Surgeon General, RN

This is an exciting time for nursing! On Friday, April 21, 2017, Rear Adm. Sylvia Trent-Adams became certainly one of the primary nurses to function Surgeon General of the United States.

Trent-Adams was a nursing officer within the Army and a cancer research nurse on the University of Maryland. In 1992, she joined the Corps of Public Health Service Commissioners and served as deputy assistant administrator of the HIV/AIDS Office of the Health Resources and Services Administration. In November 2013, Trent-Adams joined the Office of the Surgeon General because the tenth Chief Nursing Officer of the United States Public Health Service (USPHS).

I stay up for seeing Trent-Adams’ impact on public health. Based on what I learn from her biography and her quotes within the articles below, I imagine her nursing experience may have a positive impact on her decisions and actions.

A 2014 profile in Trent-Adams quoted:

In 2015, a profile was conducted of Team 1 of the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU), a bunch that spent 60 days in Liberia operating a 25-bed Ebola unit outside the capital, with the particular intention of treating healthcare staff.

I’m proud that a nurse is taking up this leadership position. This is really an exciting time to be in nursing!