The Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI), is pleased to announce that Mary D. Naylor, RN, PhD, FAAN will receive The Baxter International Foundation's 2009 Episteme Award for clinical trials and refinement of the Transitional Care Model, an innovative approach to addressing the needs of high-risk chronically ill elders and their family caregivers.

Dr. Naylor will be presented with a $15,000 award on November 3, 2009 during the STTI biennial convention in Indianapolis.

Dr. Naylor is the Marian S. Ware Professor in Gerontology and Director of the New Courtland Center for Transitions and Health at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. To date, Dr. Naylor and her research team have completed three National Institute of Nursing-funded clinical trials to refine the Transitional Care Model.

With the support of several foundations, her research team has recently partnered with a major insurance organization and healthcare plan to translate this model into the "real world" of clinical practice and promote its widespread adoption. Additionally, Dr. Naylor and colleagues are engaged in a study funded by the National Institute on Aging and the National Institute for Nursing Research that will examine the natural history of changes in health and quality of life among elders newly admitted to long-term care settings or services. Dr. Naylor also is the National Program Director for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-sponsored Interdisciplinary Nursing Quality Research Initiative (INQRI).

"Expertise in geriatric care is often under-appreciated despite its importance to the world community," said Carol J. Huston, STTI president. "Sigma Theta Tau is proud to honor Dr. Naylor's achievement and hopes this recognition brings attention to geriatric care."

About the Episteme Award
The Baxter International Foundation’s Episteme Award is bestowed to a nurse who has contributed significantly to nursing knowledge development, application or discovery that results in recognizable and sizable benefit to the public.

The Episteme Award and the other STTI International Awards will be presented during the 40th Annual Biennial Convention October 31 - November 4, 2009 in Indianapolis. Visit www.nursingsociety.org for event information.

About the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International
STTI is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to support the learning, knowledge, and professional development of nurses committed to making a difference in health worldwide. Founded in 1922, the honor society has inducted more than 400,000 members in 86 countries. Members include practicing nurses, instructors, researchers, policymakers, entrepreneurs and others. The honor society's 469 chapters are located at 586 institutions of higher education throughout Australia, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Ghana, Hong Kong, Japan, Kenya, Malawi, Mexico, The Netherlands, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Swaziland, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, the United States and Wales. More information about the honor society can be found online at www.nursingsociety.org.

About The Baxter International Foundation
The Baxter International Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Baxter International Inc., helps organizations expand access to healthcare in the United States and around the world. The foundation, established in 1981, began to focus exclusively on increasing access to healthcare in 2002 - particularly for the disadvantaged and underserved - in communities where Baxter employees live and work. Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX), through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures and markets products that save and sustain the lives of people with hemophilia, immune disorders, infectious diseases, kidney disease, trauma, and other chronic and acute medical conditions. As a global, diversified healthcare company, Baxter applies a unique combination of expertise in medical devices, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology to create products that advance patient care worldwide. For more information, please visit www.baxter.com.

Baxter International Inc.

Baxter International Inc.

At Baxter, sustainability means creating lasting social, environmental and economic value by addressing the needs of the company’s wide-ranging stakeholder base. The company's sustainability efforts support Baxter's mission to apply innovative science in the development of products and therapies that save and sustain patients' lives.

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