also known as “Dr. D”, is originally from Jamaica, West Indies, and has resided in New York since the early 90's. In the span of her 20+ year nursing career, Dr. Dunkley has worked extensively in the arena of maternal-child health, and is an experienced nurse leader with a demonstrated history of working in both hospital and community healthcare, as well as academia. She is currently a full time lecturer in the Graduate Entry Pre-Specialty in Nursing (GEPN) and Masters of Science in Nursing programs at Yale School of Nursing. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Hampton University, and earned both her Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from the University of Phoenix.
Her dissertation research focused on the experiences of Black female executive nurse leaders and created the inspiration for founding The League of Extraordinary Black Nurses (LEBN), a nonprofit organization aimed at supporting current and future Black nurses through the guiding principles of leadership, mentorship, and scholarship.
Through this newly formed consulting company, Daihnia’s Joy, LLC, Dr. Dunkley applies strategic solutions infused with passion and commitment in her efforts to serve as a change agent and advocate for systemic improvement in healthcare. Daihnia's Joy, LLC has 3 overarching company aims:
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Diversify nursing representation
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Empower minority nurse leaders
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Improve Black maternal health outcomes
Find out more below about the "why" behind Daihnia's Joy...
Dr. Daihnia
Dunkley
DID YOU KNOW?
Racial disparities in maternal mortality show that there are 42.4 deaths per 100,000 live births for black non-Hispanic women vs. 13 deaths per 100,000 live births for white non-Hispanic women (CDC, 2011–2016)
Early in my career I became aware of the disparities within the healthcare system and their impact on practitioners as well as patients, especially of color. Few formal mentorship or leadership development programs existed for Black nurses, and informal relationships were based on sameness, heavily excluding women of color.
While navigating these experiences, I also witnessed tragic losses of mothers and babies during and after childbirth. Research indicates, more women die from pregnancy related complications in the US than in any other developed nation, with women of color being disproportionately affected.
As I transitioned from bedside nursing to administrative roles, I began to understand the other layers and contributing factors to these issues, which include a lack of diverse representation in the healthcare workforce, implicit bias, systemic racism, and patient mistrust and avoidance of the healthcare system to name a few.
Having spent the formative years of my career doing the work to understand these complex problems, my focus has shifted to creating solutions through advocacy, consultation, education, mentorship, and resource provision; for individuals, organizations, and the larger healthcare community.
WHY
There is a lack of intentional mentorship and development opportunities particularly for Black and minority nurses
It was an honor to have Dr. Dunkley participate as the key speaker for my Doctoral Project entitled, “Utilizing a Mentorship Approach to Address the Underrepresentation of Ethnic Minorities in Senior Nursing Leadership.” She has a unique gift for making complex subjects easy to comprehend. Dr. Dunkley engaged the audience on the subject matter of negotiation and collaboration in leadership. She offered practical insight to successfully balance the dichotomy of the two paradigms. Her message was motivational and energetic. She inspired participants to pause, think, evaluate and execute. Several months have passed and attendees still talk about the great learning experience that they had at Dr. Dunkley’s presentation.
-Kimberly Jean-Louis DNP, RN, NEA-BC