Ohio State’s College of Nursing dean and Chief Wellness Officer recognized for a lifetime of impactful science
The organization Friends of the National Institute of Nursing Research (FNINR) tonight honored Bernadette Mazurek Melnyk, PhD, APRN-CNP, FAANP, FNAP, FAAN, vice president for health promotion, chief wellness officer and College of Nursing dean at The Ohio State University, with its prestigious Ada Sue Hinshaw Award to commemorate Melnyk’s lifetime of cutting-edge research that has positively impacted health and healthcare outcomes across the nation and globe.
Melnyk has made an indelible mark in creating research-based intervention programs that have led to improvements in child, adolescent and parent mental health and healthy lifestyle behaviors, clinician well-being and evidence-based practice. Melnyk is an internationally-recognized expert whose work has improved the quality and safety of healthcare and health outcomes of vulnerable populations. She edited the first book on evidence-based practice by a nurse in the United States, serves on several national expert panels and task forces, and is one of the few nurses in the country to be an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine. Her research and science portfolio features more than 430 publications (including seven books) and $33 million in funding as a principal investigator from federal agencies and foundations. Under her leadership as dean and working with a great team, the College of Nursing set a new record last year with approximately $13 million in external grant funding by faculty researchers and doctoral students, including $8.5 million from the National Institutes of Health.
“Increased funding for innovative research and its rapid translation into real-world settings is vital for nurse scientists to continue to make marked improvements in health outcomes, especially for the most vulnerable populations,” Melnyk said. “I am so grateful and humbled to receive this award in honor of Dr. Hinshaw, who has made such an impact in our field. It motivates me to accelerate my own scientific pursuits and mentor others to persist through their ‘character-builders’ to transform healthcare and to dream, discover and deliver a healthier world.”
The Ada Sue Hinshaw Award has been awarded by FNINR since 1996. The award, named after the first permanent director of the National Institute of Nursing Research, is presented each year to a prominent senior scientist with a substantive and sustained program of science.
