We're not jut promoting it, we're honoring it.
The 2020 IDEA Award
Presented by AAMN
Diversity. Inclusion.
The American Association for Men in Nursing presented its 2020 IDEA Award to
Dr. Mary Beth Kingston, PhD, RN, NEA-BC.
The IDEA Award — the Inclusion and Diversity Excellence Award — honors individuals or organizations that create and promote diversity, inclusion and a welcoming environment for all nurses.
Dr. Kingston has been a nursing service administrator for over 30 years. Her current role is Chief Nursing Officer for Advocate Aurora Health in Milwaukee, the 10th largest not-for-profit integrated health system in the United States and a leading employer, incorporating 28 hospitals, nine Magnet-designated sites, and more than 70,000 employees, including 22,000 nurses. The system serves nearly three million patients annually in Illinois and Wisconsin across 500 sites of care. In this role, she is responsible for nursing’s strategic direction, practice, standards, professional development, and patient experience.
As Chief Nursing Officer, Dr. Kingston spearheaded integration of nursing staff through the merger of two healthcare systems, which included standardization of professional nursing practice, establishment of a formal systemwide diversity committee to strengthen the voice of diverse nurses, and collaboration with human resources to implement an intentional leadership program to increase the number of diverse nurses in leadership roles. Dr. Kingston created a formal diversity committee to strengthen the voice of diverse nurses by enhancing and supporting a systemwide cultural community of practice.
Dr. Kingston has spent a large part of her career in nursing administration, where she has been a pioneer in transforming the workplace into a culture that does not tolerate discriminatory or exclusionary experiences. These efforts have led to positive outcomes in creating a welcoming climate and spotlight how she views diversity. To illustrate, she sees diversity as more than a compliance issue, not as a problem, but as an opportunity to learn and grow by promoting inclusivity. Dr. Kingston provides leadership that focuses on incorporating culture and diversity efforts into patient care practices and services. Her immediate past presidency with the American Organization for Nursing Leadership and her recent nomination as a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing affirm her contributions to the nursing profession, both locally and globally.