Following an extensive nationwide search, Paula Milone-Nuzzo, PhD, RN, FHHC, FAAN, has been named the sixth President of MGH Institute of Health Professions, an independent graduate school in Boston founded by Massachusetts General Hospital and the only degree-granting affiliate of Partners HealthCare.
Dr. Milone-Nuzzo has spent the past 14 years in leadership roles at the College of Nursing at The Pennsylvania State University, serving as Dean and Professor of the College since 2008. She is a widely published and nationally recognized nursing leader who has led the College to new heights in research activity and academic reputation.
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to provide leadership to MGH Institute of Health Professions,” said Dr. Milone-Nuzzo, who will assume the presidency on August 15, 2017. “The focus on interprofessional education and practice and team science has positioned the Institute to be a leader in the improvement of health care. I look forward to working with the MGH Institute community in creating that future.”
“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.
Dr. Milone-Nuzzo, who also will hold the position of John Hilton Knowles Professor, will inherit a graduate school that has seen exponential growth over the past decade. The student population has grown from 850 to more than 1,600; the faculty has doubled; operating revenue has climbed from $19.2 million to $49.1 million; and the school’s footprint in the historic Charlestown Navy Yard has expanded from 65,000 square feet to 160,000 square feet. The Institute has significantly expanded its research activities, including opening a dedicated on-campus research facility. The Institute also launched several new programs including a Doctor of Occupational Therapy, a Master of Physician Assistant Studies, and its first PhD program, focused on Rehabilitation Sciences. For the past seven years, the Institute has been named a “Great College to Work For” by The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Dr. Milone-Nuzzo has made workforce development and health care careers 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. She also held several prior roles there, including Chair of the Master’s Program and Project Director and Research Scientist for the Home Care concentration. Prior to Yale, she served on the nursing faculty of 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, and the Nightingale Award for Excellence in Nursing. She is a Distinguished Practitioner and Fellow of the National Academies of Practice, Fellow of the National Association for Home Care and Hospice, and 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.
In addition, she is currently a member of the Board of Directors at Mount Nittany Health System, chairing its Medical Center Board of Directors, and has served on more than 15 other boards, including extensive service as member and chair of numerous board committees.