[3] Upon receiving her PhD, Deatrick became an assistant professor and director of the graduate program at Northwestern University's Center for Nursing.
[9] As a result, she earned the University of Illinois Alumni Association's 1999 Achievement Award[9] and chaired Penn's Disability Board.
[8] She continued to collaborate with CHOP even after returning to UPenn and in 2005 lead an interdisciplinary investigation to identify the characteristics of caregivers who feel most overwhelmed by the challenges facing them.
[11] Two years later, she co-published The analysis and interpretation of cognitive interviews for instrument development with Knafl through the journal Research in Nursing & Health.
[12] By 2013, Deatrick's work was recognized by various international organizations leading to the election as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and serving as a member for its Child and Adolescent Expert Panel.