San Francisco—A national fellowship program focused on expanding the role of nurses to lead change in the U.S. health care system has named its 2009 cohort of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation® (RWJF) Executive Nurse Fellows. Twenty nurses, selected from among the top nursing leaders nationwide, will join more than 200 nurse leaders who have participated in the program since 1998. With nurses from Oklahoma and Rhode Island, two states new to the program, the Executive Nurse Fellows network now extends across 46 states.
The three-year fellowship program provides extensive leadership development for nurses in executive roles in public or community health, science and research, corporate health, academia, government, or military health service. Fellows remain in their current positions while they receive training and mentoring, and while they manage their own health care initiative. A key part of program participation is the development of an innovative new initiative to improve health care delivery, which Fellows plan and implement in their community.
"Nurses provide a unique perspective in the health care system, understanding both the patient experience and the way policies and procedures affect health outcomes," said Marilyn P. Chow, D.N.Sc., R.N., F.A.A.N., the RWJF Executive Nurse Fellows national program director. "We are excited for the unique opportunity that our fellows have. They will be able to utilize the skills they develop in our program to participate in the national discourse on health reform."
The 2009 Executive Nurse Fellows are:
- Julee Bolg, M.S., M.B.A., N.E.-B.C., director of patient services, satellite network for the Children's Health Corporation, Boston, Mass.;
- Janie Lee Canty-Mitchell, Ph.D., R.N., associate dean for research and community partnerships at the University of North Carolina Wilmington School of Nursing, Wilmington, N.C.;
- Stephen Cavanagh, Ph.D., M.P.A., R.N., professor and associate dean, Wayne State University College of Nursing in Detroit, Mich.;
- Lynne Dunphy, Ph.D., F.N.P., B.C., Routhier Chair and professor of nursing, University of Rhode Island in Kingston, R.I.;
- Lorraine Frazier, Ph.D., R.N., F.A.A.N., professor, University of Texas Health Science Center Nursing Systems in Houston, Texas;
- Mary Ellen Glasgow, Ph.D., R.N., C.N.S., associate dean, undergraduate programs, Drexel University, College of Nursing and Health Professions in Philadelphia, Pa.;
- Mary Beth Kingston, M.S.N., N.E.A.-B.C., chief nurse executive, Albert Einstein Healthcare Network Administration in Philadelphia, Pa.;
- Josefina Lujan, Ph.D., R.N., regional dean and associate professor, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Anita Thigpen Perry School of Nursing in El Paso, Texas;
- Margo MacRobert, M.S., R.N., C.C.M., N.E.A.-B.C., assistant dean and executive director of the Institute for Case Management, University of Oklahoma College of Nursing in Oklahoma City, Okla.;
- Rosalie Mainous, Ph.D., A.R.N.P., N.N.P.-B.C., associate dean for graduate academic affairs, University of Louisville Foundation in Louisville, Ky.;
- Julie Myhre, M.S., R.N., director, Carlton-Cook-Lake-St. Louis Community Health Board, Duluth, Minn.;
- Lisa O'Connor, M.S., R.N., N.E.A.A.-B.C., vice president of nursing, Boston Medical Center, Boston, Mass.;
- Shirley Orr, M.H.S., A.R.N.P., N.E.A.-B.C., director of local health, Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Office of Local and Rural Health, Topeka, Kan.;
- Cecilia Page, M.S.N., R.N., F.A.C.H.E., director of Clinical Informatics and Project Management Office, University of Kentucky Healthcare, Lexington, Ky.;
- Suzanne Prevost, Ph.D., R.N., associate dean for practice and community engagement, University of Kentucky, College of Nursing, Lexington, Ky.;
- Elias Provencio-Vasquez, Ph.D., R.N., F.A.A.N., F.A.A.N.P., associate professor, University of Miami, School of Nursing and Health Studies, Coral Gables, Fla.;
- Cindy Reistroffer, M.B.A., R.N., N.E.-B.C., director, Spectrum Health Hospitals, Grand Rapids, Mich;
- Charleen Tachibana, M.N., R.N., senior vice president, hospital administrator and chief nursing officer, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, Wash.;
- Barbara Wadsworth, M.S.N., M.B.A., N.E.C.-B.C., senior vice president for patient services and chief nursing officer, Abington Memorial Hospital in Abington, Pa.; and
- Barbara Wolfe, Ph.D., R.N., C.N.S., F.A.A.N., associate dean for research and professor, Trustees of Boston College School of Nursing in Chestnut Hill, Mass.
The fellowship is supported through a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and matching funds from each of the Fellows' home institutions or sponsoring organizations.
For more information about the RWJF Executive Nurse Fellows program visit: http://futurehealth.ucsf.edu/
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, meaningful and timely change. For more than 35 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime. For more information, visit www.rwjf.org.