Press releases

Released May 4, 1998
Yale-New Haven Hospital news release

Jo Ann Ahern Named 1998 Nurse of the Year

For more information, call 203-688-2488 or E-mail Ken Best

Jo Ann Ahern, APRN, of Orange, Conn., program director of the Yale Program for Children with Diabetes and a diabetes clinical nurse specialist at Yale-New Haven Hospital, has been named 1998 Nurse of the Year by Nursing Spectrum magazine as part of its National Nurses' Week edition.

Ahern was first chosen as the New England Nurse of the Year by the advisory board of Nursing Spectrum, a magazine led by registered nurses which circulates to nearly 500,000 nurses throughout the United States. The advisory board includes top nursing leaders from major nursing organizations across the nation.

As part of her recognition as Nurse of the Year, Ahern flew to Hollywood for a guest cameo appearance on the hit television series "ER." The show will air May 7. That same day, she will be in New York City to introduce Rosie O'Donnell during O'Donnell's highly rated afternoon talk show.

Ahern has become known as the preeminent advocate and activist for children with diabetes, which affects 15.7 million people in the United States. For Ahern, helping a family to cope with diabetes is the real reward of her job.

"I am part of their lives and they are surely an important part of mine," she said. "I've watched children grow into men and women, go to college, get married and have children. It is important that the child with diabetes be treated the same as any other child."

During the filming of "ER," Ahern's expertise was tapped in a scene which featured a patient with diabetes who had an infected facelift. She appeared in scenes with "ER" cast members Noah Wylie, George Clooney and Anthony Edwards, and also spoke with "ER" nurses Juliana Margulies and Ellen Crawford

Ahern has been involved with treating diabetic children almost from the time she arrived at Yale-New Haven. She is directly involved in treating the 450 children who are part of the Yale Program for Children with Diabetes. She established the annual Diabetes Day for staff nurses in pediatrics, which serves as a comprehensive education session for nurses. She was one of the first nurses in the country to become a Certified Diabetes Educator in 1985. She is a former national board member of the American Association of Diabetes Educators and also served as vice chair for the Council on Education for the American Diabetes Association

Ahern has been involved in diabetes research for many years. She has published 30 articles and made over 100 presentations to nursing and other health groups around the United States. She was the principal investigator for the research study examining the effect of pizza (a favorite kid's food) on glucose levels, as well as the research study on 24-hour blood pressure monitoring in children with and without diabetes.

See also:
Article about Jo Ann Ahern on Nursing Spectrum's web site

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