Carol Durham honored as SSH Director of the Year

The UNC School of Nursing is delighted to celebrate Carol Durham, EdD, RN, ANEF, FAAN, FSSH, who has been selected as the Society for Simulation in Healthcare Director of the Year Award for 2023. This award recognizes Dr. Durham’s exceptional contributions to the field of healthcare simulation and her outstanding leadership within the simulation community. 

Dr. Durham led a team of faculty, collaborating with Novice to Expert (NovEx) developers, Drs. Patricia Benner and Pat Kyriakidis. Together, they designed and implemented an innovative and streamlined deployment of NovEx for senior undergraduate student learning for the first time. 

In this crucial phase of a student’s education, grappling with applying knowledge to identify and rescue rapidly deteriorating patients is common. The post-NovEx simulation debriefing proved instrumental, enabling students to make vital connections that enhanced their clinical reasoning. Dr. Patricia Benner and Dr. Pat Kyriakidis emphasized that Dr. Durham and her team’s work unequivocally showcases the advancement of student experiential learning and an expansion of clinical reasoning. 

Louise Fleming, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs, expressed gratitude for Dr. Durham’s leadership, stating, “This type of innovative, transformative work benefits our students and our program, and we are grateful to have Dr. Durham leading these efforts!” 

The award will be officially presented to Dr. Durham at the International Meeting on Simulation in Healthcare (IMSH) 2024, taking place in San Diego, CA, during the President’s Diamond Ball on Saturday, January 21, 2023. This recognition is a testament to Dr. Durham’s unwavering commitment to excellence, mentorship, and innovation in healthcare simulation. 

For more information about the Society for Simulation in Healthcare and the Director of the Year Award, please visit ssih.org. 

---