Patricia Schmehl, RN, DNP

About Patricia Schmehl, RN, DNP

Patricia “Pat” Schmehl is a registered nurse and nursing educator whose professional background includes critical care, cardiology, and nursing practice across multiple hospital settings. Her educational work includes courses on critical thinking in assessment, medication administration, and oxygen therapies.

Clinical and Professional Background

Patricia’s nursing experience is concentrated in acute care, particularly critical care nursing. Her background also includes medical-surgical and operating room nursing, along with agency and hospital float pool assignments in post-anesthesia care and other hospital units.

Outside the hospital setting, she worked in blood donation phlebotomy with Keystone Community Blood Bank. She also previously held certification as an acute care nurse practitioner and worked within a cardiology practice.

Her professional interests include nursing education, mentoring, and diabetes prevention.

Books and Educational Publications

Patricia authored Introduction to Concept Mapping in Nursing: Critical Thinking in Action, published by Jones & Bartlett Learning.

The book introduces concept mapping as a way to connect nursing theory with patient care. It guides learners through gathering information, organizing relationships among concepts, and constructing maps that support critical thinking and care planning.

Its educational activities address different learning styles and encourage students to consider how nursing knowledge applies to clinical situations.