Taking Action

Susan B. Hassmiller, PhD, RN, FAAN, is Senior Advisor for Nursing Emerita at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). She is the founder and Principal of Sulu Coaching and Consulting (www.sulucoaching.com), with a practice focused on healthcare leaders, and a Hudson/ICF-certified Executive/Leadership Coach. Hassmiller is a national leader in nursing, health equity, and leadership development. She has devoted her career to strengthening the nursing profession, improving population health, and advancing health equity. During her 25 years at RWJF, she served as the Senior Advisor for Nursing and the Senior Scholar-in-Residence/Senior Advisor to the President at the National Academy of Medicine (NAM). She helped to lead the landmark reports at NAM on the future of nursing-The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health (2010) and The Future of Nursing, 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity (2021). She also established and served as the Director of The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, a nationwide initiative led by AARP, the AARP Foundation, and RWJF, to transform health and healthcare through nursing to build a healthier America.Hassmiller has held leadership positions in some of the nation's most prominent healthcare organizations. She served on the Board of Governors of the American Red Cross, is an elected member of NAM, and is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, where she holds Living Legend status. She sits on other advisory committees and boards, including Hackensack Meridian Health System, UnitedHealth Group, Carrier Clinic, the Nurses on Boards Coalition, and the University of North Carolina School of Nursing. She has received many awards and four honorary doctorates, including the Florence Nightingale Medal, the highest international honor given to a nurse by the International Committee of the Red Cross. She lives in Cary, North Carolina, with her husband and close to her extraordinary grandchildren.