Posted on October 17, 2002 at 4:06 p.m.

Birmingham, Ala. -- The Alumni Association of the University of Alabama School of Nursing (UASON) at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) recently honored Diane Smalley and Shirley B. Young as the first recipients of the Jo Ann Barnett Award for Compassionate Nursing Care. The award recognizes Smalley and Young as UAB graduates and nurses who exemplify the best in nursing care.

Diane Smalley, who earned her bachelor’s of science in nursing degree from UAB in 1990, is a nurse in UAB Hospital's regional newborn intensive care unit (RNICU). Shirley B. Young, who earned her bachelor’s of science in nursing degree from UAB in 1978 and her master’s of science in nursing degree from UAB in 1987, is the administrator of UAB's Mary Lewis Skilled Nursing Facility.

The award was established in honor of Barnett, who worked as a neonatal nurse practitioner in UAB Hospital’s RNICU prior to her death on June 17, 2002. Barnett earned her bachelor’s of science in nursing degree from UAB in 1987 and her master’s of science in nursing degree from the school in 1990.

Awards were presented to Smalley and Young during the UASON Reunion Reception and Awards Dinner held recently in Birmingham. For more information about the School of Nursing’s Alumni Association or how to nominate a graduate and nurse for the 2003 Jo Ann Barnett Award, call 205-975-8936, or e-mail: nursealum@uab.edu.