Event speakers and members of the Clinically Based Nurse Scientist Summit Planning Committee (from left to right): Reynaldo Rivera, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, FAONL, Director, Nursing Research and Innovation, NewYork-Presbyterian; Deborah Stamps, EdD, MBA, MS, RN, GNP, NE-BC, CDE, FADLN, FAAN, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Deborah Stamps Consulting, LLC; Allison Andreno Norful, PhD, MPhil, MSN, BSN, ANP-BC, FAAN, Assistant Professor, Columbia University School of Nursing; Bernice Coleman, PhD, ACNP-BC, FAHA, FAAN, Director, Nursing Research, Cedars Sinai; Rose Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, Emeritus Professor, Florida Atlantic University College of Nursing; Esther Chipps, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAONL, Clinical Nurse Scientist, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center; Perry Gee, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, Director of Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice, Intermountain Healthcare; Kimberly Souffront, PhD, RN, FNP-BC, FAAN, Associate Director, Center for Nursing Research and Innovation; and Bevin Cohen, PhD, MPH, MS, RN, FAAN, Director, Center for Nursing Research and Innovation.
The landscape of research conducted by nurses is evolving, and Mount Sinai’s Center for Nursing Research and Innovation (CNRI) is leading the charge. In June 2025, the Health System hosted the nation’s first conference on the role of the clinically based nurse scientist—a growing workforce of researchers who investigate nursing practice questions with direct impact on health care systems and patient care.
Clinically based nurse scientists are nurses with PhDs and advanced research training who work inside health care delivery settings. Their roles span designing and leading large-scale clinical trials and health services research, securing funding for research and training from organizations such as the National Institutes of Health, and partnering with the clinical nursing workforce to translate research into practice and investigate timely research questions that arise from patient care.
“Schools of nursing have long been the center of robust programs of research,” says Bevin Cohen, PhD, MPH, MS, RN, FAAN, Director of the CNRI. “But today, more health systems are exploring the benefits of having nurse scientists on staff to better connect research with practice.”
There is also growing interest in clinically based roles among nurse scientists themselves, many of whom wish to remain close to patients and conduct research with immediate impact.
Mount Sinai Health System has been at the forefront of this important movement, as evidenced by the CNRI itself.
The Center is a hub at the intersection of academia and clinical practice that supports and advances nursing research throughout the Health System. Through a comprehensive offering of programs and resources, the Center serves two primary communities: nurse scientists with advanced training who lead their own panels of research, and clinical nurses who are embarking on research, quality improvement, and evidence-based practice projects.
“The clinical setting is not a space where many nurse scientists have traditionally worked,” Dr. Cohen says. “We have an unprecedented opportunity to conduct research that improves clinical nursing practice at scale, but we also need to build the infrastructure and collaborative networks to facilitate this important work.”
Across the United States, many clinically based nurse scientists have sought collaboration with colleagues in similar roles to share strategies, successes, and challenges on developing research programs within their own hospital systems.
“Until recently, we have had little opportunity to formally connect and collaborate across institutions,” says Dr. Cohen. “Over the past few years, local research interest groups have formed, along with a wonderful virtual collaborative network. Simultaneously, we began dreaming of a national summit where we could all meet in person.”
With input from fellow nurse scientists at Mount Sinai and an expert committee with representatives from across the country, Dr. Cohen wrote a grant proposal to do just that.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) awarded funding to support the three-day Clinically Based Nurse Scientist Summit hosted by Mount Sinai in June 2025, which was attended by more than 100 nurse scientists and leaders from around the country. The event brought together expert presenters and panelists, featured discussions and breakout sessions, and created opportunities for networking and collaborative forums.
“From the outset, our goal was to accelerate the scale, scope, speed, and rigor of research conducted by clinically based nurse scientists,” says Dr. Cohen. “To do this, we needed to understand both the challenges and successes of the role and focus on ways to maximize its potential.”
A major outcome of the summit will be the development of a five-year strategic framework for how the role can contribute to the AHRQ mission of enhancing the quality, safety, accessibility, affordability, and equity of health care in the United States.
Another significant outcome to emerge from the summit is an energized and engaged national community of clinically based nurse scientists who are sharing resources in partnership with similarly aligned groups.
In addition, eleven active workgroups formed by summit participants are conducting research and developing foundational manuscripts about the role of clinically based nurse scientists.
“By coming together as a nationwide community, clinically based nurse scientists are growing networks and infrastructure to support faster, larger, and more impactful research to advance nursing practice and improve patient outcomes,” says Dr. Cohen. Mount Sinai is proud to play a lead role in shaping this important work.
