Dr. Paula Milone-Nuzzo Begins Presidency of MGH Institute of Health Professions

Paula Milone-Nuzzo, PhD, RN, FHHC, FAAN, officially has begun her term as the sixth president of MGH Institute of Health Professions in Boston.

“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to provide leadership to the MGH Institute,” said Dr. Milone-Nuzzo, who also will hold the position of John Hilton Knowles professor. “The IHP’s focus on interprofessional education and practice, as well as team science, has positioned the Institute to be a leader in the improvement of health care. I look forward to working with the community in creating that future.”

Dr. Milone-Nuzzo, who arrived August 15 on the graduate school’s campus, spent the past 14 years in leadership roles at the College of Nursing at The Pennsylvania State University, serving as Dean and Professor since 2008. She is a widely published and nationally recognized nursing-leader, who during her tenure led the college to new heights in research activity and academic reputation.

“Dr. Milone-Nuzzo’s national reputation as a collaborative program builder and as a recognized leader in helping to shape health professions education makes her the ideal choice to lead the MGH Institute into a new era,” said MGH Institute Board of Trustees Chair George E. Thibault, MD, President of the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation.

She succeeds Janis P. Bellack, PhD, RN, FAAN, ANEC, who led the IHP from 2007-2017.

Workforce development and health-care careers have been the focus of her scholarly activities. Shortly after her arrival at Penn State in 2003, then-Governor of Pennsylvania Ed Rendell appointed her to the Pennsylvania Center for Health Careers, where she served on the Leadership Council for six years. In 2015, she was named chair of the advisory board for the Pennsylvania Action Coalition of the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action – an organization whose goal is transforming the nursing profession to better meet the nation’s health needs.

Prior to Penn State, Dr. Milone-Nuzzo served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Nursing Management and Policy at Yale University School of Nursing, and before that was on the nursing faculty at Southern Connecticut State University for nine years.

Among her many awards are the Distinguished Colleague Award from the Pennsylvania Higher Education Nursing Schools Association, the Service Award from the Pennsylvania Center for Health Careers, the Beverly Koerner Outstanding Alumni Award for Education in Nursing from the University of Connecticut, the Nightingale Award for Excellence in Nursing, and the Leader of Leader Award from the National Student Nurses Association. She is a Fellow of the National Association for Home Care and Hospice, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, for which she currently serves as treasurer and board member.

During her career, Dr. Milone-Nuzzo has been awarded more than $2.2 million in external funding to support her research in home health-care, primary care nursing, and care for the elderly. She has published more than 50 articles, and has given well over 100 presentations. She also has consulted extensively for health care and academic organizations, both nationally and in China and Japan.

Before arriving at the IHP, she was a member of the Board of Directors at Mount Nittany Health System, chairing its Medical Center Board of Directors.

Dr. Milone-Nuzzo received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Boston College, Master of Science in Nursing in Community Health Nursing and Education from the University of Connecticut, and PhD in Higher Education Administration from the University of Connecticut. She also completed an invitational, post-doctoral seminar in Gerontological Research at the Hartford Institute at New York University.

MGH Institute of Health Professions is an innovative and interprofessional graduate school with post-baccalaureate, direct entry-level master’s and doctorate, and post-professional programs in nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy, physician assistant studies, speech-language pathology, health professions education, and a PhD in rehabilitation sciences.

The MGH Institute offers its more than 1,600 students unparalleled opportunities to learn and work alongside expert practitioners in a variety of hospital, clinical, community, and educational settings. The school, which has graduated more than 7,200 students since its 1977 founding, is fully accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. Several programs are highly ranked by U.S. News & World Report. For the past four years, the IHP has been named to the Honor Roll in The Chronicle of Higher Education’s “Great College to Work For” annual survey, and has been named a “Great College” for eight consecutive years.

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