2018 Mary Behrens to be honored by AANP

LOCAL DATELINE (May 12,2018) – Mary Behrens BS, MS, FNP-BC FAANP of Casper, Wyoming [UW Nursing alumna, MS FNP '98] to be honored

Mary Behrens will be honored at an awards ceremony and reception held during the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) 2018 National Conference June 26-July 1, 2018, in Denver, CO. Behrens will be among those nurse practitioners and nurse practitioner advocates who will be receiving the prestigious AANP 2018 State Award for Excellence.

The State Award for Nurse Practitioner Excellence, founded in 1991, recognizes a nurse practitioner (NP) in a state who demonstrates excellence in practice. In 1993, the State Award for Nurse Practitioner Advocate was added to recognize the efforts of individuals who have made a significant contribution toward increasing awareness and recognition of NPs.

Mary Behrens has been a long time advocate of Nurse Practitioners in Wyoming. But more recently, Behrens has been the AANP representative on the "Movement is Life" caucus. That particular caucus is concerned about breaking the vicious cycle of inactivity which contributes to the increase of obesity, joint problems, diabetes, heart disease and depression. This group works with local community outreach to help provide information on how to get moving in easy ways. Behrens will be giving a poster presentation in Rotterdam for the International Advanced Practice Nurses Meeting in August 2018 on some research the group has done. Behrens is active in the region 8 group for AANP that met in Salt Lake City this fall.

Behrens is the current President of the Wyoming Center for Nursing, member on both the "Friends for the Fay Whitney School of Nursing" development board and the UW Health Science Advisory Board. In addition she actively participates in the American Nurses Association Institute that prepares NPs and Nurses for better political advocacy. Mary enjoys mentoring NP and nursing students in leadership roles.

About AANP

The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) is the largest professional membership organization for nurse practitioners (NPs) of all specialties. It represents the interests of more than 234,000 NPs practicing in the United States today, providing a unified networking platform and advocating for their role as providers of high-quality, cost-effective, comprehensive, patient-centered and personalized health care. The organization provides legislative leadership at the local, state and national levels, advancing health policy; promoting excellence in practice, education and research; and establishing standards that best serve NP patients and other health care consumers.

For more information, visit aanp.org. To locate a nurse practitioner in your area, visit npfinder.com