Georgetown Senior Advisor for Nursing Receives Award from Villanova, Delivers Lecture
November 19, 2019 – Georgetown BSN alumna Dr. Patricia Grady (NHS’66), who is serving as the senior advisor for nursing at the School of Nursing & Health Studies, received the M. Louise Fitzpatrick Award for Transformative Leadership from Villanova University.
“It was a remarkable event,” said Grady, who expressed her gratitude to Dean Donna S. Havens, the Connelly Endowed Dean and Professor at the Villanova University M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing, President Peter M. Donohue, OSA, and all who warmly welcomed her on campus.
“The [award] acknowledges and celebrates Dr. Grady’s relentless pursuit of advancement in health care through nursing science, igniting change in numerous interprofessional collaborations, galvanizing the next generation of leaders, and inspiring action in countless nurse scientists across the country and the globe,” according to Villanova’s website.
Nursing Research
The honor is named after the late Dr. M. Louise Fitzpatrick, who was the college’s dean for close to four decades.
“Dean Fitzpatrick’s record of strong and sustained leadership in nursing is remarkable,” said Grady, who is director emerita of the National Institute of Nursing Research and also a visiting distinguished professor at NHS. “I am appreciative of this legacy and grateful to Villanova University for honoring me with this award.”
In addition to receiving the award, Grady offered a keynote address entitled, “A Vision for the Future of Nursing Research.” About 400 people attended.
Questioning and Innovating
Havens called on the audience “to be inspired by Dr. Grady and continue to ask those bold questions and innovate with new science to improve care and the systems in which care is delivered,” Villanova’s website reports.
Dr. Carole Roan Gresenz, interim dean of the School of Nursing & Health Studies, congratulated Grady.
“We are delighted to see Dr. Grady’s lifetime of work honored with this award,” said Gresenz. “She is truly a transformational leader, and we are fortunate to be able to benefit from her wisdom and talents here at NHS.”