In recognition of her significant contributions to nurse anesthesia education, Wynne R. Waugaman, Ph.D., assistant dean of research and director of the Nurse Social Work Practitioner Program at the USC School of Social Work, will receive the 2004 Sophie Winton Award for Distinguished Service on Oct. 9 at the California Association of Nurse Anesthetists (CANA) fall conference in Berkeley, Calif.

"We're so pleased Wynne is being recognized for her commitment to the advancement of educational standards that will result in better patient care," said Marilyn Flynn, dean of the School of Social Work. "Her tireless efforts have branded her a role model among students and colleagues. She's already earning accolades in her newest endeavor as director of the nurse social work practitioner program that bridges social service and health care."

Established in 1990 to honor a certified registered nurse anesthetist who has advanced the practice and profession of nurse anesthetists, the award honors Sophie Winton who assisted in organizing the first meeting of California anesthetists in 1931. Winton devoted her career to the support and establishment of a legal place for nurse anesthetists in the practice of anesthesia in California.

As the founding director of the nurse anesthesia program at USC and director of the nurse anesthesia programs at UCLA and Ohio State University, Dr. Waugaman is an internationally recognized leader in nurse anesthesia education. She is widely published and serves as the senior editor and contributing author of the Principles and Practice of Nurse Anesthesia.

In 1997, Dr. Waugaman received the Helen Lamb Outstanding Educator Award, the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists' highest honor, for her contribution to the advancement of nurse anesthesia education. She is also the recipient of the 1999 American Association of Nurse Anesthetists Foundation Research Scholar Award. Additionally, she received USC's Bullough Award for Outstanding Contribution in Research and Teaching from the Department of Nursing in 2004.

Currently, Dr. Waugaman is a Provost's fellow, Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, and vice chair for the Institutional Review Board for Social and Behavioral Sciences at USC.