Tuesday, January 19, 2016
Nurse and Leading Association Executive, Dr. Debra Bingham, Named Chairwoman of The Council on Patient Safety in Women’s Health Care
Washington, DC – January 19, 2016 – The Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) today announced that Debra Bingham, DrPH, RN, FAAN, has been elected the 2016 Chair of the Council on Patient Safety in Women’s Health Care. In her new role, Dr. Bingham will support The Council’s mission to improve the health care of women.
A nurse with more than 30 years experience in maternal child health, Dr. Bingham is a highly-skilled leader, researcher, and expert in quality improvement initiatives. She currently serves as the Vice President of Nursing Research, Education, and Practice for AWHONN. Previously, Dr. Bingham held hospital leadership positions. In New York, she served as Director of Maternal Child Health Nursing for two union hospitals, and manager of a large referral Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and birthing center in a community hospital.
“Caring for women and advocating for quality maternity care practices has been the foundation of my professional career,” said Dr. Bingham. “It is a privilege to lead The Council and represent its 17 national organizations united to provide quality health care for every woman through multidisciplinary collaboration.”
Formed in late 2011, the Council on Patient Safety in Women’s Health Care is a national partnership of health organizations with the central goal of improving health care for all women. One of The Council’s major programs is The Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM) Project. The goal of the AIM Project is to prevent 1,000 maternal deaths and 100,000 cases of severe maternal morbidity nationally by 2018. The Council will develop and implement a series of maternal care safety resource bundles in multiples states and hospitals across the country, especially those with high maternal mortality rates.
Throughout her career, Dr. Bingham has led numerous initiatives to improve women’s health. She has also authored articles in peer-reviewed journals and implementation toolkits. Dr. Bingham was the first Executive Director of the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative where she helped form the California Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review (CA-PAMR) committee, and served on the CA-PAMR committee, co-authored the Obstetric Hemorrhage and Elimination of Elective Deliveries Prior to 39 Weeks Toolkits, , and launched the first CA-Obstetric Hemorrhage Multi-Hospital Collaborative. Dr. Bingham was also the former Chair of Lamaze International’s Institute for Safe and Healthy Births.
Previously the Vice Chair of The Council, Dr. Bingham officially became Chair on January 1, 2016. She is the first nurse to serve in the Vice Chair and Chair roles. Dr. Bingham earned a master’s degree in perinatal nursing from Columbia University and a doctorate in Public Health from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
For media interviews, contact:
Kelly Mack for AWHONN
202-296-2002
kmack@awhonn.org
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About AWHONN
Since 1969, the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) has been the foremost authority promoting the health of women and newborns and strengthening the nursing profession through the delivery of superior advocacy, research, education, and other professional and clinical resources. AWHONN represents the interests of 350,000 registered nurses working in women’s health, obstetric, and neonatal nursing across the United States. Learn more about AWHONN at www.awhonn.org.
