Mary Patricia Couig to Join College of Nursing Faculty

New Associate Professor Previously Served as Assistant U.S. Surgeon General

Mary Patricia Couig, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN, Rear Admiral (ret.) with the U.S. Public Health Service, will join the UNM College of Nursing faculty as associate professor and The Carter/Fleck Endowed Professorship in Nursing on July 1^st.

"I am so pleased to have retired Rear Admiral Couig joining the faculty," said Christine E. Kasper, PhD, RN, dean of the College of Nursing. "Her expertise in public health, as well as her experience in the Surgeon General's office is a huge gain for the College and the University."

Couig served from 2000-2005 as the Chief Nurse Officer and Assistant Surgeon General of the U.S. Public Health Service. During her tenure she collaborated with the Federal Nursing Services Council (which includes representatives from the Air Force, Army, Navy, PHS, Veteran's Health Administration and the American Red Cross) and local, state, national and international colleagues on strengthening nursing's role and public health preparedness. She also consulted with the Jordanian Nursing Council on nursing public health preparedness.

Prior to joining the faculty Couig worked for the Office of Nursing Services in the Department of Veterans Affairs as the national program manager for Public Health Emergency Management, which included the RN Transition-to-Practice Residency Program. And, she led projects for the World Health Organization.

Couig received a bachelor of science in nursing degree from Fitchburg State University, where she received the Distinguished Alumni Award, a master of public health degree from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and a PhD from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.