2025-26 Workgroups and Leaders
Workgroups are composed of volunteers focused on specific topics aligned with the NKBDS Initiative’s vision and mission. They meet virtually throughout the year in order to achieve their action plans. All are welcomed to join any workgroup. Please email [email protected] for more information.
Data Science and Clinical Analytics
Co-leaders:
- Steven G. Johnson, PhD, FAMIA, Associate Director, CTSI Health Informatics Program; Faculty, Institute for Health Informatics, University of Minnesota
- Ann Wieben, PhD, RN, NI-BC, FAMIA, Assistant Professor, School of Nursing University of Wisconsin-Madison
Purpose: To apply data science and clinical analytic methods, incorporating validated information models derived from diverse sources of health care data, to address nurse-sensitive clinical research questions that have the potential to inform and educate nursing and multidisciplinary approaches for better patient care and outcomes.
Determinants of Health
Leader:
- Kathy Bobay, PhD, RN, ACHIP, FAAN, Professor and Graduate Program Director, Health Informatics; Interim Department Chair, Health Informatics & Data Science, Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health, Loyola University Chicago
Purpose: To support the standardized collection of DOH data into sharable, comparable, and actionable nursing practice to improve the health of individuals, families, communities, and populations.
Digital Health and Innovation
Co-leaders:
- Kelly Resco-Summers, DNP, M. Admin., RN, Assistant Professor, Director of Nursing Informatics, University of Alabama at Birmingham
- Christie Martin, PhD, MPH, RN-BC, LHIT-HP, PHN - Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota School of Nursing
Purpose: Identify and support activities and resources to address unmet needs and create opportunities in digital health and innovation.
Knowledge Modeling and Encoding
Co-leaders:
- Stephanie Hartleben MSN, MHA, RN, NI-BC; Senior Principal, Clinical Informatics, Elsevier
- Tess Settergren MHA, MA, RN, NI-BC (Retired)
- Mischa Sorensen MSN, RN, NI-BC,Informatics Nurse Specialist
Purpose:
- Derive nursing knowledge models from EHR documentation and “best evidence”,
- Map the core, essential concepts, and values to data standards for interoperability, documenting heuristics,
- Submit requests for new LOINC® terms and SNOMED CT® concepts where gaps exist, and
- Disseminate the deliverables for replicability.
Learning Collaborative for Digital Health
Co-leaders:
- Mary Jane Rivard, DNP, RN, NI-BC, Clinical Assistant Professor, Post-master’s DNP Program Director, University of North Dakota
- Nancy M Husson, DNP, RN, CHSE, Assistant Professor of Nursing, Virginia Commonwealth University
Purpose: The Learning Collaborative for Digital Health's purpose is to engage nurse educators and practice partners with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes (KSAs) to educate nurses at all levels of participation and to lead the digital evolution, improving healthcare and health globally.
Nursing Value
Co-leaders:
- Elizabeth Swanson RN PhD, FNCC, Emeritus Associate Professor, University of Iowa College of Nursing
- Greg Clancy RN (ret), DNP, Adjunct Faculty, U of Iowa College of Nursing
Purpose: To examine and measure the value of nursing within its context of care and supporting the tenets of health equity. Therefore, the intent is to maximize the development and dissemination of measurable and comparable nursing terms critical to the context of care and the value of nursing.
Policy and Advocacy
Co-leaders:
- Carolyn S. Harmon, PhD, DNP, RN, NI-BC, CSSGB, FAAN, Professor and Director, Healthcare Leadership and Nursing Informatics, University of South Carolina
- Susan Alexander, DNP, RN, ANP-BC, Professor, Director, Nursing Informatics Specialty Program, Vanderbilt University School of Nursing
Purpose: Amplify workgroup products to improve healthcare, nursing satisfaction and practice by leveraging nursing knowledge and informatics.
Transforming Documentation
Co-leaders:
- Bonnie Adrian, PhD, RN, NI-BC, UCHealth (Colorado) Clinical Informatics Nurse Scientist
- David Boyd, DNP, RN, CNS, NI-BC, CPHIMS, Independent
Purpose: Explore ways to decrease the documentation burden and serve up information in the electronic health record at the right time in the workflow to support evidence-based and personalized care. Elevate purpose-driven, role-based, patient-centric, evidence informed documentation transformation to capture nurse observations and interventions and drive purposeful secondary-use and precision nursing. Transformation supports enhanced data utilization to drive and measure improvement in patient outcomes and illuminate nursing's value and contribution in healthcare while optimizing nurse well-being.