The prestigious American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) State Award for Excellence, comprised of two separate awards, is granted annually to deserving nurse practitioners (NPs) and NP advocates.
The Advocate State Award for Excellence is given to an individual in each state who has made a significant contribution toward increasing awareness and recognition of NPs. NPs are also eligible for the advocate award for non-clinical practice initiatives related to leadership, precepting, policy, politics, research, education, or community affairs.
Dr. Douglass Haas, DNP, APRN-NP, was nominated by the current President of the Nebraska Nurse Practitioners – Dr. Tara Whitmire, DNP, APRN-NP. She had the following comment to share related to the nomination: “Dr. Douglass Haas continually advocates for Nurses and Nurse Practitioners in Nebraska and deserved to be recognized for his work. I’m so pleased he was honored with this award!”
Dr. Haas is a full-time faculty member of the University of Nebraska Medical Center – College of Nursing where he teaches primarily in the Adult/Gero Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Program. He also has a faculty practice appointment one day a week as a Hospitalist NP at Lexington Regional Health Center. Dr. Haas when not teaching or caring for hospital patients also enjoys his time advocating for Nurses and Nurse Practitioners across the state of Nebraska through professional nursing organizations like the Nebraska Nurses Association and the Nebraska Nurse Practitioners.
Dr. Haas feels the best part of his job relates to education. “Being able to teach patients, nurses, and practitioners is where all of the passion comes from. Knowledge is not to be kept and collected; it needs to be shared. The ultimate success is when a patient understands a new diagnosis, when a nurse is successful with a new clinical skill, or when a practitioner is able to use the most current evidence-based research to make decisions”.
