HPNA 2024 Award Winners
The Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association (HPNA) congratulates the following individuals, who have been selected as 2024 HPNA award winners for their commitment to research, practice, volunteerism, and the advancement of hospice and palliative care.
HPNA New Investigator Award
Djin Tay, PhD, RN
Dr. Tay is an assistant professor at the University of Utah College of Nursing. Her research focuses on the implications of emerging treatments on caregiving, decision-making, palliative care, and the end-of-life in the context of the family. She leads the development of the Immunotherapy, Palliative, End-of-Life Treatment Utilization and Spousal Outcomes (ImmPETUS) cohort, a population-based cohort of Utah patients diagnosed between 2013 and 2019 with lung, colorectal, breast, melanoma, bladder, or head and neck cancer.
The HPNA New Investigator Award recognizes an individual at the beginning of his or her research career who has done high-quality research, specifically either a pilot or preliminary study that focused on clinical care, professional development, or advancement of palliative nursing.
HPNA Distinguished Nursing Practice Award
Rebecca V. Hoden, DNP, RN, CHPN
Dr. Hoden currently serves as adjunct faculty in community college and university nursing programs. She began specializing in Hospice and Palliative Care in 2000. Since then, she has developed a palliative care program for a rural nursing facility and has practiced as clinical and didactic faculty in several nursing programs. Dr. Hoden credits being a lifelong musician and teaching piano lessons for developing her communication and educational skills. She also is on the National Certification Faculty for HPNA and president of HPNA’s San Francisco Bay Area Chapter.
The HPNA Distinguished Nursing Practice Award recognizes a nurse who has long provided care for individuals with serious illness and their families in a manner that has clearly gone well beyond the “usual and expected” requirements.
HPNA Vanguard Award
Margaret “Meg” Campbell, PhD, RN, FPCN
Dr. Campbell is a professor emeritus at Wayne State University College of Nursing in Detroit, Michigan. In her career, she has been a pioneer in nurse practitioner-led inpatient palliative care and has conducted clinical research to assess and manage dyspnea among patients with advanced disease at the end of life with a particular focus on critical care. She is credited with developing the Respiratory Distress Observation Scale (RDOS), the only known valid and reliable tool for measuring respiratory distress in patients unable to self-report. Dr. Campbell served on the HPNA Board of Directors from 2007-2010, including as president in 2009. She has also volunteered on multiple HPNA committees and contributed to HPNA publications on dyspnea assessment and management and ventilator withdrawal.
The HPNA Vanguard Award recognizes a nursing leader who has advanced the field of hospice and palliative nursing and has made a major contribution that has a national impact on hospice and palliative care.
HPNA Distinguished Nursing Researcher Award
J. Nicholas Odom, PhD, RN, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN
Dr. Dionne-Odom is an associate professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing. His research focuses on a broad array of methodological and statistical tools to examine critical research questions about family caregiving and decision-making for patients with serious illness. His rigorously tested innovative interventions include randomized trials that are funded by the National Institutes of Health and focus on addressing disparities and furthering health equity among marginalized (rural and minority) cancer caregivers.
The HPNA Distinguished Nursing Researcher Award recognizes a nurse researcher who has demonstrated longevity and consistency in research that advances the mission and vision of HPNA through high-quality research, presentations, and publications in peer-reviewed journals.
HPNA Champion Award
Mary Lynn McPherson, Pharm.D., PhD, BCPS
Dr. McPherson is a professor and executive director of Advanced Post-Graduate Education in Palliative Care in the Department of Pharmacy Practice, Sciences, and Health Outcomes at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy in Baltimore. She is the executive program director of Graduate Studies in Palliative Care at the University of Maryland Baltimore, including the Doctor of Philosophy, Master of Science, and Graduate Certificate. She is particularly interested in the safe and effective use of medications in patients with life-limiting illness, ranging from drug selection, deprescribing, and risk mitigation.
The HPNA Champion Award recognizes an individual who has made a significant impact on hospice and palliative care through advocacy, community involvement, or practice.
HPNA thanks the 2024 award recipients for their dedication to advancing care in serious illness through practice and research and looks forward to honoring them at an award ceremony during the 2024 Annual Assembly of Hospice and Palliative Care to be held in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 20-23, 2024.
Join us in person or virtually for the three-day event, which brings together colleagues and peers to share research, clinical best practices, and practice-related guidance to advance the specialty and improve patient care.