Meet Hall of Fame Inductee Nancy Dickenson-Hazard
The College of Nursing is now accepting nominations for the third class of Hall of Fame inductees. Click here to nominate a distinguished nursing leader by March 31!
Nancy Dickenson-Hazard, MSN, RN, CNP, FAAN, has spent 30 of her 35 years in nursing as a leader. She holds a baccalaureate degree from the University of Kentucky and a Master's degree from the University of Virginia. During her decade at the helm of the world's largest nursing honorary, the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International, she presided over the organization's burgeoning growth and evolution into an international nursing force. From her early career caring for the impoverished children of Appalachia to her current position, she has created and driven initiatives that directly impact patient care, constituent service and professional issues.
As a newly graduated pediatric nurse practitioner, Dickenson-Hazard held a dual practice and administrative position at Georgetown University Health Plan. In this role, she was instrumental in designing and implementing a shared governance model of physicians, health administrators and nurse executives at five health centers. She also spearheaded a plan-wide health promotion program, and while managing a practice of 125 families, she developed a nurse triage system still in use today.
During her 12 years as executive director of the National Certification Board of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners and Nurses (now the PNCB), Dickenson-Hazard was responsible for revitalizing the national pediatric nurse practitioner certification and certification maintenance programs, as well as initiating similar programs for the generalist pediatric nurse. Similarly, under the leadership of Dickenson-Hazard, Sigma Theta Tau International tripled its asset base and experienced a 40 percent growth in membership and 26 percent increase in established chapters. She increased research grant funding, initiated an international nursing leadership institute, established an international think-tank conference series, developed partnerships with the World Health Organization, Monster, People to People, Johnson and Johnson and International Council of Nurses.
Dickenson-Hazard contributes indefatigably to nursing and community causes. She has served on advisory and governance boards for Johnson & Johnson (Campaign for Nursing's Future), Purdue University School of Nursing, University of Iowa College of Nursing, University of Kentucky College of Nursing, Nursing Spectrum, the Regenstrief Institute for Healthcare Reengineering at Purdue University, Salvation Army of Indiana, the World Health Organization Strategic Advisory Group for Nursing and Midwifery and the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Associates and Practitioners (NAPNAP).
Currently, Dickenson-Hazard is the principal of NDH Agency, a consulting firm that specializes in leadership development, innovation and executive coaching. She is an adjunct faculty at the Indiana University School of Nursing and the University of Western Sydney School of Nursing in Australia. She is a prolific writer on leadership and professional issues, and her book Ready, Set, Go Lead was published in September of 2008.
