Innovation Team

As the ANA Vice President of Nursing Innovation, I work across the ANA Enterprise (American Nurses Association, American Nurses Credentialing Center, and the American Nurses Foundation) to support the development of nurses and healthcare innovation. This starts with unlocking the exclusivity of the innovation process. My goal is to support nurses to build and lead innovation initiatives across every aspect of the health care ecosystem.

We need to ensure that all nurses are able to participate in the process of innovation – no matter their location or resources. Innovation, design education, and expanded partnerships will create opportunities for nurses to drive new ways to deliver care and care models, which includes new revenue streams, and business models. Building nurse led innovation, and using innovation as a fulcrum to shift values, beliefs, and to improve practice, care delivery, and organizational cultures – was the focus of my scholarly work. I designed the inaugural Planting Seeds of Innovation conference in 2015, which became an annual event. I’ve worked with health care systems and health care executives from across the country.

The ANA Enterprise organizations have created a bedrock for nursing practice across our country. Our profession has a rich history of inventing solutions for patient needs. We need to acknowledge best practices and recognize how our profession's past could inform our future trajectory. Redefining and reimagining the future role of nursing, begins with the work we lead today.

We can translate the anxiety and frustration across our industry, workforce, and profession - into urgent optimism. Nurses have unique abilities, and skill sets, which allow them to think and work across systems. Nursing and nursing innovation can no longer be invisible. The complexity of our world requires nurses to be expansive in their thinking, and with their actions.

As an innovation scientist, I explore a variety of ecosystems and look for potential and existing synergies between seemingly disparate entities in ways that confound, reveal, and inspire. I celebrate nurses who deploy imaginative questioning, adopt divergent thinking strategies, leverage evidence-informed practices, and explore innovative solutions to address existing disparities. For all nurses to thrive in the healthcare ecosystem, I fully embrace liberatory design strategies that create conditions for self-awareness, equity, creative courage, and collective liberation. My intent in this role is to widely disseminate the contributions of nurse innovators, encourage nurses to recognize and embrace their innovative capabilities, generate research to advance nurse-led endeavors, and activate innovative ecosystems.

Daniel J. Pesut is an nurse educator, academic, researcher, consultant, and coach. He is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing and past Director of the Katharine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership.  Pesut's research is focused on nursing education. He has worked on creativity and clinical reasoning, creative-teaching learning methods, self-regulation of health status, and foresight leadership development in the health professions. Dr. Pesut is known for his ability to inspire and support people as they develop creative ideas and design innovative practices with a desired futures in mind.

Dr. Pesut earned a PhD in Nursing from the University of Michigan, a master’s degree in Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, TX and BS degree in Nursing from Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL. He has completed Certificates in Management Development from Harvard Institute for Higher Education, Core Mediation Skills Training from the International Association of Dispute Resolution (IARD) and Integral Studies from Fielding Graduate University. He is past President (2003-2005) of the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International. He served on the Board of Trustees of the Plexus Institute – an organization with the mission to foster the health of individuals, families and communities, organizations, and our natural environment by helping people use concepts emerging from the new science of complexity. He is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.  He is a certified Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara coach, and a retired board - certified clinical nurse specialist in adult psychiatric mental health nursing. He is the recipient of many awards including an Army Commendation Award while on active duty (1975-1978) in the US Army Nurse Corps; the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International Edith Moore Copeland Founder’s Award for Creativity; The American Association for Men In Nursing Luther Christman Award; Distinguished Alumni Awards from Northern Illinois University School of Nursing-College of Health and Human Services and  a Visionary Leadership Award from the University of Texas Health Science at San Antonio School. He is an Honorary Member of the Global Academy of Holistic Nursing. Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing established the Daniel J. Pesut Spirit of Renewal Award in 2005 to honor his contributions to the field.

Karen’s specific interests are focused on the intersection of clinical needs and medical technology use, development, and innovation. Throughout her career, Karen has focused on clinical outcomes research and new product development and innovation. While at Philips Healthcare, Karen spent 12 years in various global roles, working with patient monitoring systems and clinical outcomes research. As a result of her work in new product development at Philips, Karen was the global winner (2011) in the R&D category for new product innovation. In 2012, Karen received the professional achievement award for innovative product development from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation. In 2016, Karen completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at Yale University, where she collaborated across the schools of nursing, engineering and business while working on improving the safety and usability of IV smart infusion pumps.

Karen’s work has been widely disseminated with over 80 publications in more than 20 different journals. Karen is a frequent national and international presenter at professional healthcare conferences, with specific interests focused on the intersection of clinical needs and medical technology use, development, and innovation.

The central focus of Karen’s work is to improve patient outcomes through innovation in health care delivery practices and products. Specific areas of interest include improving medication administration safety using IV smart pumps, and the reduction of non-ventilator hospital-acquired pneumonia.

Lauran is a consultant in system redesign and inter professional complex care delivery for health systems, communities, government agencies and payers. She co-designed and implemented models for complex care delivery and build of ecosystems for complex patients. Lauran is responsible for field building partnerships to advance complex care. She is a member of the Faculty for National Center for Complex Health and Social Needs and responsible for interprofessional content development in the emerging field of complex care. Her special interests include the impact of trauma and loss on high frequency healthcare access. She also specializes in the economic potential of stabilizing complex patients through retaining and redesigning existing interprofessional resources in the healthcare system.

Lauran is a member of an interprofessional team advancing field development. Some of her clients include: Regional One Health Memphis, Adventist Health system, Providence St Joseph Health System, State of Delaware, Excellus Blue Cross/Blue Shield, St. Louis Behavioral Health Network, Center for the Advancement of Palliative Care, National Association of ACOs.

Dr. Kenny is the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs at Arizona State University College of Nursing and Health Innovation where she holds the rank of Clinical Professor. She is also a Board-Certified Adult Nurse Practitioner. She joined the faculty at CONHI in 2004, previously serving as the DNP Program Director. Past leadership positions include Chief of Advanced Practice Nursing, Director of Medicine Services, and Director of Nurses, and CVICU Manager at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona.

Dr. Kenny’s clinical specialties include critical care, cardiology, neurosciences, pain management, palliative care, and pre-operative preparation. Her research interests include patient education, leadership, integrative therapies, palliative care, pain management, inter-professional practice with a specific interest in mentoring relationships, and innovative approaches to healthcare delivery. She is published in peer-reviewed journals, book chapters, and is an invited presenter at regional, national, and international conferences. She serves on a number of Boards. She was inducted as a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners in 2013 and as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing in 2015.

Ms. Lamberton serves as Deputy Vice President of State Policy and External Outreach at PhRMA, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Association of America, a trade association of 33 biopharmaceutical companies based in Washington, DC. In her role, she analyzes policy, provides strategy, and serves as a lobbyist for the industry in the states issues such as Medicaid, cost and value of medicines, adherence, insulin, vaccines, clinical trials and conducts outreach with patient and provider groups.

Ms. Lamberton works closely with the National Governors’ Association and serves on Boards for the National Foundation of Women Legislators, American Association of Nurse Practitioners, the Food Allergy Research and Education organization, and most recently, appointed to the Advisory Board for her alma matter, the College of Health and Human Services at George Mason University. She currently enjoys being a guest lecture for graduate level health policy courses and motivating other healthcare providers to join the ranks of healthcare lobbyists that improve access and care for patients.

Marion Leary is the Director of Innovation and an Instructor at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Nursing. Ms. Leary has established herself as a nursing leader in the field of resuscitation science, as well as nursing innovation. As the incoming Director of Innovation at Penn Nursing she creates curriculums focused on nursing innovation and the foundation of design thinking.

Ms. Leary's research focuses on cardiac arrest and CPR quality with the current goal of developing innovative strategies to improve bystander response and CPR training. Ms. Leary is an international Fellow of the American Heart Association (FAHA) and has participated in the 2010 and 2015 resuscitation guidelines. She also coordinates the social media campaign for the American Heart Association (AHA)’s Resuscitation Science Symposium. Ms. Leary is on the program committee for the Citizen CPR Foundation’s Emergency Cardiovascular Care Updates conference focusing on innovation, social media outreach, and engagement.

Ms. Leary is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Public Health Initiatives at Penn. Ms. Leary completed her master's degree in nursing at Penn, in health leadership and a master's degree in public health at Penn. Ms. Leary began a doctoral program at the University of Pennsylvania in 2018.

Previously, Ms. Leary was an Instructor in the Penn Master of Public Health program where she taught methods implementation and public health communication.

Ms. Leary founded the Penn UPstart companies ImmERge, LLC and Resuscor, LLC. Immerge Labs focused on using virtual reality and augmented reality to reimagine how the world prepares for emergencies. Resuscor, LLC focused on using digital strategies to improve post-cardiac arrest training and education.

Dr. Danielle McCamey, DNP, CRNP, ACNP-BC, FCCP is an expert critical care advanced practice clinician. She has nearly 20 years of nursing experience and over a decade as a board-certified Acute Care Nurse Practitioner. Her specialties range from perianesthesia care, palliative, and critical care. Currently, Dr. McCamey is the Assistant Dean for Clinical Practice & Relationships and Assistant Professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. She previously served as Chief Advanced Practice Provider of the Preanesthesia Testing Department and still practices as a Senior Advanced Practice Provider in Surgical Critical Care.
Dr. McCamey is a true visionary. She is the founder, CEO, and president of DNPs of Color, Inc., a 501c3 nonprofit national organization that builds community and creates opportunities for nurses of color through networking, mentorship, and advocacy to increase diversity in doctoral studies, clinical practice, and leadership. In addition, she is the co-creator and former chair of the Doctoral Nurses Collaborative, a group that joins DNP and PhD prepared nurses throughout her current healthcare system. The Doctoral Nurses collaborative provides mentorship, scholarship, and elevation of evidence-based practice.

Chris McCarthy is the VP of Strategy & Design at Hopelab and the Executive Director and Founder of the Innovation Learning Network. At Hopelab his main focus is at the intersection of design and science in the service of young people's health. Currently he is guiding work with young cancer survivors, teen moms, and emotional well-being of young people. In his previous role at Kaiser Permanente’s Innovation Consultancy, he tackled safer medication administration for patients, more robust shift changes for nurses, exploring the social space of elders, and the care experience of transgender people.

His work has been featured with CNN (Dec 2017), Harvard Business Review (Sept 2010), Bisognano's "Pursuing the Triple Aim" (2012), FastCompany, the New York Times and many more. As an author, he collaborated with Lyle Berkowitz, MD on "Innovation with Information Technologies in Healthcare" (2012). You can find his quirky design blog at McCarthyChris.com.

He was named the 2015 H.I.T. Innovator and the 2011 Ellerbe Beckett Lecturer. And is an international speaker on innovation and design.

Chris has a master's in business administration from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute/Copenhagen Business School, and a master’s in public health in Health Policy from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. In his spare time, he obsesses about fitness, movies and home remodels.

Executive innovation leader and investment advisor on strategy, startup, inclusion and partnerships that grow new capabilities, develop new business opportunities, and position companies at the forefront. Developer of innovation strategic partnerships, innovation centers, innovation funds and ecosystems that drive transformation initiatives in healthcare, technology, and financial services. Goal-driven collaborator and advisor with success leading strategy, investments and innovation for large, global corporations, building from her experience at Kaiser Permanente headquarters in Oakland, Blue Shield of California, AIG, Charles Schwab, and Deloitte Consulting.

• Exploring and investing in digital wellness and behavioral health startups with support of the Executive Office of Melinda Gates, Pivotal Ventures
• Advising companies and organizations on innovation, inclusion and impact
• Launched the AIG Global Innovation Center and managing the advanced technology team
• Managed the Kaiser Permanente Innovation Lab and Fund for Technology
• Assessed thousands of innovations, piloted hundreds and scaled new products and services such as care anywhere apps, robotic couriers, blockchain smart contracts, artificial intelligence for self-service, wearables for workers safety, mobile apps for safe driving.

Faye is currently Managing Director at Vinaj Ventures, investing in digital health startups with Telosity.co Fund and consulting in innovation and venture investments with corporations. She has served on the Board of Directors: Ayogo Health, Ascend Leadership, Berger Research, Claremont McKenna Alumni and Advisor to: UCSF Catalyst, Samsung Emerging Tech, Somnology MD, Autonomous.ID, Food System 6, Exponential Talent, Plug and Play Accelerator Advisor, Asian Foundation Lotus Circle, AI and Healthcare Publication, and Innovation Executive Forum.

Ryan J. Shaw is an Associate Professor at the Duke University School of Nursing. He leads teams that discover how to integrate patient generated health data and emerging technologies into novel care delivery models that manage and improve health outcomes for patients with complex chronic illnesses. This includes data from wearables, sensors and devices that monitor and augment patient care and interface with electronic health records (EHRs).

Dr. Shaw is the Director of the Duke University School of Nursing's Health Innovation Lab. Adjacent to Duke Hospital, the lab provides a space for entrepreneurship, product development and testing, and modeling and testing new care delivery processes.

His program of research is funded by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), and previously by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and the National Science Foundation (NSF), among others. He teaches classes in health informatics and research methods, and mentors’ students to become the next generation of health scientists and clinicians.

Dr. Lori Skinner has over 10 years of experience as a nurse leader. She is the lead value-based program manager at Medica. In her current role, she works with accountable care organization (ACO) health system partners to address population health, improve care quality, while aiming to reduce overall costs. She is responsible for collaborating with health system partners to create and support clinical strategies and initiatives. Dr. Skinner’s past work includes caring for patients and their caregivers in various settings including acute care, home care, and quality improvement. In every setting she has worked jointly with leaders, providers, and community partners to develop programs that provide an integrated service delivery approach. Dr. Skinner has spoken nationally on the importance of provider partnerships in achieving both patient and value-based care goals.

Rae Walker, PhD, RN, FAAN, is a nurse inventor, activist, and Assistant Professor in the University of Massachusetts-Amherst College of Nursing whose scholarship is grounded in her experiences as a rural emergency medical and disaster relief worker, U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer, and oncology nurse. She is the first nurse to be named an AAAS-Lemelson Invention Ambassador.

Dr. Walker is currently a Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer Research CCR Scholar and an Associate Director for the UMASS Institute for Applied Life Science’s Center for Personalized Health Monitoring. She completed her doctorate at Johns Hopkins School of Nursing and a Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Johns Hopkins Center for Innovative Care in Aging. Her team focuses on person-directed and participatory approaches to promoting dignity, capability, and health equity over the life course.

Dr. Walker works collaboratively with patient advocates and community leaders, clinicians, industry partners, and scholars from a wide variety of disciplines to develop technology, models of care, and other innovations that support symptom self-management and patients’ ability to engage in the roles and activities that are most important to them and their families. Most recently, her team’s proposal for a self-contained portable system to generate critical IV fluids during disasters earned runner-up in the 2018 $200K M2D2 Medical Device challenge.

Dr. Christi Zuber  is internationally recognized for her trail-blazing work in the field of innovation and human centered design. She recently transitioned from the 14 year position of Founder and Director of the Innovation and Design practice at Kaiser Permanente’s corporate office in Oakland, CA to found and lead Aspen Labs consulting practice in Denver, CO.  She also serves on faculty at Northwestern University teaching students about service design and innovation.

She has connected others like her across industries through founding and leading a global Design Thinking Exchange (DTX) network that gathers leaders across over 15 organizations and 10 academic institutions.  Zuber has over 20 years of leading teams, observing users, creatively generating ideas and conducting field experiments to develop solutions that work. The work of Zuber and her teams has been touted by the likes of the Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, and the New York Times.   

In her dissertation research, she focused on the secret sauce for change agents who have been successful in bringing Human Centered Design into large complex organizations which may not be so keen to change.  Christi loves to write, research, teach and help organizations on the topics of design, innovation, creativity and individual empowerment to make a positive difference in the world.

Sharon, a global thought leader in healthcare, has made a significant impact over her four decades of senior executive experience. She has been at the forefront of healthcare innovation, leading a top consulting organization and serving as the Innovation Community Group manager for the ANA. Her engaging talks not only empower audiences but also foster collaboration and promote excellence in healthcare. Sharon's literary contributions, including 25 books and over 171 peer-reviewed manuscripts, have been instrumental in shaping the discourse around healthcare. She is a Top Voice for LinkedIn in Public Speaking and Stress and hosts a LinkedIn LIVE program. Her co-authored book, Think Differently, was published in August 2022, and, Healing Healthcare: Evidence-Based Strategies to Mend Our Broken System, which sold out in a day at the ANCC Magnet/Pathway to Excellence conference, was released by Amplify Publishing Group in October, 2024. In July 2025, she'll welcome the publication of Harmony by Design, co-authored by Drs. Marla Vannucci and Katie Boston-Leary with a Foreword by Jean Watson. A Workbook by the same name will accompany the publication and facilitate the design process.

Her credentials back Sharon's expertise as a storyteller, including Certified Speaking Professional (CSP), immediate past chair of the Certification Process for The National Speakers Association (NSA), and a Global Speakers Federation’s Equivalence Council member. She has served as an INS past president and INCC past chair. Her affiliations include memberships in ANA, AONL, and Sigma. Sharon's educational journey began in Philadelphia, where she completed her nursing education at Pennsylvania Hospital. She furthered her studies with undergraduate and graduate degrees in Florida and Texas in nursing, behavioral science, and healthcare administration. She is a Kellogg Executive Management Program graduate and holds adjunct faculty positions at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and Purdue Global University. Sharon also contributes as a Carelinx Clinical Advisory Board member.

Sharon is a classic example of reinventing oneself. A world leader in infusion therapy and author of Plumer's Principles and Practice of Infusion Therapy, she has taught thousands to practice safely. She offers consultation in legal medication safety cases and is an adjunct clinical assistant professor at UIC, Chicago, and Purdue Global University. She is a content expert on stress, nurse and alarm fatigue. She is a member of the Academy of Nursing's Expert Panel on Global Health and the ANA Nurse Fatigue Committee.

As the healthcare field transitioned into the integrative arena, Sharon was one step ahead, focusing her energies on overall well-being. As the founder of the Global Education Development Institute (www.gedinfp.com), she has earned her spot as the go-to professional for education, resources, and training. Her dedication to education is further exemplified by her founding the International Nursing Leadership Institute (INLI) within the Eastern European communities. The INLI has graduated 156 professionals who received more than 12,000 hours of education through the Institute. Many were promoted to leadership positions within the Ministry of Health and healthcare programs, a testament to the program's effectiveness. As a result of this program, she co-founded the first chapter of Sigma in Eastern Europe, based at Erebouni College of Nursing. The development of a cadre of nurse leaders for these emerging countries was a highlight of her professional career. She is the recipient of multiple awards, including:

• John J. Daly Award for Outstanding Service, National Speakers Association, DC
• Chair’s Award for Distinguished Service, National Speakers Association
• Bayer Award, Outstanding Advisor, and Devoted Advocate for Bayer Pharma Global
• Fellow, The American Academy of Nursing
• Fellow, American College of Wellness
• Outstanding Performance Award, Infusion Nurses Society
• Frist Humanitarian Award, Hospital Corporation of America