Associate Professor Laureen Smith PhD, RN, FAAN, director of community outreach and engagement at The Ohio State University College of Nursing, has been selected as an ambassador by the Friends of the National Institute of Nursing Research (FNINR), an independent nonprofit group that advocates for and advances nursing science in the name of promoting the health and well-being of all Americans.
Smith is one of 15 ambassadors chosen to join the ranks of 15 others currently filling this role. Ambassadors are selected from a national pool of applicants based on their abilities to advance public health professions and policy-maker awareness of the critical research agenda linked to the National Institute for Nursing Research (NINR). Smith will advocate for research funding to advance nursing science targeting rural health and child health, including those residing in Appalachian regions.
According to a statement from the FNINR, “these highly-qualified individuals, many of whom function in the scientific community, will focus specifically on educating congressional leaders as to the high-impact and cost-effective treatments and quality-of-life enhancements that emanate from nursing science. Ultimately, the goal is advance research funding to ensure the training of scientists at a time of major scientific breakthroughs and to promote the updated NINR strategic plan that specifies how nurse scientists improve the well-being of Americans across the human lifespan.” For more information and a list of all the new ambassadors, click here.
