Associate Dean Kim Glassman named first endowed director of health promotion

Kim Glassman, PhD, RN, FAAN has been contributing her expertise to NYU Langone Health for four decades. Now she has been honored with an endowed directorship that acknowledges her leadership in health promotion—the first of its kind in the country.

Glassman was recently named Lerner Director for Health Promotion at NYU Langone. The newly endowed position, which was established by Helaine and Sidney Lerner in the Departments of Nursing and Patient Care Services, recognizes Glassman’s innovations in helping NYU Langone attain some of the top patient outcomes and satisfaction ratings nationwide. In this new role, Glassman will provide vision and leadership for the integration of health and wellness practices, with a focus on a holistic approach to care for both patients and our own staff.

Sid and Helaine Lerner are long-time public health advocates dedicated to reducing the incidence of preventable diseases and improving health in the US and around the world.

“Healing is different from curing, and can happen for patients at any stage of care, as well as for their families,” said Glassman. “By offering health promotion and integrative health, NYU Langone becomes a more effective and holistic institution for patients, families, and staff.”

Her new directorship makes her one of just four chief nursing officers nationwide to receive an endowed title. It comes in addition to Glassman’s current roles as senior vice president for Patient Care Services and chief nursing officer at NYU Langone Health, and associate dean for Partnership Innovation at NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing.

As part of the new role, Glassman will lead efforts to develop population-level interventions that can be applied before, during, and after treatment, that promote healing and motivate life-long healthy habits. There will also be a focus on promoting health among staff, particularly nurses and other frontline patient care staff.

The role also strengthens the partnership between NYU Langone and the Rory Meyers College of Nursing by supporting nurse education and training, including classes in holistic nursing practice for both self- and patient care.

“The American Association of Colleges of Nursing has called for better integration between academic nursing and health systems in their work together providing healthcare delivery, education, and research. Kim’s endowed directorship helps to solidify this integration between NYU Langone and NYU Meyers,” said Eileen Sullivan-Marx, PhD, RN, FAAN, dean of NYU Meyers. “From nursing education to healthcare delivery, our focus should be on health promotion, which reflects where nursing is going in holistically caring for patients.”

Lerner health initiatives include the Monday Campaigns, which directly engages the public using best practices of marketing to create sustainable behavior, as well as academic Centers for Public Health Promotion at Johns Hopkins, Syracuse and Columbia Universities.   The Lerner’s endowment for the Director of Health Promotion builds on their early support of Integrative Health programs at NYU Langone, which started in 1996 and grew to include a comprehensive range of services under Dr. Glassman’s leadership.