The Executive Committee of the Fellows of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (FAANP) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2021 FAANP Legacy Award, Loretta C. Ford Award and Honorary Fellow.

Posted over 4 years ago by Regina Sanders

Legacy Award

The new FAANP Legacy Award honors, recognizes and memorializes a member of FAANP whose lifelong career has had a profound and enduring impact on the profession and the NP role, articulating a dream that others share and follow. The vision, innovation, courage, persistence, and inspiration of the honoree are essential components of the legacy. The 2021 FAANP Legacy Awardees are:

Frank L. Cole, PhD, CEN, FNP, FAAN, FAANP, FAEN was a family nurse practitioner who was recognized for developing the educational and practice infrastructures that support the role of nurse practitioners in emergency care settings. Dr. Cole’s work has had a local, national, and international impact, especially with regards to the development of a curriculum for educating nurse practitioners in this area. Through research and publications, he expanded and developed the education and role of nurse practitioners in emergency care, including the use of telemedicine to provide emergency health care in rural areas.

Judith S. Dempster, DNSc, NP-C, FNP, FAANP was an advocate for NP practice for more than 40 years. As the first executive director of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) and the AANP Foundation, she played a crucial role in the development of the AANP Certification Program, Corporate Council and Fellows Program. Dr. Dempster was a Vietnam Veteran and National UPHS Primary Care Policy Fellow who served on numerous national advisory boards. In 1990, Dr. Dempster’s research on autonomous practice resulted in her development of the Dempster Practice Behaviors Scale (DPBS). For her leadership and innovation in advancing NP practice and patient care, she was honored by the American College of Nurse Practitioners (ACNP).

Charon A. Pierson PhD, GNP-BC, FAAN, FAANP is the former editor-in-Chief of the Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) and the founding editor of the quarterly journal Nurse Practitioner Forum. Dr. Pierson has published extensively on ethics in publication and has served on the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Council. Specializing in gerontology, she has taught FNP, ANP, and GNP students for more than 25 years, maintained a clinical practice and been published nationally and internationally on issues related to the care of the elderly. Dr. Pierson has received awards for excellence in both nursing journalism and nurse practitioner practice, including the AANP Towers Pinnacle Award.

Past Legacy Awardees:

2020 – Loretta C. Ford, EdD, RN, PNP, NP-C, CRNP, FAAN, FAANP

2020 – Delia O’Hara, CNP, JD, FAANP

2020 – Jan Towers, PHD, NP-C, CRNP, FAAN, FAANP

Loretta C. Ford Award

The FAANP Loretta C. Ford Award is presented annually to an NP who demonstrates participation in health care policy development at an international, national, or local level; sustained and specific contribution to clarification of the role and scope of practice of NPs; and/or creative and effective action to turn a challenge to the NP role into an effective opportunity to advance practice and improve patient outcomes. The 2021 Loretta C. Ford Awardee for Advancement of the Nurse Practitioner Role in Health Care is:

Susan Orsega, RN, FNP-BC, MSN, FAANP has been a US Public Health Service (PHS) Nurse Officer for over thirty years, with numerous senior executive roles, currently appointed as the Acting Surgeon General. With a long history of participating in health care policy development at an international, national, or local level, RADM Orsega is recognized as an expert in the subject of HIV/AIDS, advanced nursing practice, health diplomacy and disaster response. RADM Orsega played a fundamental role in the United States Government (USG) NIH Ebola response, and more recently led the CCHQ operations to support an international COVID-19 response.

Past Loretta C. Ford Awardees:

2012 – JoAnne Pohl, PhD, ANP-BC, FAAN, FAANP

2013 – Mary Jo Goolsby, EdD, MSN, NP-C, FAANP

2014 – Jan Towers, PHD, NP-C, CRNP, FAAN, FAANP

2015 – Judith A. Berg, PhD, RN, WHNP-BC, FAAN, FAANP

2016 – Rosemary T. Goodyear, EdD, APRN-BC, FAANP

2017 – Penny Kaye Jensen, DNP, FNP-C, FAAN, FAANP

2018 – Barbara M. Resnick, PhD, CRNP, FAAN, FAANP

2019 – Mona Counts, PhD, CRNP, FNAP, FAANP

2020 – Madrean Schober, PhD, MSN, ANP, FAANP

Honorary Fellow

The Honorary Fellow is a non-nurse practitioner who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in at least one of the following areas of importance to nurse practitioners: Practice, Education, Policy and Research. The 2021 FAANP Honorary Fellow is:

Shwu-Feng Tsay, PhD, RN, FAAN, FAANP(H) is the Director General in the Department of Nursing and Health Care in Taiwan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare, where she is responsible for enhancing the health care of the more than 23 million citizens of Taiwan, managing a departmental budget of $34M USD, and overseeing the practice of thousands of nurses, caregivers, and long-term care centers. Dr. Tsay is an influential advocate for the NP in Taiwan, from her work with the Nursing Personnel Act to her strategic introduction of various initiatives and programs designed to advance nursing education, regulations, and practice to meet international standards and the needs of an aging population.

Past Honorary Fellows:

2013 – Barbara Safriet, JD, LLM, FAANP(H)
2014 – Jeff Bauer, PhD, FAANP(H)
2015 – Patrick DeLeon, PhD, MPH, JD, FAANP(H)
2015 – Henry Silver, MD, FAANP(H)
2016 – Peter Buerhaus, PhD, RN, FAAN, FAANP(H)
2016 – Senator Daniel K. Inouye, FAANP(H)

2017 – Barbara Jonas, MSW, FAAN, FAANP(H)

2017 – Donald Jonas, FAAN, FAANP(H)

2017 – Michael McGinnis, MD, MA, MPP, FAANP(H)

2018 – Winifred Quinn, PhD, FAANP(H)

2019 – Joyce Fitzpatrick, PHD, MBA, RN, FAAN, FNAP, FAANP(H)

2020 – Catherine J. Rick, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, FAANP(H)

2020 – Barbara Stilwell, PhD, RN, FRCN, FAANP(H)

Best regards,

Fellows of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners