KRISTY GAUTHIER

Kristy Gauthier, MS, RN, CHSE earned her Associate Degree in Nursing from Pacific Union College in 2003 and is a two-time alumna of the University of Utah, where she completed her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2007 and her Master of Science in Nursing Education in 2018. With more than 20 years of clinical experience, she has been a dedicated burn nurse at University of Utah Health since 2004. She served as the educator for the Burn Trauma Intensive Care Unit for ten years before transitioning to academia in 2021.

Kristy leads simulation integration across the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) curriculum. Her work includes curriculum alignment, scenario design, faculty development, and program evaluation in accordance with the Healthcare Simulation Standards of Best Practice™ and the AACN Essentials. She has been instrumental in integrating Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) students into BSN simulations, including mock codes and multi-patient scenarios, strengthening competency-based and interprofessional learning. She also supports interdisciplinary academic and hospital-based simulation center users to ensure activities align with evidence-based simulation standards.

Her professional interests center on advancing intra- and interprofessional collaboration through simulation. As a hospital educator, she developed and implemented interprofessional simulations in partnership with nursing, physicians, pharmacy, and respiratory therapy teams. She continues to collaborate with clinical partners to support disaster preparedness and mock code training within the Burn Unit.

Kristy is a Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator (CHSE). Her scholarly work includes peer-reviewed publications, a book chapter, grant development, and numerous national and international presentations focused on interprofessional and competency-based simulation.