UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Each year, the United States Defense Health Agency’s Military Health System (MHS) announces awards to recognize the outstanding achievements among the top health care providers and facilities that serve the military community. These awards spotlight excellence across a range of fields including operational medicine, research, innovation, training, and management.
Jennifer Wissemann, a 2020 Penn State Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing DNP (doctor of nursing practice) graduate, was selected for the MHS Federal Civilian Nursing Excellence in Leadership Award.
The MHS Federal Civilian Nursing Excellence in Leadership Award acknowledges and honors civilian registered nurses in the field at the tactical and operational level who have demonstrated exemplary leadership and skill resulting in noteworthy clinical or administrative accomplishments.
Wissemann, who was nominated for the award by her regional chief nurse, commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army after graduating from Pacific Lutheran University in 2001 and served active duty for 10 years. While active duty, she served in a variety of obstetrics and NICU roles. She then went on to earn her master's in nursing education from Gonzaga University in 2013 and continued her career as a nurse educator in mother and baby settings.
After leaving the military as a major, Wissemann was able to return to the Army as a civilian and now works as the chief of education and training for the Medical Department at the U.S. Army Medical Activity-Bavaria base in Germany. In this role, she leads the Medical Mobile Simulation team, which is tasked with traveling to other clinics to provide hands on simulation training and equipment. Wissemann has been instrumental in expanding medical simulation across southern Europe, spearheading an ambitious nursing chart competency project, and overseeing the base’s resuscitative medicine courses.
Wissemann, who graduated from the college through Penn State World Campus, expressed gratitude for the tangible experience she received during her time in the DNP program, stating, “I saw the application of many things that I had learned in the program, especially as the pandemic was hitting. The skills that I applied to the bedside and to the nurses and providers I was working with was invaluable. Receiving this award very much recognized these skills and the value that I brought to the organization.”
Wissemann was officially recognized and presented the Federal Civilian Nursing Excellence in Leadership Award at the MHS Award Ceremony this past February.