Two U of M School of Nursing Faculty Inducted as Fellows into the American Academy of Nursing

Mueller and Olson Keller selected for continued contributions to nursing and health care

Contact:       
Aneisha Tucker, School of Nursing, 612-626-1817 or tucke127@umn.edu
Laura Stroup, Academic Health Center, 612-624-5680 or stro0481@umn.edu

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (Nov. 12, 2007) - Two University of Minnesota School of Nursing faculty members, Christine A. Mueller and Linda Olson Keller, were inducted as Fellows into the American Academy of Nursing (AAN) at the Academy's 34th annual conference on Saturday. The AAN selects fellows based on evidence that the nominee's work has contributed significantly to nursing and health care at a national or international level, and that their work has the capacity to make contributions in the future.

"The Academy is comprised of many of the nation's top nursing executives, policy makers, scholars, researchers, and practitioners," said Academy President Linda Burnes Bolton, Dr.P.H., R.N., F.A.A.N. "Induction into the Academy represents an esteemed honor and recognition of outstanding achievement."

Both Mueller and Olson Keller have contributed significantly to the nursing and health care arenas. Mueller, associate professor in the School of Nursing, is recognized as a national leader in gerontological nursing. She is a member of the AAN Expert Panel on Aging, organized the interest group of long-term care system researchers at the Gerontological Society of America, and was involved in the National Nursing Home Case Mix and Quality demonstration project, which improved the Medicare payment system by shifting the reimbursement emphasis to focus on high-quality patient care.

Mueller's dedication to the gerontological community has been recognized by many and is seen throughout her awards and achievements. She is one of the founders of the Minnesota Coalition for Nursing Home Culture Change, chair of the Adult and Gerontological Health Cooperative, a recipient of the Outstanding Faculty Member in Gerontological Nursing Award by the John A. Hartford Foundation, and an awardee of the Fesler-Lampert Chair in Aging Studies. She also developed the Long Term Care Nursing Leadership and Management Web site, one of the few resources available to nurse leaders in nursing homes.

For more than twenty years, Linda Olson Keller has dedicated herself to redefining public health nursing practice and improving population health during her tenure at the Minnesota Department of Health. For the past ten, the public health model she developed has reinvigorated public health nursing due to its practice-based, evidence-supported use for nursing practice, education, and management. Its influence has spread across the Atlantic as several countries in the European Union have adopted its use.

Olson Keller is well-respected as a public health nursing expert in both teaching and practice. She was selected by the Association of State and Territorial Directors of Nursing and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to serve as project director for a new national study which looks at public health nursing leadership. She is a past Robert Wood Johnson Executive Nurse Fellow, is currently a clinical associate professor at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing, and expects to receive her doctorate of nursing practice in December.

The School of Nursing's latest two inductees bring its total number of fellows to thirteen. Previous inductees include Linda Bearinger, Donna Bliss, Connie Delaney, Joanne Disch, Sandra Edwardson, Ann Garwick, Mary Jo Kreitzer, Barbara Leonard, Joan Liaschenko, Ruth Lindquist, and Jean Wyman.

The American Academy of Nursing (AAN) was established in 1973 under the auspices of the American Nurses Association to provide visionary leadership to the nursing profession and to the public in shaping future health care policy and practice. For more information about the American Academy of Nursing, please visit www.aannet.org. The American Academy of Nursing anticipates and tracks national and international trends in health care, while addressing resulting issues of health care knowledge and policy. The Academy's mission is to serve the public and nursing profession by advancing health policy and practice through the generation, synthesis, and dissemination of nursing knowledge.

The University of Minnesota School of Nursing is ranked among the nation’s top nursing schools. It is a leader in nursing research and has a combined undergraduate and graduate enrollment of approximately 850 students. The school produces 55 percent of the faculty in Minnesota’s public and private nursing schools, advanced practice nurses and nurses who can assume leadership positions. It is the oldest continuing university-based school of nursing. The School of Nursing is one of six schools and colleges in the Academic Health Center, one of the most comprehensive facilities for health professionals in the nation, fostering interdisciplinary study, research and education. For more information, visit www.nursing.umn.edu.