Assistant Professor Marion Bendixen, PhD, MSN, RN, IBCLC, has been selected for the Trainee Expansion Program by the International Society for Research on Human Milk and Lactation and the Family Larsson- Rosenquist Foundation. Bendixen is a recipient of the Trainee Travel Fund, which will provide her the opportunity to collaborate with the University of Western Australia on her project titled “The influence of maternal health on human milk biomarkers of secretory activation in pump-dependent mothers of critically ill infants.”

Clinical Assistant Professor Shavondra Huggins, DNP, CNS, WHNP-BC, FNP-C, APRN, CNE, was selected to participate in the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s Diversity Leadership Institute. The goal of the program is to enhance professional knowledge/ experience in order to stimulate strategic thinking and advance outcomes at participants’ home institutions.

Clinical Assistant Professor Michaela Hogan, DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC, CNE, was selected to be part of the eighth cohort of the Faculty Leadership Mentoring Program through the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties.The program addresses the need for replenishing the pipeline of nurse practitioner leaders who are qualified to assume leadership roles in academic nursing settings.

Associate Dean of Clinical Affairs and UF Health Archer Family Health Care Clinical Director Denise Schentrup, APRN, DNP, FAANP, was elected secretary and treasurer of the National Association of Rural Health Clinics Board. As a member of the board since 2020, Schentrup serves as an advocate for delivering quality care to patients in underserved communities through designated Rural Health Clinics.

Clinical Assistant Professor Anita Stephen, PhD, RN, CNL, CHSE, met the certification requirements for the Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator program, and now holds that certification in good standing. The certification from the Society for Simulation in Healthcare “confirms the knowledge, skills and abilities essential to qualified individuals who are instructors or managers of simulation educational interventions.”

Dorothy M. Smith Endowed Chair, Jane Carrington, PhD, RN, FAAN, FAMIA, was recently honored as one of seven AMIAinformatics 2022 Signature Award and Leadership Award recipients for excellence in nursing informatics.

Clinical Assistant Professor, Bryce Catarelli, DNP, APRN, FNP-C, attended the Restoring Joy in Leadership conference in Jacksonville. She served as a panelist and received the Joyful Nurse Award, presented by Gator Nurse Rose Rivers (BSN 1988, MSN 1990, PhD 1995). She was nominated by Patrick Nobles, DNP, FNP-BC, CNL, a clinical assistant professor.

Clinical Assistant Professor Karen Reed, MSN, DHSc, RN, CNE, CNL, CRRN, received a Faculty Enhancement Opportunity award, sponsored in part by the World Health Organization to track, trace and address hospital-acquired infections, in collaboration with the Cambodian Ministry of Health.

PhD student Gina Gehling delivered a Nursing Research and Innovation Grand Rounds presentation at UF Health. Her topic was “The Role of Nursing in Pain Management Through the Lens of TNEEL (Toolkit for Nursing Excellence in End-of Life Care).”

PhD student Christina Grinstead and Sunny Yoon, PhD, RN, an associate professor, had two papers published in high-impact journals. Both papers pertain to nutritional aspects of care for adults with cancer. “Associations of overall survival with Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer” was published in the journal Nutrients, and “Apelin, a circulating biomarker in cancer evaluation: A systematic review” was published in the journal Cancers.

The Alpha Theta Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing (Sigma) held its 2023 Spring Induction Ceremony. Among the new members inducted were numerous UF BSN and DNP students, including:

In recognition of their exceptional academic nursing partnership, the UF College of Nursing and UF Health Nursing were selected to receive the 2022 New Era for Academic Nursing Award by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, or AACN. The College of Nursing and UF Health were recognized for their innovative and sustained relationship that meets the AACN’s recommendation to “Embrace a New Vision of Academic Nursing.”

The academic nursing partnership between the college and leadership at UF Health Nursing is an innovative and sustained relationship that exemplifies collaboration and commitment across practice, research and education. Examples of innovation include the Academic Partnership Unit program at the UF Health Jacksonville campus, which is an innovative educational model for second-degree students that effectively combines limited faculty resources and practicing nurses’ expertise.

Other examples of the commitment between the college and UF Health include the Nurse Sensitive Indicators initiative, which created a practical application for BSN students to gain knowledge of and competence in quality, safety and efficacy for prevention. The newly launched joint demonstration projects is yet another example. Through these year-long projects, UF Health nurses and UF College of Nursing faculty are collaborating on projects to design and evaluate improved approaches to health care access and delivery.

This national award recognizes AACN member institutions that have successfully implemented recommended strategies from AACN’s report Advancing Healthcare Transformation: A New Era for Academic Nursing. Anna McDaniel, College of Nursing dean and the Linda Harman Aiken Chair, and Irene Alexaitis, UF Health Shands vice president of nursing and patient services, were presented with the award during the AACN Academic Nursing Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 24