Dr. Suzy Harrington, chief wellness officer for Oklahoma State University, has been honored for her work at her former position at the American Nurses Association with a 2013 Advocacy Award by the Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals (ASPHP) and the foundation office for Veterans Health Affairs.
The award, presented during the ASPHP’s recent conference in Orlando, Fla., recognizes Harrington for her work in leading the development of interprofessoinal national standards for safe patient handling and mobility.
“Working with a group of about 30 experts from a variety of professional backgrounds, Suzy led the way in the difficult challenge of developing these standards to address the need for universal, interdisciplinary guidelines,” said Bob Williamson, past president of the ASPHP. “Although no longer with the ANA, she has left her stamp on our industry and profession.”
Harrington was applauded at the conference as “the energizer bunny” of the safe patient handling and mobility movement. She was also congratulated as “a champion and advocate for the health, safety and wellness of nurses throughout America.”
The Advocacy Award is sponsored by the ASPHP and the James A. Haley Veterans Affairs Research and Education Foundation.
“I’m truly honored by this award, but the credit goes to a devoted group of professionals who committed tremendous passion, talent, and time to the project, and who were dedicated to improving the quality of patient care while protecting both employees and patients from injury,” Harrington said.
As chief wellness officer at OSU, Harrington strategically coordinates all programs and operations involving health and wellness for the Oklahoma State University system, emphasizing its commitment to students and employees as OSU strives to be “America’s Healthiest Campus.”
Prior to joining OSU last October, Harrington served as the director of health, safety and wellness for the American Nurses Association in Silver Spring, Maryland. She holds a doctorate of nursing practice from Rush University and a master of science in health services from the California College for Health Sciences and a bachelor of science in nursing from Angelo State University in San Angelo, Texas.
A registered nurse, Harrington also has served as an adjunct professor at both Independence University in West Haven, Conn., and Capella University in Minneapolis.
