Debra L.
Wiegand
December 2018
Debra L.
Wiegand
,
PhD, RN, CCRN, CHPN, FAHA, FPCN, FAAN
University of Maryland School of Nursing
Rockville
,
MD
United States

 

 

 

Debra L. Wiegand, PhD, RN, CCRN, CHPN, FAHA, FPCN, FAAN, former associate professor, passed away peacefully on Nov. 13. With a clinical background in cardiac critical care nursing, Wiegand taught palliative care, end-of-life, and bioethics courses. Her research focused on improving care provided to families of patients with acute and chronic life-limiting illnesses, studying family-focused interventions to facilitate the physical and psychosocial adaptation of families both during the dying process and after their loved one's death. Having led or participated in nearly 20 projects, Wiegand generated research that also illuminated intensive care unit nurses' experiences of providing care to individuals near death and their families and the toll such care takes on nurses. In addition to her positions in academia and clinical practice, she contributed to the field through her leadership in national and international organizations related to family nursing, hospice and palliative care, critical care, and heart disease.  At the Baltimore Graduation ceremony on Dec. 17, UMSON presented its first DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Faculty posthumously to Wiegand. The award honors those who inspire their students to remember that nursing is much more than tasks and technology. These faculty help ensure that the art as well as the science of nursing are brought to every patient experience.