YVONNE WESLEY, RN, Ph.D. FAAN

Yvonne Wesley is energized by developing new knowledge and translating research into patient care.   As a nurse scientist, author, and business owner for more than 40 years, she has contributed much to the field of nursing, health policy, and global health promotion.  Dr. Wesley earned her Ph.D. in Nursing from New York University where her focus was Research and Theory Development.  With her master’s degree in nursing from Rutgers University in Newark, she specialized in maternal/child health and has numerous publications in peer-reviewed journals.  Currently, she is an Independent Health Consultant, and Adjunct Faculty in the School of Nursing at Kean University.  Prior positions include Vice President of Community Relations at Meridian Health, Vice President of Research and Development at the Northern NJ Maternal-Child Health Consortium, and Director of Nursing at Newark Community Health Center. 

Dr. Wesley started her nursing career as a staff nurse at Newark NJ’s Martland Hospital.  As her career progressed, she became the Perinatal HIV Research Manager, where she demonstrated her ability to share complex research protocols with some of Newark’s most vulnerable populations. As an established voice on the issue of health care for the underserved, she went on to become the Director of Nursing services at Newark Community Health Center’s Inc in 1996.

Her personality and style of leadership quickly caught the eye of regional health planning agencies, and she assumed the position of Vice President for Research & Development at the Northern New Jersey Maternal-Child Health Consortium.  While in this position, then Governor Christine Todd-Whitman appointed Dr. Wesley as Co-Chair of the Blue-Ribbon Panel on Black Infant Mortality.  Resultantly, state policy changed providing more than 2 million dollars for Black Infant Mortality Reduction.

Dr. Wesley has led numerous committees and boards facilitating and directing nursing’s focus, by exemplifying a mixture of nursing research principles with clinical practice, to strengthen the community’s health.  For example, she conceptualized, implemented, and evaluated NYU College of Nursing’s Leadership Institute for Black Nurses.  The Leadership Institute grew and was replicated among nurse managers in Ghana. Meanwhile components of the Leadership Institute were remodeled to facilitate leadership skills among student nurses in the Nursing Workforce Development grant at New Jersey City University from 2014-2018. More recently, her leadership program was replicated by Dr. Dewi Brown-DeVeaux at NYU Langone Health system and published in the Journal of Nursing Administration in 2021.  Because of her research skills, she is sought after to: 1) facilitate sustainable research strategies among Magnet Hospitals, 2) improve quality health outcome federally qualified health centers across the nation, and 3) promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in nursing.

Her high academic achievements have opened doors for her induction into two International Honor Societies: Kappa Delta Pi, and Sigma Theta Tau. Due to her work, she has received numerous awards and her induction into the American Academy of Nursing in 2004. She is a sought-after speaker, has lectured both nationally and internationally, plus she has appeared on local and national network television to promote wellness. Her research skills and style of diplomacy have shaped her into a caring health care executive.  She attributes her success to obedience to God, the strength of her parents, and love from family and friends.