DEVA-MARIE BECK, PhD, RN, DTM
INTERNATIONAL CO-DIRECTOR
Deva-Marie Beck is a Canadian / American nurse, author, educator, and Florence Nightingale scholar who serves as an International Co-Director of the Nightingale Initiative for Global Health (NIGH). Currently, she is developing — in teamwork with a growing group of nurses from around the world — an updated approach to NIGH’s mandate — engaging nurses, student nurses, retirees and concerned citizens to share their voices out across the global public space with their care, commitments, and concerns for a better world.
To prepare for this project, Dr. Beck has also been an active member of Toastmasters International (TI) and served as an 2018-2019 Area Director for TI District 64. Based on eight years of accomplishing a series of 40 required public presentations and related leadership |
activities — to educate and empower the personal and professional growth of her peers—she achieved the highest-level education Award from TI — as a Distinguished Toast Master ‘DTM.’ She now aims to use this ‘credential’ to develop innovative ways to educate, encourage and engage nurses and concerned citizens to share their voices and tell their stories at local, regional and global levels.
•• Also see Why Nightingale? Why Now? Parts 1 & 2 and Part 4 ••
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During the 2020 WHO Year of the Nurse & Midwife, Dr. Beck contributed with three video productions -- In Florence Nightingale Own Words -- Introducing the Nightingale Declaration and La declaration Nightingale pour un monde en santé – both as a 2020 renewal of the Nightingale Declaration for A Healthy World, now in eleven language versions.
Across two decades, Dr. Beck has led NIGH’s development and work on UN briefings, group discussions, website |
updates — feature articles, photojournalism, and multi-media — campaigns, journal articles, book chapters, books, and keynote presentations — worldwide — and to achieve NIGH’s ‘Special Consultative Status’, granted by the United Nations Economic & Social Council (UN ECOSOC) in 2018.
She has also developed a number of music videos, including, with the World Health Organization, Nurses & Midwives: Now More Than Ever (in eight language versions) and At The Heart of It All: Nurses & Midwives for Universal Health Coverage. As well, she created NIGH's Daring to Tell Our Stories to the World and collaborated to produce Daring, Caring & Sharing to Save Mothers' Lives. She has also authored and co-authored numerous featured publications — peer reviewed journal articles, and book chapters.
She has also developed a number of music videos, including, with the World Health Organization, Nurses & Midwives: Now More Than Ever (in eight language versions) and At The Heart of It All: Nurses & Midwives for Universal Health Coverage. As well, she created NIGH's Daring to Tell Our Stories to the World and collaborated to produce Daring, Caring & Sharing to Save Mothers' Lives. She has also authored and co-authored numerous featured publications — peer reviewed journal articles, and book chapters.
Dr. Beck's recent article (2021) — 'Creating the Nightingale Initiative for Global Health: Theoretical Reflections to Follow in Florence Nightingale's Footsteps' — has been published in Open Access in English, Portuguese and Spanish for the trilingual open-source nursing journal Revista Latino-Americana Emfermagen.
In collaboration with the Congress of NGO's in Consultative Status with the UN (CoNGO), Dr. Beck has contributed two UN Civil Society Development Forum panel presentations to prepare for UN ECOSOC Annual Ministerial Reviews for Global Health in Geneva (2009) and for Gender Equality, Empowerment of Women and Development Cooperation in New York City (2010).
Her multi-disciplinary education in arts and science both shaped her commitment to become a nurse specializing in clinical critical care and women's health (1976 - 2002) and global health (1992 - present). Dr. Beck holds a PhD in Interdisciplinary Nursing and International Development from the Union Institute & University (2002) for her groundbreaking research to articulate Florence Nightingale’s relevance to today’s international health, development, education and media.
In 2019, Dr. Beck returned to Canada's National Capital Region after residing in the Manitoba prairie towns of Neepawa and Kelwood for seven years. While in Manitoba, she expanded her understanding of grassroots views and local-to-global outreach through membership in Rotary International and Inner Wheel International, where she also served as District Chair.
Dr. Beck's primary goal is to continue to engage and empower nurses, midwives and concerned citizens to be advocates for the most pressing health and development needs of our time — at local-to-global levels.
