Nursing Alumni Society News and Events
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Two nursing alumni selected to receive Shirley Novosel Award
April 7, 2006
Two Penn State nursing alumni – Gail Latimer and Elisabeth “Betsy” George – have been selected to receive the Shirley Novosel Award from the Penn State Nursing Alumni Society. The Novosel Award – established in 1996 in memory of Shirley Novosel, a past president of the Nursing Alumni Society – recognizes a Penn State nursing alumnus or alumna who has made a significant contribution to the field of nursing.
Latimer is vice president and chief nursing officer for Siemens Medical Solutions in Malvern, PA. In that role, Latimer is responsible for reviewing and approving the company’s clinical information technology research and development and helping ensure that Siemens solutions incorporate the needs of the nurses and clinical care providers who use the technology.
Latimer has held numerous executive nursing positions, including senior vice president and chief nursing executive of Holy Redeemer Health System and senior vice president/chief operating officer at Holy Redeemer Hospital and Medical Center in Meadowbrook, Pa.; vice president of patient care services at Holy Cross Hospital in Chicago; and executive director, surgical services and program director of orthopedic and neuroscience services at Shadyside Hospital in Pittsburgh.
Latimer is a member of the American Organization of Nurse Executives; the Pennsylvania Organization of Nurse Executives; Sigma Theta Tau, the international honor society of nursing; and the Penn State University Nursing Alumni Society. She is a past Board member of the Southeastern Organization of Nurse Executives, and past president, vice president and director of the American Board of Neuroscience Nurses. She also has mentored nursing students from various universities, and in collaboration with the American Organization of Nurse Executives, she co-developed a Nursing Executive Leadership workshop focusing on developing future nurse leaders.
Latimer has co-authored a chapter for a soon-to-be published book by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) titled “Nursing within Wall Street: A Close Look at the Corporate Chief Nurse Officer Role”. A sought-after speaker, she has presented around the globe and lectured at workshops and panel discussions on topics including quality and safety in healthcare, technology in healthcare, robotic physician care, and current domestic healthcare issues.
Latimer is a Johnson & Johnson Fellow from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She received her master’s degree in nursing administration from the Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Penn State in 1983.
Elisabeth George received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Penn State in 1979, a master’s and doctoral degrees in nursing from the University of Pittsburgh in 1983 and 1999, respectively. George is currently working as an advanced practice nurse in Critical Care at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Presbyterian.
In her role as a CNS, George precepts bachelor’s and master’s in nursing students. She teaches critical care theory at the undergraduate level for the University of Pittsburgh and Waynesburg College Schools of Nursing. In the classroom, Betsy is a dynamic speaker and shares her clinical expertise for many nursing courses including critical care, advanced critical care, trauma nurse, and transplant workshop.
“At the bedside is where Betsy excels,” wrote her nominator. “As she makes her weekly rounds within the 14 specialized critical care areas at UPMC Presbyterian, she consistently demonstrates a positive, caring attitude, for not only the patients but the nursing staff as well. As one of her colleagues recently expressed, ‘No task or project is too big or too small for Betsy, and she always does it with a smile on her face.’ She is a valuable resource for all bedside nurses working in critical care, telemetry, and floor environments.”
George’s clinical expertise is grounded in evidence-based practice. She educates bedside nurses in how to integrate current research in their daily nursing routines, making quality patient care the standard. “It is in this manner,” wrote her nominator, “that research has its greatest impact on the improvement of patient care, creating real-life changes in nursing practice, policies and procedure.”
George has worked on many performance improvement projects within UPMC Presbyterian. She was instrumental in developing standards of care to decrease the incidence of Ventilator Associated Pneumonia in the ICU. She also was an integral part of implementing “rules of evidence” within the Critical Care Medicine division to guide practice of acutely ill patients. She is active on several hospital committees as well.
George has CCRN (critical care) certification and is a member of Three Rivers Chapter of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses and Sigma Theta Tau. She has published extensively in the areas of cardio-pulmonary and critical care topics and has presented locally, nationally, and internationally in these subject areas.
George currently resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with her husband. She is an avid golfer who also enjoys many outdoor activities, including hiking and biking.