Rush College of Nursing Professor Named Educator of the Year

Lynn Mohr, PhD, APRN, PCNS-BC, CPN, FCNS, associate professor, program director for the pediatric and neonatal clinical nurse specialist program and chair of the Department of Women, Children and Family Nursing at Rush University College of Nursing, has been named the 2022 Clinical Nurse Specialist Educator of the Year by the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists (NACNS). The award recognizes nurses for their professional achievements and contributions to advancing the role of clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) across the country. Mohr also received the 2022 Susan B. Davidson Service Award for her extraordinary service to the NACNS.

Before coming to Rush, Mohr was a pediatric CNS at a children’s hospital where she educated and supported pediatric nurses. She began her career as a staff nurse in a pediatric intensive care unit before returning to pursue further education. In her clinical work, she has developed important pediatric care education initiatives and has led system-wide efforts to improve the health and safety of pediatric patients. Mohr joined the Rush College of Nursing in 2010, where she has been instrumental in Rush’s education of pediatric and neonatal CNS students. This year, Mohr was named chair of the Department of Women, Children and Family Nursing.

“Dr. Mohr is not only an exemplar nurse, but a passionate, dedicated educator who has profoundly impacted the next generation of pediatric and neonatal CNSs,” says Christine Kennedy, PhD, RN, FAAN, John L. and Helen Kellogg Dean, College of Nursing. “She has had a long and distinguished career in pediatric nursing and has served in several leadership positions in nursing during her career. Our nursing students benefit from her expertise and deep knowledge. This award is an honor she truly deserves.”

In addition to her clinical work, Mohr is an accomplished researcher who focuses on pediatric and neonatal wound, ostomy and continence issues. Among her notable contributions, she has developed a theoretical framework to identify how adolescents process the experience of having an ostomy. Mohr is also active as a leader in her discipline. She is the past president of the Society of Pediatric Nurses and has served as the co-chair of the first American Nursing Association Pediatric Nursing Scope and Standards of Practice (2008) writing group and has presented her findings at numerous conferences and forums such as the NACNS Educator Forum & Summit, the Society of Pediatric Nurses (SPN), SPN Pediatric CNS Special Interest Group and the Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nurses Society.

“These award winners represent everything CNSs stand for: professionalism, community and excellence,” said Phyllis Whitehead, PhD, APRN/CNS, ACHPN, PMGT-BC, FNAP, FAAN and NACNS president. “In 2022, we are looking forward to honoring these and more CNSs who have shown exceptional dedication to the profession.”

“I am so proud to be among the NACNS winners this year,” Mohr says. “Being an educator and helping nurses advance health care is incredibly rewarding. I am so honored to be in a position to make an impact on the next generation of nurses.”

Learn more about the neonatal clinical nurse specialist and pediatric clinical nurse specialist programs at Rush College of Nursing.