The dentist who was interim director of the National Institute of Nursing Research is moving on. But now a biologist has been appointed to the position.
On November 14, 2019, the acting director of the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), dentist Lawrence Tabak, issued a message via the NINR listserv that he would be moving on to become acting director of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR). That makes more sense. Unfortunately, National Institutes of Health director Francis Collins did not take this opportunity to appoint a nurse to the important nursing leadership role at NINR. Instead, he elevated the previous deputy acting director, biologist Tara Schwetz. We do appreciate that Dr. Collins has appointed NINR science director Jessica Gill, RN, PhD, as the new acting deputy director of NINR–that is progress! But a nurse like Dr. Gill should be heading the Institute.
