Penn Nursing

09/08/2026

Building safer communities starts with knowledge, education, and action.

Join Penn Nursing’s Office of School and Community Engagement and the Leonard A. Lauder Community Care Nurse Practitioner Program for Health Center Career Day: “Building Safer Communities: Advancing Fi***rm Safety and Prevention” on Sept. 17.

The evening will bring together students and local community health professionals for networking and a conversation about careers in community health, with a focus on fi***rm safety and injury prevention.

We’re also pleased to welcome Helen Castro, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois Chicago College of Nursing and Lead Trauma Nurse Practitioner at the University of Chicago Medicine. Dr. Castro will share insights from her work in trauma care, education, advocacy, and fi***rm injury prevention.

📅 September 17 | 4:30–7 p.m.
📍 Claire M. Fagin Hall | Penn Nursing
📝 Registration closes Sept. 9

Learn more and RSVP: Health Center Career Day

***rmSafety

09/03/2026

Penn Nursing’s Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research (CHOPR) invites the community to an international nursing symposium on September 18 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

The program will open with an introduction by Kevin J. Mahoney, CEO of the University of Pennsylvania Health System, and it will highlight Penn Nursing’s leadership and the global impact of the Magnet4Europe initiative. The symposium will bring together leaders from the International Council of Nurses and Penn’s academic and health system communities for a conversation about nursing leadership, workforce innovation, and the future of health care.

The event is open to everyone, and lunch will be provided. Students are especially encouraged to attend and take part in this opportunity to hear from nursing and health care leaders working across institutions and around the world. Learn more and RSVP: https://bit.ly/4ym8bdM

09/02/2026

Today, Penn Nursing joins the nursing community in celebrating 130 years of the American Nurses Association.

Since 1896, ANA has played an important role in advancing the nursing profession—giving nurses a collective voice, advocating for the profession and the people nurses serve, supporting nurse leadership, and helping shape the future of health care. Professional organizations like ANA strengthen nursing by connecting nurses across specialties, settings, and generations around shared priorities. They create opportunities for advocacy, leadership, professional development, and collaboration while helping ensure that nurses' expertise is represented in conversations about health, policy, and care.

As we recognize ANA Founders Day, we celebrate not only the organization's history, but also the power of nurses working together to advance the profession and improve health for all. Read more: https://bit.ly/4qS1Nbz

Happy 130th anniversary, American Nurses Association!
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09/02/2026

Good sleep is essential to good health.

Join on September 23 at 12 p.m. ET for Sleep Well, Live Well: Creating Better Sleep Health Together, featuring Penn Nursing faculty member Dr. Alexa Watach.

Dr. Watach will join a conversation on advancing sleep health and improving well-being—and why better sleep is an important part of living well. Register today: https://bit.ly/4gyUhxk

08/31/2026

On the final day of National Breastfeeding Month, we celebrate the researchers, advocates, clinicians and families advancing breastfeeding support and human milk care.

Join us November 2 from 5–6 p.m. ET for a special virtual conversation with Dr. Diane L. Spatz, Nu’86, GNu’89, GR’95, Penn Nursing’s 2026 Outstanding Alumni Award recipient and a nationally and internationally recognized leader in human milk and breastfeeding research.

Hear Dr. Spatz share insights from her groundbreaking work supporting mothers, infants and families through research, innovation and advocacy.

📅 November 2 | 5–6 p.m. ET
💻 Virtual event

Register: https://bit.ly/4ivx95x

08/28/2026

Celebrating Penn Nursing leaders named to the 2026 American Academy of Nursing Fellows! 🎉

We’re proud to celebrate Amy Jo Lisanti, PhD, RN, CCNS, FAHA, Research Assistant Professor at Penn Nursing, and K. Jane Muir, PhD, MSHP, RN, FNP-BC, Assistant Professor at Penn Nursing and Senior Fellow at CHOPR and the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, on being named 2026 Fellows of the American Academy of Nursing. Their work reflects the breadth and impact of nursing scholarship, from advancing family-centered care for children with congenital heart disease to improving health equity, workforce well-being, and outcomes for patients and nurses in high-stress settings.

We’re also especially proud to recognize Eileen Sullivan-Marx, PhD, RN, FAAN, (pictured far right) a Penn Nursing alumna and Professor Emerita of Scholarly Practice and Clinician-Educator at Penn Nursing, who has been named an American Academy of Nursing Living Legend.

Congratulations to Amy Jo, Jane, Eileen, and all of our Penn Nursing alumni and colleagues recognized among the 2026 Fellows. Their leadership and scholarship continue to advance the nursing profession and improve health and health care. Learn more and see the full list of Penn Nursing alumni and affiliated colleagues recognized: https://bit.ly/4wYZwNd

08/26/2026

Aesthetic injectables are in high demand, but training in medical aesthetics remains loosely regulated. Penn Nursing is partnering with Inject With Lex to help change that by providing licensed nurses and other medical professionals with access to high-quality, evidence-based education in clinical aesthetic injectables.

“We are pleased to offer a nurse-led continuing education opportunity that educates providers to deliver aesthetic injectables safely and effectively,” says Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN, the Margaret Bond Simon Dean of Nursing. “Our new collaboration with LexRx is critical for further professionalizing this growing field.”

The new program combines two didactic sessions with required, in-person, skills-based clinical training on the University of Pennsylvania campus. Participants will integrate evidence-based theory with supervised, hands-on learning led by nationally recognized aesthetic injectables expert Alexa Nicholls Costa, MSN, APRN, FNP-C, CEO and founder of LexRx, Inject With Lex and LexLab.

To learn more about fall classes and to register: https://bit.ly/4cbyFWC

Sign up for nurse injector training courses with Inject With Lex. Get certifications with our virtual and hands-on injection training programs.

08/11/2026

In 2025, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses deposited its historical archives with the Barbara Bates Center, making it one of the largest specialty nursing archives in the world. As Bates at 40 continues, we’re highlighting milestones that show how the Center has grown into a national steward of nursing history. Through archives, exhibitions, fellowships, and scholarship, the Bates Center continues to preserve nursing history and share its impact with new generations.

08/10/2026

A new journey begins at Penn Nursing!

Penn Nursing and Justine Hudgins, DNP, RN, AGACNP-BC, Master of Professional Nursing Program Director, welcomed the newest class of MPN students to the Penn Nursing community.

We’re excited to see all that these students will learn, accomplish, and contribute as they take this next step toward careers in nursing and healthcare. Learn more about our Master of Professional Nursing program: https://bit.ly/4dDOYNa