in their careers through her local ONS and WOC nursing groups. Her own experience has taught her many valuable lessons she continues to share with nurses following in her footsteps to perpetuate her scope of practice.

This article was not subject to the Ostomy Wound Management peer-review process.