Benbenek named a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners

Clinical Professor Mary Benbenek PhD, APRN, FNP-BC, CPNP-PC, was named a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Fellows are recognized nurse practitioner leaders who have made outstanding contributions to nurse practitioner education, policy, clinical practice or research, and are dedicated to the global advancement of nurse practitioners and the high-quality health care they deliver.

Through completion and dissemination of grant-funded studies, Benbenek has made significant contributions to advancing nurse practitioner educational strategies that improve interprofessional teamwork, integrate primary care and mental health care, measure students’ competence through structured clinical examinations, and enhance students’ participation in global health care via internationalizing teaching and learning curriculum. She has demonstrated leadership through educational innovation in implementing two significant Human Resources and Services Administration grants, which required developing educational content and clinical resources, designing new models of care delivery and community partnerships, and evaluating outcomes.

She was the first nurse practitioner appointed to the Minnesota Drug Formulary committee, which sets the Medicaid formulary for the state. She leveraged her experience and clinical expertise in providing care for diverse, socially-complex and chronically ill populations through appointments to community, county and state committees and advisory boards.

Benbenek joins School of Nursing Clinical Professor Mary Chesney, PhD, APRN, CPNP-PC, FAANP, FAAN, and Clinical Professor Sheila Smith, PhD, APRN, ANP-BC, FAANP, as Fellows of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners.