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The American Academy of Nursing (AAN) announced its 2020 Class of Fellows Aug. 6 and UCalgary Nursing faculty members are two of only four Canadian inductees into this prestigious global network of nursing leaders.

Dr. Sandra Davidson, dean, UCalgary Nursing (above, left) and Dr. Nicole Letourneau, PhD, ACHF Chair in Parent-Infant Mental Health (above, right), will join the 230 new Fellows from 14 countries who will be inducted in October.

To be chosen as a Fellow is considered a significant milestone in a nursing career, and Davidson and Letourneau are two of just 39 Canadian nurses in the 2700-member academy. The process is competitive and rigorous, and hundreds of applications are received each year by a committee of elected Fellows. Those selected are experts in policy, research, administration, practice and academia that champion health and wellness, locally and globally. 

Davidson has been dean of UCalgary Nursing since 2018, joining the university from an academic career in both the United States and Canada. Letourneau, who is also a member of the Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute and part of the Cumming School of Medicine's departments of paedriatrics and psychiatry, is director of RESOLVE (Research and Education for Solutions to Violence).

As AAN Fellows, Davidson and Letourneau will be expected to contribute to efforts of the academy to enhance the quality of health and nursing care, promote healthy aging, reduce health disparities, integrate mental and physical health and strengthen the nursing and health delivery system internationally.