NURSE PRACTITIONER HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION
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Hillary Herskowitz/Blink Marketing Group
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nurse Practitioner Healthcare Foundation (NPHF) Announces
“Promoting Heart Health Across the Age Span Award” Winners
Bellevue, WA (June 19, 2012) – The Nurse Practitioner Healthcare Foundation (NPHF) is pleased to announce the recipients
of the NPHF/Astellas Promoting Heart Health Across the Age Span Awards, designed to further service, education and
research in the area of cardiovascular health. Three awards of $3,500 each were given to practicing nurse practitioners and
students for their projects.
“Heart disease is the #1 cause of death in the U.S., and we can do something about that,” said Phyllis Zimmer, President,
NPHF. “By making better lifestyle choices, we can eliminate or lower risk factors for heart disease and achieve healthier
lives.”
The NPHF/Astellas Promoting Heart Health Across the Age Span Program reflects the need to improve cardiovascular
health at all ages – in children, adults, and older adults. Thus, one award is given in each of these age categories. The criteria
for support were based on promoting heart health, but the focus of the project could be projects in service (direct services to
the target age group), education (educational health interventions), or research (studies of outcomes or effectiveness of heart
health-related activities in the age group).
Award Winners
Carolyn Montoya, RN, MSN, CPNP, PhD(c) (Albuquerque, NM) – Pediatric Award
Ms. Montoya is pursuing her PhD at the University of New Mexico College of Nursing in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She is
the Academic Program Director for the Advanced Practice Concentrations and Coordinator of the Pediatric Nurse
Practitioner Concentration at that institution. Ms. Montoya is a nationally certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner who
maintains a clinical practice at Pediatric Services in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She is a Robert Wood Johnson (RWJ)
Health Policy Fellow in the RWJ Foundation and Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico.
The NPHF/Astellas Heart Health Across the Age Span award will provide support for Ms. Montoya’s research in
determining if children ages 8-11 have an accurate perception of their weight and if there are differences between Caucasian
and Hispanic children’s perceptions.
Beth Whittaker, FNP, DNP (Seattle, WA) – Adult Award
Ms. Whittaker recently completed her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree in the Family Nurse Practitioner Program at
the University of Washington, Seattle, Washington. She has worked as a Registered Nurse on the MedicalSurgical/Transplant Intensive Care Unit at the University of Washington Medical Center. Ms. Whittaker is currently a
member of the Heart Failure Committee at the University of Washington Medical Center. This award funded her capstone
project identifying factors associated with 30-day heart failure readmission at the University of Washington Medical Center.
The outcomes of the study led to the development of recommendations for care to reduce readmissions.
The Nurse Practitioner Healthcare Foundation is pleased to recognize the charitable donation received from Astellas Pharma Global
Development, Inc. which provided support for this program.
Lufei Young, PhD, APRN (Omaha, NE) – Geriatric Award
Dr. Young is an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner and an assistant professor at the College of Nursing – Lincoln Division at the
University of Nebraska Medical Center in Lincoln, Nebraska. She practiced as a primary care physician in the People’s
Republic of China before coming to the United States in 2000. This award will help fund Dr. Young’s research to develop
strategies to improve medication safety and quality of care during care transitions in rural communities through an ANPmanaged medication reconciliation program. This research will evaluate the impact and feasibility of the program on
medication discrepancies and healthcare use in elderly patients with heart disease discharged from a rural critical access
hospital.
The Nurse Practitioner Healthcare Foundation
In 2005, the Nurse Practitioner Healthcare Foundation (NPHF) was launched to “raise the bar” in health care, contribute
to excellence in care, and bring NPs to the forefront of the larger health care arena. The NPHF works to make high-quality,
effective care accessible through research, education, health policy, service and philanthropy. The NPHF is an IRS
501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Visit http://www.nphealthcarefoundation.org for more information and for a listing of
current opportunities.
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The Nurse Practitioner Healthcare Foundation is pleased to recognize the charitable donation received from Astellas Pharma Global
Development, Inc. which provided support for this program.