Verónica García Walker

Biography:

Dr. García Walker’s experience with older adults diagnosed with schizophrenia (OADWS) spans over 20 years. She has dedicated herself to the patient care and patient teaching of OADWS as a staff psychiatric nurse as well as when she served as a director of nursing in a psychiatric hospital. Later at The University of Texas at Austin, she tirelessly worked in both her undergraduate and graduate lectures and clinical classes to eradicate or mitigate the stigma commonly associated with this population. For over a decade, she has assisted countless students’ learning of safe, respectful, appropriate communication techniques for communicating with OADWS in many major psychiatric facilities. Recently, she investigated the literature and contributed to a conceptual model using the holistic lens of life course theory to study OADWS (Walker, 2019). Dr. García Walker has stated the following, “My passion and love for this population cannot be measured as easily but should be taken into account when considering my suitability for research on this important topic.”

Currently, Dr. García Walker is the Assistant Director for Gerontological Mental Health Practice, Center for Excellence in Aging Services and Long Term Care. This center provides educational expertise in geriatric care to the state’s nursing and health professionals without cost to the user based on the latest expert findings from researchers throughout the Nation.

Selected Publications:

Young, C. C., Kesler, S., Walker, V. G., Johnson, A., & Harrison, T. C. (2022). An online mindfulness-based intervention for certified nursing assistants in long-term care. Journal of Holistic Nursing, https://doi.org/10.1177%2F08980101221105709

Walker, V. G. (2022). Elder’s life course theory and person-centered research: A lens for conducting nursing research and clinical practice with older adults aging with the diagnosis of schizophrenia. Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing. Advanced online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpm.12819

Walker, V. G. (2021). Communication strategies for nursing research with older adults diagnosed with schizophrenia using life course theory. Journal of Nursing Scholarship. Advanced online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jnu.12726

Walker, V. G., & Walker, E. K. (2021). Older adults diagnosed with schizophrenia in long-term care facilities: Life course theory for holistic nursing research and practice. Journal of Holistic Nursing. Advanced online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/08980101211025372

Walker, V. G. (2019). The life course paradigm as a lens for holistic nursing research in older adults diagnosed with schizophrenia. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 37(4), 366-380. https://doi.org/10.1177/0898010119867169

Thurman, W. A., Harrison, T. C., Walker, V. G., & Garcia, A. A. (2019). Pursuing well-being among rural-dwelling adults with disabilities. Qualitative Health Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732319829153

Selected Online Lectures and Presentations:

Care Planning and Behavioral Health:

https://www.utlongtermcarenurse.com/module-11/care-planning-and-behavio…

Methods for De-escalation:

https://www.utlongtermcarenurse.com/module-8/crisis-management-in-long-…

Crisis Management in Long-Term Care Centers:

https://vimeo.com/491072027