Hawaii State Center for Nursing names new executive director

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Contact:
Eleni Davis, (808) 956-3962
Communications Specialist, Hawaii State Center for Nursing
Posted: May 29, 2014

Wendy Yamamoto Suetsugu
Wendy Yamamoto Suetsugu

Wendy Yamamoto Suetsugu, JD, MSN, RN, has been named executive director of the Hawai‘i State Center for Nursing. She is an experienced nurse and attorney.

Suetsugu was previously the director of clinical operations in the Department of OB/GYN and Women’s Health at University Clinical Education Research Associates. She served as a clinical instructor of nursing at UH Mānoa, and has held the positions of a labor and delivery nurse and operating room nurse at Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women and Children, and a nursing home surveyor in the state of Washington. Suetsugu also practiced law at Robbins & Associates, handling medical malpractice cases.

Her diverse experience as a nurse and an attorney positions her to provide leadership to HSCN and to help move forward the progress of health-care transformation in Hawai‘i.  Said the Aina Haina resident, “This is a very exciting time to join the Hawai‘i State Center for Nursing, as Hawai‘i has one of the most progressive environments for nurses. A nurse’s first and foremost duty is to be a patient advocate and a provider of safe, quality health care. Nurses also provide support, whether it is clinical, physical and/or emotional through their nursing knowledge and compassion for their patients. We have approximately 20,000 licensed nurses in our state and I look forward to supporting Hawai‘i’s nurses."

The Hawai‘i State Center for Nursing collects and disseminates nursing workforce data in Hawai‘i, supports recruitment and retention of nurses, and conducts research on best practices and quality care outcomes. It is located at the UH Mānoa School of Nursing and Dental Hygiene, and has an advisory board appointed by the Governor.

For more information about the Hawai‘i Center for Nursing, visit http://hawaiicenterfornursing.org.