Newest nurse practitioner is enjoying learning a new specialty

Brent Bissen, DNP/FNP, recently joined the inpatient nursing team on the Neuroscience Unit of the University of Minnesota Medical Center (UMMC). He had most recently been working with Mayo Clinic Hospital, Saint Mary’s Campus, in Rochester, MN, on the Nephrology (kidney disease) and Hypertension Unit. Prior to that, he spent 12 years working at UMMC in various nursing roles in the Surgical/Neurosurgical Intensive Care Unit.

With the change to a new specialty, Brent is enjoying the “amount of learning and information” he must absorb. “I find it fascinating, knowing that it’s not just surgery,” he said. “I’m helping patients get through major life events, instead of just recovering from a procedure.”

Brent earned his Doctor of Nursing Practice/Family Nurse Practitioner and his Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees from Augsburg University in Minneapolis. He is a member of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and had been a volunteer at Augsburg Central Health Commons in Minneapolis for 13 years.

When Brent and his wife have spare time, they enjoy spending it with their children, ages 6 and 8. “We go hiking and biking,” he said. “In addition, my son plays soccer, and my daughter does track, so that keeps us busy.”