Slusser Appointed AVP/Chief Nurse

Kim M. Slusser, MSN, RN, has been appointed assistant vice president, DUHS/Chief Oncology Nursing Services for Duke Cancer Institute, Duke University Health System.

In her new role, Slusser is responsible for leading Nursing, Quality, Safety & Outcomes and Care Redesign, within the oncology service line at Duke University Health System.

“Kim will be responsible for developing and sustaining a comprehensive, evidence-based nursing professional practice model and will assume accountability for the outcomes of the oncology nursing practice across the health system,” said Lori Pickens, MHA, DCI administrator and associate vice president of Oncology Services for Duke University Health System.

Previously, from 2015 to 2017, Slusser was affiliated with Winship Cancer Institute at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, where she served as vice president of Cancer Nursing. She was responsible for the development and oversight of oncology nursing practice, clinical quality, safety, outcomes, education and nursing research across the health system.

From 2008 to 2015, Slusser served as clinical operations director for Duke University Hospital where she was responsible for the overall nursing direction of adult oncology clinical areas. In 2013 she received Duke University Health System’s Friends of Nursing Excellence Award in Nursing Leadership.

Her other affiliations include Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Illinois; Hospice of Dayton, in Dayton, Ohio; and Stouder Memorial Hospital, in Troy, Ohio.

Slusser received a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from Wright State University, in Dayton, Ohio, and a Master of Science degree in Nursing, with a focus on End of Life Care, from George Washington University, in Washington, D.C.

“I am excited to return to DUHS and Duke Cancer Institute,” said Slusser. “I look forward to supporting our teams in living out our core values of caring for our patients, their loved ones and each other. I believe everybody wants to feel like they make a difference every day they come to work — whether in innovation and research, education and training, or in clinical care delivery. I want to contribute and support these efforts.”

Slusser has certifications in Hospice and Palliative Care Nursing and ONS Chemotherapy and Biotherapy Administration and is a member of the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO). Her work has been published in multiple publications, including Cancer Nursing Principles and Practice and Cancer Symptom Management.

Slusser assumed her role as assistant vice president, DUHS/Chief Oncology Nursing Services on March 13.