Donatilla Mukamana, Dean and Associate Professor at the University of Rwanda, was the first registered mental health nurse in the country. When the genocide against the Tutsis ended, there were no mental health providers in the nation. Recognizing a critical need for mental health providers, she developed the advanced diploma mental health nurse program at the University of Rwanda to extend care to the Rwandan population.

As the inaugural Dean of the School of Nursing & Midwifery, at the University of Rwanda, she secured resources, obtained political support from the Ministries of Health and Education, and oversaw the development and the launch of the first Masters of Science in Nursing (MScN) program in Rwanda. To date, more than 200 individuals have completed the MScN program - from eight different specialties. In 2017, she collaborated on the development of the PhD in Nursing Science program at the University of Rwanda to help build the body of nursing evidence specific to the Rwandan context. Her program of research focuses on interventions and models of care for survivors of rape and those experiencing mental health challenges associated with war/genocide and intervention development and testing to mitigate the negative effects of stigma among women with HIV in Rwanda.