Prof. Amit Gefen, PhD
Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel Aviv University; Immediate Past President, European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Board (EPUAP); Editor-in-Chief, book series "Studies in Mechanobiology, Tissue Engineering and Biomaterials"; Editor-in-Chief, Clinical Biomechanics Journal; Editorial Board, Journal of Tissue Viability; Fellow, International Academy of Medical and Biological Engineering
Amit Gefen is a Full Professor with the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering of Tel Aviv University. Prof. Gefen served as the President of the European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (EPUAP) from 2013 to 2015. He is also a member of the World Council of Biomechanics and a Fellow of the International Academy of Medical and Biological Engineering. Prof. Gefen has published over 180 articles in peer-reviewed international journals. His research focuses on the effects of biomechanical factors on the structure and function of cells, tissues and organs, with emphasis on applications in chronic wound prevention. In 2007 and 2008 Prof. Gefen was a visiting scientist at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, where he developed tissue-engineered model systems to study pressure ulcers. Prof. Gefen serves on the editorial board of multiple international journals focusing on biomechanics and biomedical issues. In addition, he is currently the Editor-in-Chief of the book series “Studies in Mechanobiology, Tissue Engineering and Biomaterials.” Prof. Gefen is active in a scientific advisory capacity for bodies worldwide, from international corporations to the European Commission. .
Prof. Dimitri Beeckman, RN, PhD
Professor, Ghent University; Chair of the Scientific Committee, European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (EPUAP); Scientific Committee, World Union of Wound Healing Society (WUWHS); Fellow, European Academy of Nursing Science (EANS); Advisor, Belgian Federal Counsel for the Quality of Nursing Activities
Prof. Dimitri Beeckman is a Professor in Nursing Science at the Department of Public Health at Ghent University, Belgium. He is also a visiting lecturer at the Florence Nightingale School of Nursing and Midwifery, King's College London in the UK, a Visiting Professor at the School of Health Sciences at University of Surrey (UK) and a researcher at the Artevelde University College in Belgium. Prof. Beeckman’s doctoral research centered on pressure ulcer prevention and on the prevention and treatment of incontinence-associated dermatitis (IAD). He continues to focus on development and psychometric testing of instruments to measure outcomes of nursing interventions related to pressure ulcer prevention. Prof. Beeckman is currently the Chair of the European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel Scientific Committee and a member of the International Skin Tears Advisory Panel (ISTAP).
Prof. Joyce Black, PhD, RN, CWCN, CPSN
Professor, University of Nebraska; Past President, National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP); Chair, NPUAP Task Force to Update Pressure Ulcer Staging; Fellow, American Professional Wound Care Association; Fellow, American Academy of Nursing
Joyce Black is an Associate Professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, where she teaches medical-surgical and intensive care nursing. Prof. Black also supervises research and teaches advanced pathophysiology to graduate students. Her recent research is in the area of pressure ulcers, deep tissue injury and intertriginous dermatitis. Prof. Black is a certified wound care nurse, with years of clinical experience in orthopedics, critical care, burn care, respiratory diseases, wound care and plastic surgery, primarily at Saint Mary’s Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota (affiliated with the Mayo Clinic). She is a Past President of the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel and has chaired task forces to update pressure ulcer definitions and stages. For her work in pressure ulcers, Prof. Black was inducted as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. In 2015, she received the NPUAP Thomas Stewart Founder’s Award for her significant contributions in the area of pressure ulcer prevention and treatment, especially in the areas of public policy. Prof. Black is active in a scientific advisory capacity for multiple companies and organizations in the healthcare field.
Prof. Janet Cuddigan, RN, PhD, CWCN
Professor, University of Nebraska; Board of Directors, National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP); Chair, 2014 International Pressure Ulcer Guideline Development; Fellow, American Academy of Nursing
Janet Cuddigan is an Associate Professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. She teaches critical care nursing to undergraduates and quality improvement and outcomes research to graduate students. Prof. Cuddigan is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel. She has been involved in the development of evidence-based guidelines for pressure ulcers since the AHCPR Pressure Ulcer Guidelines published in 1992. Prof. Cuddigan was a Co-Chair of the NPUAP-EPUAP Guideline Development Group and the Editor-in-Chief of the 2009 International Pressure Ulcer Guideline. She served as a member of the NPUAP-EPUAP-PPPIA Guideline Development Group for the 2014 International Pressure Ulcer Guideline. Prof. Cuddigan received the NPUAP Kosiak Award for Leadership in Pressure Ulcer Research, Practice, Education and Public Policy in 2011, and the 2015 NPUAP President’s Recognition Award.
Prof. Jane Nixon, PhD, MA, BSc (Hon) RGN
Professor of Tissue Viability and Clinical Trials Research, University of Leeds; Deputy Director at the Institute of Clinical Trials Research, University of Leeds; Treasurer and President Elect, European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Board (EPUAP); Treasurer, Tissue Viability Society; Scientific Board, French Clinical Research Infrastructure Network (F-CRIN)
Jane Nixon is Professor of Tissue Viability and Clinical Trials Research and Deputy Director at the Institute of Clinical Trials Research at the University of Leeds. She has led major research programs and clinical trials in pressure ulcer prevention, including the successful collaborative £2 million, 5 year NIHR Programme Grant application entitled Pressure Ulcer PRogramme of ReSEarch (PURPOSE). Prof. Nixon is President Elect and Treasurer of the European Pressure Advisory Panel and has led working groups for sections of the International Pressure Ulcer Prevention Guidelines. She is also past Chair and current Treasurer of the Tissue Viability Society. Prof. Nixon is a member of the NIHR Dermatology Specialty Group and serves on national Trial Oversight Committees and the French Clinical Research Infrastructure Network (F-CRIN) Scientific Board. In recognition of her contribution to the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), she was appointed as a NIHR Senior Investigator in 2016.
Prof. Lisette Schoonhoven, PhD
Professor of Nursing, University of Southampton; Fellow of the European Academy of Nursing Science (EANS) President, European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (EPUAP); Chair, 2014 International Pressure Ulcer Guideline Development
Lisette Schoonhoven is Professor of Nursing at the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Southampton. Prof. Schoonhoven expertise covers quality and safety of fundamental nursing care, with a particular interest in pressure ulcers and skin health. She is also a leading researcher in implementation. Prof. Schoonhoven is the current President of the European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel and was the EPUAP Chair for the 2014 update of the Prevention and Treatment of Pressure Ulcers - Clinical Practice Guideline.
