Vernice Ferguson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Vernice D. Ferguson
|
|
|---|---|
Vernice Ferguson, 1980
|
|
| Born | June 13, 1928 |
| Died | December 8, 2012 (aged 84) |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Nurse, executive with United States Department of Veterans Affairs |
Vernice Doris Ferguson (June 13, 1928 – December 8, 2012) was an important American nurse. She was also a leader in healthcare. She led the nursing department at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center for many years. Later, she worked as a top nurse executive for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs for twelve years.
Vernice Ferguson also taught at several universities in the United States. She was called a "Living Legend" by the American Academy of Nursing. She was also the second American to become an honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Nursing in the United Kingdom. She received many special degrees called honorary doctorates.
Contents
About Vernice Ferguson
Her Early Life and Career
Vernice Ferguson was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina on June 13, 1928. She grew up in Baltimore, Maryland. Her father was a minister, and her mother was a teacher.
When she was in high school, Vernice volunteered at a hospital. Before becoming a nurse, she taught science to junior high students in Baltimore. She earned her first nursing degree from New York University. Then, she got a master's degree from Columbia University Teachers College. She started her nursing career at Montefiore Hospital. There, she worked in a special research unit.
Leading Nursing Programs
From 1967 to 1970, Vernice Ferguson led the nursing service at the VA hospital in Madison, Wisconsin. Between 1972 and 1980, she was the head of the nursing department at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center.
In 1980, she became the chief nursing officer for the Veterans Administration. At that time, this organization had about 60,000 nurses across the country. She retired in 1992. During her time with the VA, Ferguson helped create the Health Professions Scholarship Program. This program helps students study healthcare.
Vernice Ferguson also taught at several universities. These included the University of Wisconsin at Madison, the University of Illinois, Georgetown University, the University of Maryland, and the University of Pennsylvania.
She was also the president of the American Academy of Nursing from 1981 to 1983. Later, she was president of Sigma Theta Tau from 1985 to 1987.
Awards and Special Honors
In 1970, Vernice Ferguson won the Mary Mahoney Award. This award comes from the American Nurses Association. It honors people who help bring racial equality to nursing.
In 1998, she was named a "Living Legend" by the American Academy of Nursing. In 2010, she received a special award from New York University's College of Nursing. Vernice Ferguson was also the first nurse to get the FREDDIE Lifetime Achievement Award. This award celebrates great work in medical media. She was the second American to become an honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Nursing in the United Kingdom.
Her Later Life and Impact
In 1992, Vernice Ferguson retired from the VA. She then became a senior fellow with the nursing program at the University of Pennsylvania. She passed away on December 8, 2012, in Washington, D.C., at 84 years old.
To honor her, the Nurses Organization of Veterans Affairs gives out a memorial scholarship. This scholarship helps new nurses follow in her footsteps.
See also
- List of Living Legends of the American Academy of Nursing
