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A research leader at the Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing will be inducted this summer into the Sigma Theta Tau International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame—an honor given to just 15 distinguished nurse scientists worldwide this year.
Karen Saban, professor and associate dean for research and scholarly innovation, will become the first Loyola Nursing scientist to join the Sigma Hall of Fame, an honor awarded to researchers whose work has made a lasting impact on the nursing profession and the communities it serves. Sigma is a global nursing honor society with more than 100,000 members.
A meaningful recognition
Dean Lorna Finnegan said membership in the Sigma Hall of Fame is a personal and professional milestone that few achieve and is widely recognized within nursing as a top marker of excellence.
“Dr. Saban is an innovator in nursing research and we could not be prouder of her,” Finnegan said, emphasizing the rarity and prestige of this honor. “Her impact on our research program and on the junior scientists she mentors cannot be overstated.”
Saban studies disparities in health care, and her current research examines an intervention to reduce chronic stress and inflammation in Black women at risk of cardiovascular disease.
Saban said she was “humbled, inspired, and energized” by being named to the Sigma Hall of Fame.
“This recognition is especially meaningful to me as it affirms the importance of addressing the impact of chronic stress in African American women at risk for cardiometabolic disease—work that I am deeply passionate about,” she said. “This award is also a tribute to the many mentors, collaborators, and community partners who have contributed to this journey, and to the incredible resilience of the women whose stories have shaped my research.”
Saban, who has received more than $15 million in research funding, oversees Loyola Nursing’s growing research program, which has added several tenure track nurse scientists and jumped in national rankings for research funding under her leadership. In the past five years alone, the school’s research expenditures have jumped 52 percent.
International distinction
This year’s inductees hail from Australia, Canada, England, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the United States and will be honored during Sigma’s 36th International Nursing Research Congress, slated to take place this July in Seattle.
Sigma President Sandra C. Garmon Bibb said in a release that the 2025 inductees represent the organization’s “vision of connected, empowered nurses transforming global health care.”
To be inducted, scientists must conduct research with significant impact; have a distinguished record of scholarly publications within the last five years; receive external, university, or other funding to support their work; and mentor novice researchers.
Eileen Collins, dean of the University of Illinois Chicago College of Nursing and a Loyola Nursing alum, nominated Saban for the Sigma Hall of Fame.
She wrote that Saban’s “ability to secure funding underscores the originality and impact of her work… Her role as both principal investigator and mentor on numerous grants speaks to her leadership and collaborative approach in advancing nursing science.”
In one of several letters of support from the Loyola Nursing community, Finnegan said that Saban’s “groundbreaking research and unwavering commitment to mentorship have had a profound, lasting impact on clinical practice, nursing science, and public health, both nationally and internationally.”
Saban has received a number of other awards, including the SAGE Award from UIC Nursing’s Power of Nursing Leadership in recognition of her success as a mentor.
Read more stories from the Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing.