In collaboration with the Congress of NGO's in Consultative Status with the UN (CoNGO), Dr. Beck has contributed two UN Civil Society Development Forum panel presentations to prepare for UN ECOSOC Annual Ministerial Reviews for Global Health in Geneva (2009) and for Gender Equality, Empowerment of Women and Development Cooperation in New York City (2010).
Her multi-disciplinary education in arts and science both shaped her commitment to become a nurse specializing in clinical critical care and women's health (1976 - 2002) and global health (1992 - present). Dr. Beck holds a PhD in Interdisciplinary Nursing and International Development from the Union Institute & University (2002) for her groundbreaking research to articulate Florence Nightingale’s relevance to today’s international health, development, education and media.
In 2019, Dr. Beck returned to Canada's National Capital Region after residing in the Manitoba prairie towns of Neepawa and Kelwood for seven years. While in Manitoba, she expanded her understanding of grassroots views and local-to-global outreach through membership in Rotary International and Inner Wheel International, where she also served as District Chair.
Dr. Beck's primary goal is to continue to engage and empower nurses, midwives and concerned citizens to be advocates for the most pressing health and development needs of our time — at local-to-global levels.
SELECT PUBLICATIONS
- Beck, D.M.. (2023). “Sick-Nursing & Health-Nursing:” Nightingale’s last major essay inspires 21st century nursing — grassroots to global. In Bhatnagar, P., & Hallett, C. (Eds). Florence Nightingale and Healthcare: Lessons for a Post-Pandemic Era. London: Routledge (in press).
- Beck, D. M. (2021). Creating the Nightingale Initiative for Global Health: Theoretical reflections to follow in Florence Nightingale's footsteps.Revista Americana-Latino de Emfermagem (in press in English, Portuguese and Spanish).
- Dossey, B. M. & Beck, D. M. (2019). In Florence Nightingale’s Footsteps: Global Citizens as Environmental and Civil Society Activists: The UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Paradigm Explorer, 31 (3,): 11-15.
- Beck, D. M. & Dossey, B. M. (2019). In Nightingale's Footsteps—Individual to Global: From Nurse Coaches to Environmental and Civil Society Activists. Creative Nursing: A Journal of Values, Issues, Experience and Collaboration, Volume, 25 (3): 1-6.
- Beck, D. M., Dossey, B. M., & Rosa, W. E. (2018). Florence Nightingale and The 17 U.N. Sustainable Development Goals. Beginnings, 18 (2): 18-23.
- Beck, D. M., Dossey, B. M., & Rushton, C. H. (2013). Building the Nightingale Initiative for Global Health — NIGH: Can We Engage and Empower the Public Voices of Nurses Worldwide? Nursing Science Quarterly, 26 (10): 366-371.
- Beck, D. M. & Dossey, B. M. (2013). Grassroots-to-Global Champions for Maternal Health. Beginnings, 33 (5): 18-19.
- Beck, D. M., Dossey, B. M., & Rushton, C. (2011). Integral Nursing and the Nightingale Initiative for Global Health: Florence Nightingale’s Integral Legacy for The 21st Century. Journal of Integral Theory and Practice, 6 (4): 71-92.
- Beck, D. M. (2010). Remembering Florence Nightingale’s Panorama: 21st century Nursing — At A Critical Crossroads. Journal of Holistic Nursing Practice, 28 (4): 291-301.
- Beck, D. M. (2010). The Greatest Health Divide in the World — Half Million Die in Childbirth Annually. Beginnings, 30 (1): 10-11.
- Beck, D. M. (2016). Artistic and Scientific: Broadening the Scope of Our 21st Century Health Advocacy. In Rosa, W. (Ed). Nurses As Leaders: Evolutionary Visions of Leadership (pp. 247-263). New York: Springer Publishing Company.
- Beck, D. M. (2006). Nightingale’s Passion for Advocacy: Local to Global. In Andrist, L. C., Nichols, P. K. & Wolf, K. (Eds). A History of Nursing Ideas (pp. 473-485). Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett.
- Dossey, B.M., Selanders, L., Beck, D.M. & Attewell, A. (2005). Florence Nightingale Today: Healing, Leadership, Global Action. Silver Spring, MD: American Nurses Association NursesBooks.org.
Above video recorded in 2019 at 'Deerhaven Lodge' near Riding Mountain National Park in Manitoba, Canada, from NIGH's archives.