David L. Mischel is an Advanced Practice Nurse Prescriber who works at a Critical Access Hospital in rural northern Wisconsin. David’s area of focus is serving two patient populations: Children and Adolescents and Adults with Substance Use Disorders and has a special passion for serving members of the LGBTQ community. Working in a rural setting, these populations often overlap as David works with families where substance use has impacted multiple generations in the family grouping. David first starting working with individuals with Serious Mental Illness (SMI) while working in group homes and as an EMT in rural Wisconsin. These experiences allowed him to quickly see the impact substance use disorders had on individuals, families, and communities.
David graduated with an ASN from Western Technical College in 2008 and his BSN in from Viterbo University in 2010, both located in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. David worked for the Gundersen Health System as a Registered Nurse on the Inpatient Psychiatric Unit, the Residential Alcohol and Other Drug (AODA) treatment program, and the Outpatient Behavioral Health which included a Suboxone program. David was tasked with assisting the Education Department on implementing improved training for the patient care staff who attended to individuals with SMI and AODA concerns. This resulted in implementing a new type of hybrid training program in cooperation with the Crisis Prevention Institute and further consultation with other healthcare organizations, both nationally and internationally, to assist in setting up similar trainings.
David graduated with a MS as a Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) from the University of North Dakota in 2013 and earned his Certified Addiction Registered Nurse-Advanced Practice in 2018. Since graduation, David has worked in rural Wyoming and Wisconsin. He has worked as a clinical nursing instructor for undergraduate nursing programs for psychiatric nursing rotations and for PMHNP programs as an expert in diagnosing and treating substance use disorders in the psychiatric population. David regularly precepts PMHNP students in clinical rotations and is currently leading a two-year project to improve alcohol withdrawal treatment in the hospital setting. David is currently completing his Doctor of Nursing Practice degree at the University of North Dakota.