ACNAP Distinguished Service Award

Selection process and rules

Who is eligible?

The ACNAP Distinguished Service Award is open to nurses and allied professionals with an active ACNAP Silver Membership and with a proven and long-term commitment to ACNAP activities. 

Process

Every year, all ACNAP Board members are invited to nominate one candidate for the award. The ACNAP Committee Chairpersons may also put forward one additional name which is proposed after consultation with and on behalf of the committee members.

Each proposal should include information on the nominee's accomplishments and contributions to ACNAP.

The nomination process is confidential to ensure the privacy and integrity of the selection process.

The winner is required to attend ACNAP Congress of the same year to receive his / her honorary plaque.

Selection Committee

A selection committee is responsible for reviewing nominations and determining the recipient of the award. The Selection Committee is composed of the ACNAP Executive Board.

The selection committee evaluates nominees based on specific criteria:

• Significant contributions to ACNAP and the ACNAP community.
• Leadership and innovation in their work.
• Positive impact or influence on others.
• Sustained commitment to the field of cardiovascular health.
• Ethical conduct.

Timeline

The nomination process begins approximately three months before the annual ACNAP Congress. The winner is informed one month before the congress and asked to confirm his/her attendance at the congress to receive the honorary plaque.

ACNAP Distinguished Service Award Winners 

2024: Prof. Donna Fitzsimons, United Kingdom

Professor Donna Fitzsimons is currently Head of the School of Nursing & Midwifery and a Member of the Senate at Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland (UK).

Donna was Chair of the ESC Council on Cardiovascular Nursing & Allied Professionals (2011-2013). She was instrumental in positioning the Council's transition to become an ESC Association in 2018. She has represented ACNAP / CCNAP in numerous publications and initiatives including the establishment of the ESC Patient Forum, The Clinical Practice Guideline Committee, the ESC Taskforce on prevention of sudden cardiac deaths, and the Be Guideline Smart initiative. Most recently she has co-chaired the ESC Advocacy Committee which seeks to drive forward a European Cardiovascular Health Plan in the next mandate of the European Parliament. 

She has been instrumental in enhancing nurses' roles in guideline implementation. Her research interests in cardiology include prevention, patient engagement and palliative and supportive care in heart failure. Donna has recently been awarded an Order of the British Empire (OBE) in recognition for her services to healthcare and education.

2023: Prof. Tiny Jaarsma, Sweden

Congratulations to Prof. Tiny Jaarsma who won this first year's award in recognition of outstanding commitment and contribution to the ESC Association of Cardiovascular Nursing & Allied Professions (ACNAP).

Tiny Jaarsma is a professor in nursing science. Her research focuses on the consequences of chronic heart disease for patients and their families and developing and testing interventions to enhance their self-care. Professor Jaarsma’s dedication to ACNAP, previously CCNAP and the Working Group on Cardiovascular Nursing (WGCN), extends over two decades. She was the Chair of the WGCN in 2000 and the founding Editor-in Chief of the European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing (EJCN) for 20 years. She was member and subsequently Chair of the CCNAP Science Committee and UNITE study group for several years. She has represented ACNAP / CCNAP in the development of over numerous scientific publications, including ESC Guidelines and the ESC Textbook of Cardiovascular Nursing. She recently co-authored the ACNAP Core Curriculum for Cardiovascular Nurses and Allied Professionals. Professor Jaarsma is part of the ACNAP mentorship programme and she was also the local host of EuroHeartCare Congress (the former name of ACNAP Congress) in Amsterdam in 2000 and in Jonkoping in 2017. She gave the first ESC Florence Nightingale lecture in nurse-led research in 2020.