Annie Lewis-O’Connor, PhD, NP, receives a research excellence award at Research Day. Pictured with Brigham Research Institute Director Richard Blumberg, MD, (center) and interim Chief Academic Officer Paul Anderson, MD, PhD.

Nursing science and evidenced-based practice were well-represented at this year’s third annual BWH Research Day held on November 20. Together with subject matter experts and researchers from all fields and academic levels, a host of clinical nurses, nurse scientists and nurse leaders offered lectures, panel discussions and poster presentations throughout the day.

It was “standing room only” in the Shapiro Board Room for the fifth annual Haley Nursing Forum and Breakfast as clinical nurses, nursing leadership and members of hospital administration gathered to celebrate five very successful years of the Haley Nurse Scientist Program (2009–2014). This collaborative venture between the Department of Nursing and Boston College William F. Connell School of Nursing is made possible through the inspiration and generosity of BWH benefactors and friends Steven and Kathleen Haley. Jackie Somerville, PhD, RN, BWH chief nursing officer and senior vice president of Patient Care Services, and Susan Gennaro, DNS, RN, FAAN, dean and professor of the Connell School of Nursing, offered words of welcome and appreciation to participants and to Kathleen Haley, who was in attendance.

Kicking off the forum, inaugural BWH Haley Nurse Scientist, Katherine Gregory, PhD, RN, provided a retrospective look at the history and growth of the Haley Nurse Scientist Program at BWH. Clinical nurses Jessie Brain, BSN, RN, CCRN, (MICU) and Marissa Thomas, BSN, RN, (Oncology) shared the fruits of their respective work in using peer coaching and patient-centered care approaches in promoting innovative, research-based practice among their nursing colleagues.Lichuan Ye, PhD, RN, the current BWH Haley Nurse Scientist, introduced her work on sleep promotion research.

Later in the morning, a nursing symposium titled “Innovations in Nursing Practice: Harnessing Technology at the Bedside” drew a capacity crowd in the Bornstein Amphitheater. Senior nurse scientist and program director Patricia Dykes, PhD, RN, FAAN, moderated brief presentations and a panel discussion among Stephanie Shine, BSN, RN, of the NICU (minimizing maternal/infant separation); Katherine Murphy, MSN, RN, of the MICU (fostering patient engagement through the use of technology); and Ye (promoting sleep among hospitalized patients through the use of a specialized toolkit).

Throughout the day, the work and research of more than 50 nurses could be explored in over 30 of the 120 poster presentations on display. Annie Lewis-O’Connor, PhD, NP, MPH, FAAN, nurse scientist and director of the C.A.R.E. Clinic at BWH, received a research excellence award for her poster, “The Voice of the Patient: Informing Practice, Policy and Research in Gender-Based Violence.” Nursing’s contribution to the discipline and to BWH’s annual Research Day continues to grow each year.

Yvonne Sheldon, BSN, RN, co-chair of the Nursing Research Committee