By Laura Gasque
University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing Dean and Fay B. Ireland Endowed Chair Maria R. Shirey, PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, ANEF, FACHE, FNAP, FAAN, has been selected for the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame by Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing. She joins 15 world-renowned nurse researchers being inducted into the Hall of Fame during its International Nursing Research Congress in July in Seattle.
“Through groundbreaking research, unwavering dedication, and commitment to advancing nursing science, these nurse researchers represent Sigma’s vision of connected, empowered nurses transforming global health care,” said Sigma President Sandra C. Garmon Bibb, DNSc, RN, FFNMRCSI, FAAN, of the impact of the inductees. “This prestigious recognition is a testament to their impact on nursing research and the lives they have touched through their work. I celebrate their achievements, the generations they have inspired, and the legacy they continue to build.”
Shirey’s research focus includes authentic leadership in nursing as well as the development of interprofessional collaborative practice models to advance care access and health equity for vulnerable populations with chronic diseases. Her unique interprofessional point of view has allowed her to bring to UAB extramural funding of more than $20 million since 2013. She has been awarded three U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration training grants to establish the now sustained Heart Failure Transitional Care Services for Adults (HRTSA) Clinic in collaboration with UAB Medicine, and to help improve health outcomes in medically underserved areas.
“Being inducted into the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame is an incredible honor and a personal milestone for me,” Shirey said. “This recognition is affirmation that nurse leaders are making a difference through scholarship, community and global partnerships, and in education. Leadership is in our DNA at the UAB School of Nursing and I am thrilled to share that message with the world through this international recognition.”
Shirey also has been named a Fellow of the National Academies of Practice, Academy of Nursing Education, American Academy of Nursing, and American College of Healthcare Executives. In 2019, the American Organization for Nursing Leadership recognized Shirey with its Nurse Researcher Award for her career contributions to advancing leadership and health systems science, and she received the inaugural Suzanne Smith Memorial Award for Scholarly Writing Excellence from the Association for Leadership Science in Nursing in 2016.