Establishing Global Partnerships - University of Pennsylvania ...

Invitational Conference on Directions
in Care of the Chronic Mentally Ill,
National Institute of Mental Health
(NIMH)(1983); chair of the Mental
Health Behavioral Sciences Research
Review Committee, NIMH (1990); and
a member of the Search Committee for
the Director of NIMH (1990-91).
Author of more than 40 papers,
member of several editorial boards, and
participant in more than 20 funded
research and training projects, Dr.
Lowery was also the associate editor of
Nursing Research (1978-83), on the
editorial review board of Archives of
Psychiatric Nursing (1985-present), an
editorial consultant to Advances in
Nursing Science (1985-present), and on
the editorial review board of Nursing
Research (1978-present).
“The School of Nursing mourns
the loss of Barbara Lowery, who was
known for her role in advancing psychiatric
nursing science but was better
known by her nursing colleagues as a
voice of reason, great integrity, and
compassion as an innovative thinker and
problem-solver. Known as a committed
mentor for researchers, teachers, and clinicians,
both inside and outside the
University, we will miss her scholarship
and her warm wisdom for a long time
to come. However, she left with us a
legacy that will always remain. She will
never be forgotten,” said Dr. Meleis.
Margaret D. Sovie, PhD, FAAN, CRNP, RN
Margaret D. Sovie, PhD, FAAN,
CRNP, RN, the Jane Delano Professor
of Administration at the School of
Nursing, died August 16 of pulmonary
fibrosis.
Dr. Sovie was a nationally known
authority in the field of nursing administration.
She graduated from the St.
Lawrence State Hospital School of
Nursing in 1964 and served as a nursing
supervisor at the Good Shepherd
Hospital, then as education director for
nursing services at Upstate Medical
Center, both in Syracuse.After serving
as Director of Nursing at the University
of Rochester, Dr. Sovie became Chief
Nursing Officer at the Hospital of the
University of Pennsylvania in 1988, a
position she held until 1996. From
1996 until her death, she was the Jane
Delano Professor of Nursing
Administration as well as a nurse practitioner
at Penn’s Health Annex at the
Francis J. Myers Recreation Center, a
health care facility located in an underserved
section of Philadelphia.
At her memorial service, Dr. Linda
Aiken recounted Dr. Sovie’s most
recent research, published shortly
before her death, noting that Dr. Sovie
“developed the idea of the magnet
hospital, which was the most important
idea in the field of nursing in 20 years.”
Other colleagues, notably Lois K.
Evans, DNSc, FAAN, RN,Viola
MacInnes/Independence Professor in
Nursing credited Dr. Sovie for being
“crisp and courageous in sharing her
ideas” and having the courage to return
to school, sitting among her own students
in the classroom, as she acquired
a master’s degree in order to dispense
state-of-the-art nursing care.
“Dr. Sovie was a fearless researcher.
She meticulously gathered and analyzed
data to advance the science, providing
information to help nurses and hospitals
do a better job caring for patients.
Never straying far from the care of the
patient, Dr. Sovie provided direct
patient care herself while maintaining a
research agenda,” said Dean Meleis.
At the time of her death, as part of
a $1.6 million NIH-funded grant, Dr.
Sovie had recently published in the
Journal of Nursing Administration her
findings on the impact of hospital
restructuring, including nurse staffing
on outcomes of care. Dr. Sovie’s final
study analyzed data from 29 university
teaching hospitals across the United
States. It described the restructuring
and re-engineering activities that have
taken place in these hospitals and their
impact on patients, including their satisfaction
with pain management, fall
rates, and other factors.
Dr. Sovie was a member of the
American Academy of Nursing and
was elected to the Institute of
Medicine, serving on several editorial
boards, and contributing many articles
on nursing and hospital management
to national health care journals.
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