Teamwork in Education, Research and Practice
22-24 June 2016, Chiang Mai,
Thailand
Doreen Harper, PhD, RN, FAAN , is Dean and Fay B. Ireland Endowed Chair in Nursing, and Director of the PAHO/WHO Collaborating Center for International Nursing at the University of Alabama at
Birmingham (UAB) School of Nursing. She is the fourth Dean in the School’s history, having served since
November 2005. Dr. Harper has taught and led at all levels of nursing and medical education, including the inaugural nursing program at George Mason University, the University of Maryland School of
Nursing, The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Harper led the national program for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s
Community Partnerships in Graduate Medical and Nursing Education Initiative focused on increasing access to high quality primary care through the development of academic-community partnerships locally and globally. Dr. Harper's scholarly work breaks new ground in joint partnerships for nursing workforce development to improve patient and population care across clinical and community settings.
Dr. Harper holds a Bachelor’s degree in nursing from Cornell University in New York, NY, and a Master’s of Science in Nursing degree from Catholic University in Washington, D.C. She earned a PhD in Nursing, with a focus on primary care and gerontology, from University of Maryland, and became a certified adult nurse practitioner.
Dean Harper has led the top tier UAB School of Nursing in the development of new educational, practice and research opportunities, including the Accelerated Master’s in Nursing Pathway, BSN to the
PhD Program, the Joint DNP Program, the Nurse Anesthesia Program, Paul D. Coverdell Peace Corps
Fellows Program and Clinical Nurse Leader track. Additionally, the School has more than doubled student enrollment and graduation with support to assist hundreds of minority students through grants from the Health Resources and Services Administration, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and
Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need. Harper has grown the research and practice enterprise substantially in the School including the partnership with UAB Hospital and Health System, and
Children’s of Alabama, Veterans Affairs Nursing Academic Partnership for undergraduate and graduate education and research programs in cardiovascular, oncology, occupational and palliative care, as well as, patient safety and quality research.
A distinguished leader in developing interprofessional and clinical collaborative partnerships, Dr.
Harper is known for her expertise in nursing education, nurse practitioner education, policy, and nursing and health professions workforce development. Dr. Harper is a Fellow in the American
Academy of Nursing, and the recipient of numerous national and distinguished awards for her scholarly contributions in nursing education and health workforce research. Throughout her career, Dr. Harper has made an impact on improving patient care access and quality through developing and promoting nursing and advanced practice nursing roles.
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