Mariann R. Piano, PhD, FAAN, FAHA, Senior Associate Dean for Research at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, was inducted into the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame by Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) during its 30th International Nursing Research Congress in July.
Induction into the Hall of Fame is considered one of the highest honors in nursing research and is offered to nurse researchers whose work has influenced the nursing profession and the people it serves.
Piano, the Nancy and Hilliard Travis Professor of Nursing, is a distinguished scientist whose substance abuse research focuses on understanding the adverse effects of unhealthy alcohol drinking patterns on the cardiovascular system. Her current research projects include the effects of binge drinking on cardiovascular function and risk factors in young adults and biomarkers of heavy alcohol consumption.
Other research interests include heart failure pathophysiology, symptoms and patient self-management. Her previous research has focused on strategies to prevent frequent hospital admissions in heart failure patients and to identify mechanisms that underlie heart failure symptoms. Her research has been supported by the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the American Heart Association and the NIH’s National Institute of Nursing Research.
Piano has served as principal investigator or co-PI on a series of federal grants, including a recent two-year NIAAA R21 grant studying the mechanisms underlying microvascular dysfunction in young adult binge drinkers.
Piano leads Vanderbilt School of Nursing’s research program and is also the school’s postdoctoral fellowship director. She is responsible for supporting faculty scholarly endeavors, expanding the school’s research function and directing efforts to increase external funding.
The 2019 class included honorees from Australia, Canada, Sweden and the United States.