VUSN

Boosting its commitment to underrepresented nursing leaders, Vanderbilt University School of Nursing has secured a grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation for its innovative leadership program, Academy for Diverse Emerging Nurse Leaders. The academy is a groundbreaking, five-day immersive fellowship specially designed to train nurses from backgrounds that are underrepresented in nursing leadership... Read More

Clinicians need to have a better understanding of the potential impact of patients’ anxiety sensitivity, or “fear of fear,” according to an article published in American Journal of Critical Care. When a patient has anxiety sensitivity, they misinterpret nonthreatening symptoms as threatening, assessing the potential meaning across physical, social or cognitive domains. These “what if” thoughts may trigger a spiral effect, stimulating the nervous system and resulting in stronger sensations and further catastrophic misinterpretations. Read More

Vanderbilt doctor of nursing practice students who hope to become nursing faculty may take advantage of a $1.52 million grant from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration Bureau of Health Workforce, Nurse Faculty Loan Program. Vanderbilt University School of Nursing received the award to support DNP students through the 2023-2024 academic year. Read More

A new partnership with AARP Tennessee and the National Museum of African American Music is allowing the Therapeutic Music in the ICU program led by Vanderbilt School of Nursing Professor Ruth Kleinpell and Vanderbilt University Medical Center Professor Joseph Schlesinger to expand, with outreach to veterans and older adults at long-term care facilities in Middle Tennessee. Read More

Monica Keith, assistant professor of anthropology, recently published insights into the complex factors contributing to maternal hypertension and health disparities. This research sheds light on the alarming rates of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy in the United States, particularly among Black mothers. Read More

For the fourth year in a row, Vanderbilt University School of Nursing has won a Higher Education in Excellence in Diversity Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. The award honors VUSN’s commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion shown through mentorship, education, research and staffing practices. Read More

Vanderbilt University School of Nursing has received a four-year, $2.8 million Health Resources and Services Administration Bureau of Health Workforce grant for a primary care nurse practitioner residency program that will recruit, train and retain primary care providers with a passion for helping rural and underserved communities. Read More

The School of Nursing is participating in a new Vanderbilt University Medical Center initiative funded with a $3.9 million grant to VUMC from the Tennessee Department of Health. The initiative will evaluate innovative models of nursing care that include screening and responding to social drivers of health. It will also consider how to mitigate nursing staff shortages and ensure optimal patient care. Read More

The Vanderbilt University School of Nursing has been named a National League of Nursing Center of Excellence in Nursing Education for its support of faculty pedagogical expertise. Read More

The Tennessee Action Coalition has included a School of Nursing faculty member and a Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt nurse in its 2023 cohort of Tennessee Rising Star Nurse Leaders. VUSN Assistant Professor Monika Schmidt Do, DNP, FACC, and clinical staff leader Cory Smeltzer, RN, were among 25 young Tennessee nurse leaders named rising stars. Read More

Vanderbilt University School of Nursing Associate Professor of Nursing Stephanie DeVane-Johnson, PhD, MSN’97, CNM, FACNM, has been awarded a two-year Diversity Supplement grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD). The National Institute of Health (NIH) supplement supports early career researchers of color by providing mentorship, training and career development opportunities... Read More

School of Nursing professor Ginny Moore, DNP, MSN’90, was named an AANP fellow in honor of her outstanding achievements and exemplary service in nursing. Moore, who directs the Women's Health and Gender Related Nurse Practitioner specialty, was inducted on June 22. Read More

Nurses from underrepresented groups who are interested in leadership are invited to apply for a new aspiring leaders academy to be held at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing July 17-19. Spots are limited, so applicants are encouraged to apply by May 31. Read More

Vanderbilt University School of Nursing Associate Dean for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Rolanda Johnson received the Vanderbilt University Joseph A. Johnson Jr. Distinguished Leadership Professor Award at the university’s Spring Faculty Assembly.   Read More

Class of 2023: It’s every child’s nightmare: Both parents are rushed to the hospital with life-threatening emergencies. But that terrifying personal experience—and his parents’ recovery—inspired Mark Miller to put aside a 20-year management career and earn a master’s in nursing at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing. Read More

A Vanderbilt School of Nursing team has been approved for a $250,000 funding award through the Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Awards program, an initiative of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. The funds will support identifying and disseminating strategies for overcoming barriers to ICU patient- and family-centered comparative effectiveness research. Read More

Vanderbilt School of Nursing has received a $3 million Health Resources and Services Administration grant from the Department of Health and Human Services to create a training program, standardized set of competencies and certification for community health workers in Tennessee. Read More

Courtney Pitts was honored with VUSN’s Martin Luther King Jr. Social Justice Award during VUSN’s MLK event on Tuesday. The award recognizes faculty who foster social justice by advocating for equal rights and opportunities for all people. Read More

Growing up, Anana Upton, BS’21, spent endless hours in hospitals as her younger brother underwent care. That experience spurred a passionate drive in her to elevate the quality of health care available to underserved communities while also educating them about their medical choices and affording them the dignity they deserve. Read More

Nursing educators from across the United States traveled to Nashville this summer to attend the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing’s three-day, intensive Vanderbilt Informatics Summer Teaching Academy. The workshop was created to help nursing schools incorporate informatics knowledge in curriculum. Read More