Research Newsletter Fall 2007

5. Awards and Accolades

Dr. Joyce K. Anastasi, the Helen F. Pettit Professor of Clinical Nursing, received the 2007 Presidential Teaching Award for teaching excellence. This year, the Teaching Awards Committee received over 500 nominations for this prestigious award. Dr. Anastasi has been faculty at the School of Nursing since 1992 and she has pioneered two subspecialty programs, HIV/AIDS and Integrative Therapies in Primary Care. In addition, as a highly productive researcher, she has secured continued NIH funding for over 10 years to conduct her research on the symptom management of HIV/AIDS and chronic illnesses.

Dr. Mary Byrne has been named to the Stone Foundation and Elise D. Fish Professorship in Clinical Health Care for the Underserved. This appointment was enthusiastically endorsed by the faculty committee of full professors in the school, and by the health sciences and University. This professorship was funded by the Stone Foundation, through the advocacy of alumna and Board of Visitors member Sally Stone, and through a gift from Elise Fish, also an alumna. Care of the underserved may be the most daunting health challenge we have in this country, and Professor Byrne has been a pioneer in establishing the science to address those most vulnerable, infants and toddlers, who have been her dedicated mission for many years.

The New York Zero-to-Three Network has selected Dr. Mary Byrne as the first recipient ever of the annual Emily Fenichel Award for Leadership in the Zero-to-Three Field in New York. Dr. Byrne is recognized for her exemplary contributions to infants and toddlers through practice, research, leadership, and advocacy. The Award is given in memory of the former Associate Director of The National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families.

Dr. Byrne also received the New York State Nurses Association Distinguished Nurse Researcher Award for 2007. Sponsored by the Foundation of NYSNA, the award recognizes excellence in nursing research by NYSNA members.

The Audrey Hepburn Award for Contributions to the Health and Welfare of Children, an International Award for Excellence, was presented to Dr. Byrne for her significant contributions to the health and well being of children. The award was presented at Sigma Theta Tau International biennial convention following an introduction by Mr. Robert Wolders, long time companion of Audrey Hepburn and a Director of the Audrey Hepburn Children’s Fund and its program for UNICEF.

Drs. Leanne Currie and Arlene Smaldone were named Glenda Garvey Teaching Academy Fellows at CUMC. Students in Dr. Currie’s “Assessing Clinical Evidence” course consistently rate her at the highest levels. Her most significant teaching accomplishment is in master’s and doctoral core courses in the evaluation of clinical research studies and their application to practice. Dr. Smaldone developed the content and syllabus for and lectures in the “Health and Social Policy” course, which has received high ratings from students. Students have recommended that the course be required in every advanced practice school of nursing across the country. The Glenda Garvey Teaching Academy recognized excellence, supports educational activities, and promotes innovated in the education of health professionals.

Dr. Richard Garfield, the Henrik H. Bendixen Clinical Professor of International Nursing in Columbia University’s School of Nursing, has been appointed by the World Health Organization as the director of the first international office for assessing and responding to humanitarian needs in crisis countries. Dr. Garfield will spend the next year in Geneva continuing a trajectory of work he initiated several years ago. Dr. Garfield has traveled to Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, Indonesia, Nicaragua, Sudan, Cuba, Columbia, Liberia, and the former Republic of Yugoslavia in his efforts to make known the problems facing civilian populations in time of crisis, either natural disasters or war.

The American College of Nurse Midwives’ Foundation selected Rebekah Ruppe, CNMW to receive the 2007 Excellence in teaching Award. Ms. Ruppe was nominated by the midwifery students of 2006-2007.

Carrie Lyn Sammarco, DNP ‘07, is the recipient of the John Dystel Nursing Fellowship in Multiple Sclerosis. The fellowship program is designed for nurses wishing to receive advanced training in MS care. The team approach to managing the care of patients with multiple sclerosis is often utilized by MS centers. Dr. Sammarco’s fellowship project will entail visiting various MS centers around the country and assessing the role of advanced practice nurses in these settings. She plans to develop a monograph defining the role of the MS NP which will then be helpful in clarifying and validating the role of the MS advanced practice nurse.

Combined BS/MS students Mindy Banker, Jocelyn Harris, Dorothy Hopton, Julia McBee, and Jessica Skelton won the best student poster award at the Eastern Nursing Research Symposium (ENRS). The poster, entitled “Zinc Supplementation Reduces Duration and Severity of Diarrheal Episodes for Children in Developing Countries” was selected because of its practical importance and student presentation competence. Awardees were BS/MS students in Dr. Leanne Currie’s ACE Course.