Myra Ellis

Myra F. Ellis, MSN, RN, CCRN-CSC, serves a two-year term as chair-elect of the AACN Certification Corporation board of directors from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2024. She also served a three-year term as a director from July 1, 2018, through June 30, 2021, and a one-year term as secretary/treasurer from July 1, 2020, though June 30, 2021.

Ellis has worked in critical care throughout her 43-year nursing career, with the last 32 years focused on the care of cardiothoracic surgical patients. She is a clinical nurse IV at Duke University Hospital in Durham, North Carolina, since 1995, and has worked in the CTICU as a bedside nurse, charge nurse, clinical research nurse and educator. She was also responsible for nursing education for the care of cardiac surgery patients during the startup of heart surgery programs at three Duke Heart affiliates. In 2011, Ellis implemented a protocol for resuscitation of patients who arrest following cardiac surgery (CALS), and she directed training for providers and nurses until 2021. She continues to provide education for cardiac surgery nurses and providers within the Duke Hospital and the Duke Heart Network.

Her completed research team projects include “Assessing the Suitability of Capillary Blood Glucose Testing in Cardiac Surgery Patients” and “Implementation of a Sleep Protocol for the CTICU.” In 2020, she coordinated training for an evidence-based practice update for cardiothoracic surgery patients at Duke and created new patient education materials to facilitate patient engagement.

Her volunteer work with AACN includes the Nominating Committee, the CMC/CSC Practice Analysis Task Force (2015, 2011) and creating certification review materials. For the Clinical Resource Task Force (2014-2018), she worked on evidence-based clinical resources, including practice alerts and toolkits. In 2021, she co-authored an article in Critical Care Nurse featuring an interprofessional quality improvement project at Duke on reducing intubation time in adult cardiothoracic surgery patients.

Ellis serves as a board member on the Foundation for the Advancement of Cardiothoracic Critical Care (FACTS-Care) and is a member of the American Heart Association and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Her awards include AACN Circle of Excellence (2016), the Duke Heart Center Safety Award and the Friends of Nursing Award for Excellence in Nursing Education. In 2018, she was recognized as one of The Great 100 Nurses in North Carolina.

Ellis earned a Master of Science in Nursing from Case Western Reserve University Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing, Cleveland, with a Clinical Specialization in Cardiovascular Critical Care Nursing, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from University of North Carolina at Greensboro.