Introducing Northern NJ HPNA Program/Planning/Education Committee: Donna Fahey, MSN, MFA, RN, CNL, CHPN, AHN-BC
Posted by
Northern New Jersey HPNA
on
Wayne, NJ
Did you know that there is a Northern NJ HPNA Chapter that covers the whole state of NJ?
“I am excited to serve the Northern New Jersey Chapter of HPNA as the co-chair for education
and event planning. In this capacity I hope to further advance integrative and holistic practices
across the continuum of care so that everyone receive the best possible care.”
Donna is the director of the Institute for Education, Research and Innovation at Samaritan in
Mount Laurel, NJ, and an adjunct assistant professor at Drexel University College of Nursing and
Health Professions, within the Program of Complementary and Integrative Health. Donna has
worked as a nurse at the bedside of patients and families in intensive care at Our Lady of
Lourdes (now Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes) and Virtua Health System for over 12 years and as a
hospice and palliative care nurse for more than six years. She began her role as institute director
in 2021.
Fahey has a passion for enhancing her work in the clinical setting through the integration of
holistic healthcare strategies, both for her patients, as well as her colleagues. She has
implemented several noteworthy holistic projects at Virtua as co-chair of the system-wide
Holistic Committee, and previously as the care manager of the Intensive Care Unit at Our Lady
of Lourdes Medical Center. These projects focused on the mind, body, and spirit approach to
healing and caring. At Samaritan Donna assisted in the development of an end-of-life ritual to
create emotional presence for staff and families, and a tool kit to relief stress and anxiety in
patients, families, and staff.
Donna has presented her work at the National American Holistic Nurses Conference, the
International Integrative Nursing Conference, the National Teaching Institute and Critical Care Symposium, TRENDS in Critical Care Nursing, the New Jersey State Nurses Association
Conference, and for the New Jersey End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium. Her work has
also been featured in Nursing, Critical Care, Advance for Nurses, and Beginnings (an American
Holistic Nurses Association publication). Donna’s work on spirituality and wellness appears in
Complementary and Integrative Approaches to Substance Use Disorders, Nova Science
Publishers, Inc., NY, 2021.
Donna earned her master’s in nursing in clinical nurse leadership from Rowen University and a
bachelor’s in nursing from Drexel University by completing the Accelerated Care Entry BSN
Program. She was awarded a post-graduate certificate in Advanced Studies of Complementary
and Integrative Therapies at Drexel University. These degrees complement her MFA in Theatre
from Catholic University of America. Donna is certified in hospice and palliative care nursing (CNHP),
clinical nurse leadership (CNL) and in advanced holistic nursing (AHN-BC).
Donna Fahey