Smith named Alumna of the Year
Dr. Amy Smith of Madison has been selected as UMMC School of Nursing 2023 Alumna of the Year and will be honored at an alumni luncheon at River Hills Club today, May 11.
Smith has over 30 years of healthcare experience ranging from RN, and family nurse practitioner to national health care executive.
After graduating with her BSN from UMMC School of Nursing in 1991, Smith started her career as a registered nurse in Med-Surg, Oncology, and ICU before becoming a Family Nurse Practitioner in 1994, as part of UMMC’s first NP class. Since then, she has practiced as a family nurse practitioner across a variety of settings and specialties including rural health clinics, emergency departments, urgent care clinics, inpatient hospitalist teams, etc..
Dr. Smith earned a doctorate degree in nursing practice from Rush University in 2008, focused on healthcare leadership and business.
Smith has provided leadership in the private sector and governmental health care organizations at the local, regional, and national levels. She has also served as an adjunct/affiliate faculty for the University of Mississippi Medical Center School of Nursing including serving as part-time faculty teaching health policy for inter-professional doctoral students.
It is her goal to invest in the next generation of nurses and other healthcare leaders.
Active in many professional and community organizations, Smith is board-certified as a health care executive and as a nurse practitioner and nurse executive. She is a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and of the American College of Health Care Executives. She is active in the community serving as a Girl Scout leader for many years as well as volunteering for the local food bank and other organizations which help those in need.
Smith is a strong proponent of evidence-based practice and has extensive experience translating research into practice by leading change.
She is recognized nationally as a transformational leader and continues to lead change across the nation improving health outcomes for millions of patients in her national roles.
Smith has multiple publications and speaks regularly at the national, state, and regional levels. She has conducted research and evaluation for federally funded projects and organizations.
Smith holds special interest in population health and health equity and leads national transformations in these arenas. She values team-based healthcare and believes that each discipline uniquely contributes to best practice. Smith established the role of the chief nursing officer at the regional levels across the veterans’ healthcare system to empower the voice of Nursing at every level.
She is currently serving at the national level as the director of clinical operations for the Office of Specialty Care in the Veterans Health Administration.