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May 5, 2015
NGNA – Student Leadership Award
3493 Lansdowne Drive, Suite 2
Lexington, KY 40517
Dear Student Leadership Award Committee:
I strongly endorse the nomination of Ms. Stephanie Olmanni for the Gerontological Nursing
Student Leadership Award for undergraduate students, sponsored by the NGNA Fellows.
Stephanie is currently a nursing student in the accelerated baccalaureate in nursing program at
Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and will graduate in December, 2015. I taught
Stephanie in the required Aging course and worked closely with her as the mentor of the
Geriatric Interest Group since she first enrolled in the nursing program, so I am very much
aware of her capabilities and her commitment to focus her career on caring for older adults.
Prior to attending nursing school, Stephanie volunteered in several different hospitals, and
those experiences inspired in her a strong desire to change the way older adult patients are
cared for within our healthcare system. After talking at length with many older adults and
hearing their incredible stories, Stephanie vowed to devote her career to caring for this
population and to assure that all who care for them treat them with the utmost respect. She is
particularly interested in caring for homeless veterans. I have rarely met a student who is as
passionate about working with the geriatric population.
Ms. Olmanni’s goal is to continue her education and eventually become an adult-gerontological
nurse practitioner. She enjoys establishing long-term relationships with her patients and thus
would like to work in a primary care setting where she can get to know her patients well and
provide care for them and their significant others over time. Stephanie would love to be able to
take a holistic approach with her patients, incorporating complementary alternative medicine
into the plan of care for older adult patients. For example, she would like to be able to provide
access to music therapy for patients with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
As a nursing student, Stephanie is very mature and dedicated to caring for older adults. She told
me a story about a patient experience which demonstrates her love of older adults. While
working in the emergency department, the nursing staff warned her to avoid an older woman
who was described as a “complainer who was extremely difficult, demanding, and rude”. When
she heard this woman yelling, Stephanie approached her to see if she could help, and the
woman burst into tears and described the pain she was experiencing .Stephanie recognized the
need for more nurses to address human suffering in older adults– both physical and emotional.
In addition, as a student Stephanie has also recognized what a gift and honor it is to be able to
care for someone who is dying as well as their family members. She knows that she will face
difficult times ahead, but she is dedicated to providing the best possible care for older patients,
Department of Community-Public Health
525 North Wolfe Street Baltimore, MD 21205 www.nursing.jhu.edu
and to serve as a role model and inspiration for other nurses, holding them to the challenge of
caring for this special population.
I have no doubt that Stephanie will be a wonderful nurse, providing optimal care for older
patients, and she will lead other nurses in also providing the best care possible. She will benefit
tremendously from what she will learn and from the professional relationships she will form by
attending the NGNA convention. I strongly recommend her for the student leadership award
for an undergraduate student.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth “Ibby” Tanner, PhD, RN, FNGNA, FAAN
Associate Professor