ANCC Presents 2026 HRH Princess Muna Al Hussein Award to Dr. Jean Watson, Founder of Caring Science
Pioneering nurse theorist honored for transforming nursing practice, education and leadership worldwide
CHICAGO, IL – The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) has presented Jean Watson, PhD, RN, AHN-BC, FAAN, with the 2026 HRH Princess Muna Al Hussein Award. The award honors nurses whose contributions have advanced international health care and who have shown an exceptional commitment to nursing. ANCC presented this award during the 2026 Magnet & Pathway Conference® at McCormick Place in Chicago.
“For more than 50 years, Dr. Watson has helped the nursing profession recognize caring not only as a compassionate act, but as a science and the very heart of nursing practice,” said ANCC President Laura J. Wood, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN. “Her Theory of Human Caring has crossed borders and shaped how nurses learn, lead and care for patients around the world. It is my great honor to recognize a leader whose scholarship continues to inspire nurses everywhere.”
Dr. Watson is the founder of Caring Science. Her Theory of Human Caring offers a framework for building healing environments through intentional connection between patients, nurses and the wider care team. Her Ethic-Philosophy and Transpersonal Theory of Human Caring, along with the Caritas Processes® of Unitary Caring Science, serve as the basis for models of education, research, leadership and professional practice in health care organizations worldwide.
Dr. Watson is Distinguished Professor and Dean Emerita of the University of Colorado Denver College of Nursing at the Anschutz Medical Campus. There, she held the nation’s first endowed Chair in Caring Science for 16 years. She founded the original Center for Human Caring in Colorado and served as president of the National League for Nursing. She was also a founding member of the International Association for Human Caring and the International Caritas Consortium. Today, she is founder and director of the Watson Caring Science Institute, a nonprofit that advances Caring Science and human caring practices around the world.
Dr. Watson has written more than 30 books, including Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring, and holds fifteen honorary doctoral degrees from institutions around the world. She is a Fellow and Living Legend of the American Academy of Nursing.
“Being recognized with an award inspired by Her Royal Highness Princess Muna Al Hussein is truly a tremendous honor,” said Dr. Watson. “This recognition celebrates and elevates the scholarship of Human Caring Theory, which gives voice and language to the caring that unites nurses’ daily practice across boundaries around the world.”
The HRH Princess Muna Al Hussein Award is named for Her Royal Highness Princess Muna Al Hussein of Jordan, an internationally respected champion for nursing who has helped elevate the profession worldwide.
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About the American Nurses Credentialing Center
The American Nurses Credentialing Center works with the nation’s largest group of healthcare professionals to uphold the highest standards of nursing excellence. With a comprehensive suite of individual certifications and organizational accreditation programs designed to foster research, innovation, career growth, and leadership development, the credentialing center equips nurses to achieve safer, patient-centric outcomes both nationally and internationally. Committed to harnessing The Power of Nurses® to elevate care standards worldwide, the credentialing center continuously sets the benchmarks that support excellence in every facet of nursing practice.