CYNTHIA D. READ APN, CPNP-PC, CPNP-AC, LNC
Cynthia D. Read is a highly skilled Pediatric Nurse Practitioner with over 27 years of Pediatric Nursing experience. She is Dual-Certified in both Acute and Primary Pediatric Care by the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board and maintains her State of Illinois license in good standing with no history of disciplinary action. Cynthia first worked as a bedside nurse and charge nurse in the Pediatric Critical Care Unit (PICU) for 11 years prior to becoming an Advanced Practice Nurse.
She continues to work full time as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner in the PICU at OSF (OSF Children’s Hospital of Illinois) which is an academic center with a Level 1 Trauma Center and a busy Pediatric Emergency Department. Ms. Read’s primary specialty has been Pediatric Critical Care Nursing since 1994 and she currently sits on the Quality and Control Committee for the OSF Children’s Hospital. Because of her long affiliation with an academic center, Cynthia has been actively involved in a great deal of research. OSF has been recognized as a “Best Children’s Hospital” by U.S. News & World Report. OSF has repeatedly been recognized as a Gold Level Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) Center of Excellence for the use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).
In addition to working as an Advanced Practice Nurse in the PICU, Cynthia also works part time for a well-known Hematology group consisting of three board certified Hematologists and six Advanced Practice Nurses. The group provides comprehensive family-centered care, treatment, and education to individuals with bleeding, clotting and other blood disorders. They are the only federally funded “Hemophilia Treatment Center of Excellence” in Illinois south of Chicago.
Cynthia’s practice roles have consisted of NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) nurse, PICU nurse, and PICU Advanced Practice Nurse. Through her work in a Level 1 Trauma Center, she has cared for a broad spectrum of patients including those with common to rare disease processes, trauma, and surgical patients. Cynthia cares for and manages patients with complex congenital heart disease who require open heart surgery, post op cardiac patients, pediatric traumas, pediatric renal transplant patients and ECMO patients. Cynthia also maintains her ECMO certification.
Early in her nursing career, Cynthia spent time working at a busy OB/GYN and Family Practice group. She has also practiced internationally through multiple Medical Missions, providing much needed medical services to patients in remote areas. Most recently, Cynthia completed CASA training (Court Appointed Special Advocate) for the Tenth Judicial Circuit. In this volunteer role, she is appointed by a judicial officer to provide advocacy for children under the jurisdiction of the courts due to abuse or neglect. The CASA advocate serves as the eyes and ears of the judge for children in foster care.