Kate Boulter, RN, BAN, MPH
Nurse Manager
Nebraska Biocontainment Unit
Kate Boulter is the Nurse Manager for the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit (NBU). Her responsibilities include staff management, policy and procedure development, operational readiness of the NBU and grant deliverable completion. She is a member of the NBU Leadership Team, an interdisciplinary working group, ensuring the NBU is operation ready. Kate is dedicated to infection control and occupational safety and uses this passion to mentor and educate NBU staff, as well as regional and national partners.
Kate has been involved with the NBU since its inception in 2005. She contributed significantly to developing and refining the standard operating procedures and policies, and she continues to serve as a subject matter expert on the NBU policy development committee. She is a strong nursing advocate for incorporating evidenced-based practice into the policy development process. During the Ebola Virus Disease outbreak of 2014-2016, Kate was the Lead RN for the NBU and coordinated staffing and clinical care for the three patients treated in the NBU and for the individuals who were in quarantine after potential exposure to the Ebola virus n Africa.
In 2020 when passengers arrived from the Diamond Princess cruise ship at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kate took an active role standing up the NBU, notifying staff, and conducting Just in Time training to review infection control processes. Ms. Boulter’s team was able to meet the surge, assist with the transition, and prepare for additional and future COVID-19 patients.
Drawing on her extensive nursing experience, Kate has presented at many local and national conferences and has contributed to multiple publications concerning biocontainment processes, infection control techniques, and patient care. Kate has been involved with The National Emerging Special Pathogens Treatment and Education Center (NETEC) education and metric initiatives and led the NETEC long-term care (LTC) workbook development to create a resource for LTC facilities to assess their preparedness and address gaps when faced with a special pathogen.
Kate began her career in the United Kingdom’s Women’s Royal Air Force where she developed leadership skills and learned the value of proper donning and doffing of personal protective equipment (PPE) through biological, chemical, and radiation courses that became the foundation of PPE processes further developed by the NBU team. Kate's nursing career spans a broad range of specialties including nephrology, solid-organ transplant, Community Mobile Nursing project manager serving underserved populations, and educator for medical surgical and intensive care nursing staff.
Kate received her undergraduate degree at Oxford Brookes University in the United Kingdom achieving a First Class Honours degree in Nursing. She completed a Master’s in Public Health at UNMC.