American Psychiatric Nurses Association Announces 2018 Annual Awards Recipients
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (PRWEB) August 28, 2018 -- The American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) today announced the selection of nine leaders in the field of psychiatric-mental health nursing and one APNA chapter to honor for their excellence at the APNA 32nd Annual Conference in Columbus, Ohio in October. These award recipients include nurses who have served three tours in Iraq, originated a nationally recognized training program on treating schizophrenia, and brought psychiatric-mental health education to rural, underserved areas.
Personifying the conference theme, “Trusted Agents of Change: Nurses Balancing Inequities in Mental Health Care,” the recipients below were nominated by their colleagues and chosen for this honor by a committee of their peers.
Mary Moller, DNP, ARNP, APRN, PMHCNS-BC, CPRP, FAAN, Associate Professor, Specialty Director-Psychiatric Nursing, Gig Harbor, WA, will be awarded Psychiatric Nurse of the Year for her work nationally-recognized training program for treating Schizophrenia.
Michael Rice, PhD, APRN, BC, FAAN, Professor & Endowed Chair of Psychiatric Nursing, Aurora CO, will receive the Award for Distinguished Service for his work as a passionate advocate for the field across both the lifespan and care settings.
Teena McGuinness, PhD, PMHNP-BC, FAAN, Professor & Co-Director PMHNP-BVAMC Joint Residency, Pelham, AL, will receive the Award for Excellence in Education for her work to pioneer distance education programs to support underserved rural areas of the United States.
Connie Mele, MSN, RN, PMHCNS-BC, CARN-AP, Assistant Health Director, Waxhaw, NC, will receive the Award for Innovation – Individual for her efforts to introduce a new jail diversion model at the intersection of mental illness and the criminal justice system.
Tess Judge-Ellis, DNP, ARNP, FNP-BC, PMHNP-BC, FAANP, Associate Professor, Iowa City, IA, will receive the APRN Award for Excellence in Leadership – APRN for her work to infuse mental health into education policy and practice.
Jacqueline Lopez, BS, Assistant Specialty Leader-Psychiatric-mental health nurses, Active Duty, will receive the Award for Excellence in Leadership – RN for her development of new core competencies for the US Navy to use in treating children and adolescents.
Karen Foli, PhD, RN, FAAN, Associate Professor, Lafayette, IN, will receive the Award for Media for her work to develop a book of best practices for treating adoptive and kinship families.
Jess Calohan, DNP, PMHNP-BC, Lieutenant Colonel (ret.), Assistant Professor, Potomac Falls, VA, will receive the Award for Excellence in Practice for his impressive service to our country, including three tours in Iraq, working to improve the mental health of service members and implementing novel suicide prevention strategies.
Brenda Marshall, EdD, PMHNP-BC, ANEF, Associate Professor, Fulbright Scholar Specialist: Mental Health, Wayne, NJ, will receive the Award for Excellence in Research for her work to examine the best ways to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health, a significant barrier to treatment.
APNA Florida Chapter, will receive the Award for Innovation – Chapter for their work to raise funds to support individuals recovering from mental health challenges.
“The APNA Annual Awards are one of the highest forms of recognition for nurses who exemplify excellence across the spectrum of psychiatric-mental health nursing,” says APNA President Linda Beeber, PhD, PMHCNS-BC, FAAN. “In celebrating the achievements of this year’s recipients, we are shining a light on the vital role psychiatric-mental health nurses play in providing treatment and supporting millions of people across our nation every day.”
About the APNA Annual Conference:
The APNA 32nd Annual Conference will be held at the Greater Columbus Convention Center October 24-27, 2018, in Columbus, Ohio. In addition to honoring this year's awards recipients, the APNA Annual Conference will deliver over 100 varied sessions and networking opportunities to more than 1600 psychiatric-mental health RNs and APRNs who attend each year.
About the APNA:
The American Psychiatric Nurses Association is a national professional membership organization committed to the specialty practice of psychiatric-mental health nursing and wellness promotion, prevention of mental health problems and the care and treatment of persons with psychiatric disorders. APNA’s membership is inclusive of all psychiatric-mental health registered nurses including associate degree, baccalaureate, advanced practice (comprised of clinical nurse specialists and psychiatric nurse practitioners), and nurse scientists and academicians (PhD). APNA serves as a resource for psychiatric-mental health nurses to engage in networking, education, and the dissemination of research.
The American Psychiatric Nurses Association is accredited with distinction as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.
Meaghan Trimyer, American Psychiatric Nurses Association, http://www.apna.org, +1 571-533-1931, [email protected]
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