VA, University of Michigan Researcher Receives APIC’s Distinguished Scientist Award

Sarah Krein, PhD, RN, research career scientist at the Veterans Affairs (VA) Ann Arbor Center for Clinical Management Research, and professor at the University of Michigan, will be honored with the 2019 Distinguished Scientist Award from the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).  

The award will be presented at APIC’s 46th Annual Conference, June 12-14 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The honor recognizes those who have made outstanding contributions to the science of infection prevention and control. Recipients are selected by the APIC Research Committee.  

 “We are honored to present Dr. Krein with this award,” said 2019 APIC president Karen Hoffmann, RN, MS, CIC, FSHEA, FAPIC. “Her research to better understand and improve patient safety through the prevention of infection has had a dramatic impact on patients’ lives, and informs the practice and the field of infection prevention on a broad scale.”

Krein is a research career scientist at the VA Ann Arbor Center for Clinical Management Research, as well as a research professor of internal medicine, and the Rensis Likert Collegiate Research Professor at the University of Michigan. She also has an adjunct appointment in the School of Nursing at the University of Michigan. In addition, she is the co-director of the VA Ann Arbor Clinical Research Mentorship Program, and serves as co-director of a VA Patient Safety Center of Inquiry.

Using her extensive clinical and research background, Krein focuses on organizational behavior and implementation research to enhance patient safety through the prevention of healthcare-associated complications. Over the past 21 years, Krein’s research has focused on team-based science and the implementation of research techniques to improve healthcare safety, quality, and effectiveness. She has published more than 180 papers based on her research.

 She has been widely recognized for her work, most recently as a co-recipient of the 2017 Health System Impact Award from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Health Services Research & Development Service for her effort to improve veterans’ care by reducing the risks of unnecessary and harmful urinary catheters, significantly changing the practice across the VA. Krein has been an active member of APIC since 2005 and a reviewer for the American Journal of Infection Control (AJIC), APIC’s peer reviewed journal, since 2008.

APIC 2019 Annual Conference, June 12-14 in Philadelphia, is one of the most comprehensive infection prevention conferences in the world, with more than 100 educational sessions and programs led by experts from across the globe and attended by nearly 5,000 professionals. The conference aims to provide infection preventionists, physicians, researchers, epidemiologists, educators, administrators, and medical technologists with strategies that can be implemented immediately to improve prevention programs and make healthcare safer. Join the conversation on social media with the hashtag #APIC2019.

Source: APIC