Dr. Jackie Dunbar-Jacob Honored as UPMC Senior Champion

From left to right: Nancy Zionts, Karen Feinstein, Jackie Dunbar-Jacob, Maureen Saxon-Gioia, Anneliese Perry, Kristen Brenneman, and Stacie Bonenberger.

Friend of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF) Jacqueline Dunbar-Jacob, PhD, RN, FAAN, dean emeritus of the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing and nursing leadership advisor on JHF's Aging Initiatives, was honored as the 2023 Caregiver Champion at the 15^th Annual Celebrating Champions Dinner and Auction, hosted by UPMC Senior Services and UPMC Western Behavioral Health. The event was held at the Westin Pittsburgh on October 25^th, and members of the JHF Aging Team as well as numerous members of the Teaching Nursing Home Collaborative attended in support of this inspiring nurse leader. The Caregiver Champion award recognizes an individual or organization who demonstrates an extraordinary ability to champion senior causes through their work to set policy, establish programs or advocate for care of seniors and/or caregivers.

Dr. Dunbar-Jacob was honored for supporting generations of caregivers and the psychiatric mental health nurse community, in particular. Through her leadership over 21 years of service as dean of the Pitt School of Nursing and 35 years as a faculty member, she has been a steadfast advocate for highest-quality nursing education.

Jackie Dunbar-Jacob receives the 2023 Caregiver Champion award.

Dr. Dunbar-Jacob is a member of the Health Careers Futures Board and a past JHF board member. She currently contributes her expertise in nursing education as an advisor to the JHF Teaching Nursing Home Collaborative initiative, where she is helping to promote meaningful linkages between schools of nursing and nursing facilities to strengthen the pipeline of new nurses into the skilled nursing workforce. She also is an advisor to the JHF Women's Health Inequity in Older Age initiative.

"I am deeply honored to receive the UPMC Caregiver Champion award this year," said Dr. Dunbar-Jacob. "I am grateful to UPMC, JHF, the NIH, LeadingAge PA, and, of course, the University of Pittsburgh for opportunities to support and advocate for effective care for senior adults. No time is more important than now to address models of care for the older adult as the population grows, impacting nearly every area of life, including health care, housing, transportation, technology, and economics among others. All of us who are championing senior care and caregivers are in the right place at the right time."