During this year’s Annual Meeting, LeadingAge will recognize the critical role that frontline nurse supervisors play in the long-term services and supports (LTSS) workplace. You can help us elevate this important LTSS role by nominating your frontline nurse supervisor for the Joan Anne McHugh Award for Excellence in Frontline Nurse Supervision.

June 25, 2025 is the deadline to complete an online application for the award.

The 2025 McHugh Award winner will receive $1,000 for professional development and national recognition at the LeadingAge Annual Meeting, November 2-5, 2025, in Boston, MA.

Please note that directors of nursing, assistant directors of nursing, regional or corporate nursing staff, and nurse practitioners are not eligible for this year’s McHugh Award.

Why Recognize Frontline Nurse Supervisors?

The 2025 Joan Anne McHugh Award for Excellence in Frontline Nurse Supervision will recognize a frontline nurse supervisor who creates a supportive and engaged workplace environment by displaying excellent leadership skills while managing certified nursing assistants (CNAs), home health aides, or home care aides.

Frontline nurse supervisors inspire, educate, and support direct care professionals, including the CNAs, home health aides, and home care aides who provide the majority of hands-on client and resident care. These supervisors help direct care professionals enhance their performance. Their positive rapport with direct care professionals can contribute significantly to preventing turnover and ensuring the stability of an aging services organization. Their influence on the job quality of direct care professionals and an organization’s overall culture is unparalleled.

Nomination Process

The 2025 Joan Anne McHugh Award for Excellence in Frontline Nurse Supervision will be awarded to a frontline nurse supervisor who demonstrates leadership in LTSS nursing and a commitment to the profession. LeadingAge members are invited to nominate a frontline supervisor who:

• Supervises and coaches direct care professionals.
• Values different perspectives and addresses barriers associated with cultural differences.
• Collaborates with management, advocates for direct care professionals, and recommends supportive strategies.
• Demonstrates a commitment to LTSS nursing by actively engaging in professional development and inspiring passion for LTSS in others.

Nominating organizations will be asked to submit:

• The nominee’s job description.
• A description of how the nominee meets each award’s selection criteria.
• One letter of recommendation from a nursing peer.
• One letter of recommendation from a nursing assistant, home health aide, or personal care aide.
• A letter from the nominee.

The People Behind the McHugh Award

The McHugh Award was established in 2005 in memory of Joan Anne McHugh by her family and colleagues at the Loeb & Troper consulting firm in New York. During her career as a registered nurse, nurse manager, and nursing consultant, McHugh earned a well-deserved reputation for compassion, knowledge, and professionalism, leaving a lasting impact on the geriatric health care profession. She died in 2003 at age 47.

“It is wonderful to shine a light on the amazing, incredible nurses that have received this award, all of whom truly represent—just as Joan did—all the best qualities and ideals of the nursing field and the field of long-term care nursing,” said Joan’s sister, Margaret Kyriacou. “We have seen and felt a little bit of Joan in all of the recipients of this award, which is, for us, a very beautiful and meaningful thing.”

Read more about recent recipients of the McHugh Award:

• 2024: Lourisa “Lulu” Solomon, R.N., staff development coordinator, infection preventionist, and supervisor at New Jersey Eastern Star Rehabilitation and Nursing in Bridgewater, NJ, was acknowledged for creating a peer mentor program, fostering an inclusive workplace environment, and implementing a successful initiative to control the spread of viruses. Under her guidance, the nursing team has achieved a 90% retention rate. Read more.
• 2023: Melanie Johnson, R.N., director of nursing at Carol Woods Retirement Community in Chapel Hill, NC, was recognized for successfully implementing a creative scheduling system, salary and shift differential increases for nurses and CNAs, and a tool to help CNAs report skin integrity. Read more.
• 2022: Andrea MacDonald, R.N., BSN, clinical operations manager at Nascentia Home Health Aides in Syracuse, NY, was credited with creating a supportive workplace environment for her team and implementing recruitment and retention strategies, including a collection of benefits and flexible scheduling. Read more.
• 2021: Kristen Schulmerich, R.N., BSN, director of nursing services at Monroe Community Hospital in Rochester, NY, was acknowledged for creating career ladder positions for staff, streamlining the hiring and application process, establishing a CNA training program, and creating a “unit aide” position for non-nursing personnel. Read more.
• 2019: Jamey Walker, R.N., director of nursing at The Village at Kendallville, Kendallville, IN, was credited with creating a positive work environment by practicing person-centered leadership, encouraging flexibility, providing the right tools, encouraging new skills, and depending on others. Read more.

Start Your Nomination Today

LeadingAge member organizations can review the McHugh Award criteria and use the online form to nominate individuals for the McHugh Award. The deadline for nominations is midnight ET, June 25, 2025.

For more information or questions about the McHugh Award, email Natasha Bryant, senior director of workforce research and development at the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston, or call 202-508-1214.