Dr. Linda Burnes Bolton is Vice President for Nursing, Chief Nursing Officer, and Director of Nursing Research at Cedars-Sinai. She has also served as president of the American Academy of Nursing and the National Black Nurses Association.
Dr. Bolton has played a key role in raising awareness about issues related to diversification in nursing education and practice. Her research, teaching and clinical expertise includes nursing and patient care outcomes, improving organization performance, quality care, and cultural diversity within the health professions. She has been actively involved in National Black Nurses Foundation effort "Minding the Gap: Improving Mental Health Access-Eliminating Stigma" that mainly deals with depression in the black community. She is also a co-investigator of the regional Collaborative Alliance for Nursing Outcomes research team.
Dr. Bolton has played leadership roles for several state and national programs. She served as chair of the National Advisory committee of Transforming Care at the Bedside, Veteran Affairs Commission on Nursing and vice chair of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Initiative on the Future of Nursing at the Institute of Medicine. She is also a trustee at Case Western Reserve University and a board member of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. In addition, she serves on the American Organization of Nurse Executive Board of Directors.
Dr. Bolton earned her Bachelors of Science in Nursing from Arizona State University and her Masters of Science in Nursing, Master in Public Health and Doctorate in Public Health from the University of California.
Her list of accomplishments includes the co-development of the Community Collaboration Model which is currently used in over 100 communities. The goal of this model is to promote healing through knowledge, skills and commitment. Dr. Bolton has dedicated her life to her nursing career and has worked continuously to make patient care better. She has also been quite influential in the areas of nursing outcomes and the staffing ratios. She received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Organization of Nurse Executives in 2007 and was named one of the top 25 women in health care in 2011.
