Elizabeth Tovar, PhD, APRN, FNP-C, PMHNP-BC

Associate Professor, Family NP Track Coordinator

Dr. Elizabeth Tovar joined the UK College of Nursing faculty in 2007. She received her baccalaureate degrees in nursing and psychology from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington (1998). She received her Master’s (2003) and PhD (2007) degrees in nursing from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.  She has also received a Post-Graduate Certificate in Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing from the University of Kentucky (2021).

Dr. Tovar is the track coordinator for the Primary Care DNP – Family Nurse Practitioner Track. She has over 13 years of experience in curriculum development and teaching using live, hybrid, online, and simulation formats for advanced practice nursing students and family medicine residents. She has a focused interest in preparing current and future health care providers to effectively engage in and lead practice transformation efforts and a deep commitment to facilitate interprofessional education, effective teamwork and collaboration within and across disciplines. Dr. Tovar has experience in grant development and implementation of evidence based programs. She has been a Co-I on several HRSA funded residency-training grants for Family Medicine Residents and Primary Care DNP students, for which she has developed and implemented curriculum related to practice transformation (eg. quality improvement, population health, and teamwork/collaboration). She has facilitated a number of evidence based improvement initiatives in the clinical setting and related faculty development activities. Dr. Tovar maintains a clinical practice as a certified Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) in an organization where she is currently leading practice transformation efforts to implement an integrated care practice model to provide coordinated primary care and behavioral health services in a single setting that serves as the patients’ medical home. 

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