Full Name
Tara Cortes
Job Title
Executive Director and Professor
Company
New York University Meyers College of Nursing
Speaker Bio
Tara Cortes is recognized for her distinguished career spanning executive leadership, nursing education, research and practice. She is currently the Executive Director Professor at the Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing at New York University Rory Meyers College of Nursing. Dr. Cortes has provided significant contributions to advance the health of older adults, particularly those who are frail and vulnerable with limited access or voice in the health care system. Importantly, she has developed collaborative interprofessional models of practice and education in traditional as well as nontraditional settings to enhance the capacity of the workforce to provide age-friendly quality care for the aging population
Prior to joining the NYU College of Nursing, Dr. Cortes was President and CEO of Lighthouse International, a leading not-for-profit organization, dedicated to fighting vision loss and helping people prevent vision impairment. She mindfully transformed the organization to a health care provider from a social charity, and was recognized worldwide for her leadership in helping to move the field of vision loss to health care from that of disability. Dr. Cortes spent the initial phase of her career in nursing education at Hunter College, and then as the Director of Nursing Research and Information Systems at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. She was the Chief Nursing Officer at Rockefeller University Hospital and continued her career in nursing leadership and hospital administration at Mount Sinai Medical Center and at Bridgeport Hospital, before assuming the senior leadership role at Lighthouse International.
In 2013, Dr. Cortes was appointed as a Health and Aging Policy Fellow in the American Political Science Association Congressional Program and served as a Senior Advisor at CMS in the Office of Medicare and Medicaid Coordination Office. In this role she has worked with multiple organizations in Washington addressing the needs of frail adults who are Medicare and Medicaid eligible. Dr. Cortes was also appointed by Community Catalyst as a geriatric consultant to the Medicare Rights Center to work with New York State on the implementation of the Fully Integrated Duals Advantage (FIDA) program, a CMS demonstration project.
Dr. Cortes is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and a Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine. She is a Past Fellow of the prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Executive Nurse Fellows Program. She received the Distinguished Alumni Award from New York University, where she completed her PhD and Masters degrees. Her BSN is from Villanova University, where she served on the Board of Trustees for 10 years. In 2011 she was awarded the Medallion for Outstanding Contributions to the Profession from Villanova University College of Nursing. She was named one of the New York Women’s Agenda 2011 STARS for exemplifying the qualities embodied in NYWA’s mission to advocate and collaborate for the interests of New York women in public policy decisions. Dr. Cortes has served on many boards and is presently a member of the board at Archcare: The Catholic Healthcare System of New York, Pacific College of Health and Science, MedReview, and the American Assisted Living Nurses Association. She was appointed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services to the Advisory Committee for Primary Care Training in Medicine and Dentistry and served on an NIH expert panel to review the efficacy and safety of COVID19 vaccine protocols for older adults.
Prior to joining the NYU College of Nursing, Dr. Cortes was President and CEO of Lighthouse International, a leading not-for-profit organization, dedicated to fighting vision loss and helping people prevent vision impairment. She mindfully transformed the organization to a health care provider from a social charity, and was recognized worldwide for her leadership in helping to move the field of vision loss to health care from that of disability. Dr. Cortes spent the initial phase of her career in nursing education at Hunter College, and then as the Director of Nursing Research and Information Systems at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. She was the Chief Nursing Officer at Rockefeller University Hospital and continued her career in nursing leadership and hospital administration at Mount Sinai Medical Center and at Bridgeport Hospital, before assuming the senior leadership role at Lighthouse International.
In 2013, Dr. Cortes was appointed as a Health and Aging Policy Fellow in the American Political Science Association Congressional Program and served as a Senior Advisor at CMS in the Office of Medicare and Medicaid Coordination Office. In this role she has worked with multiple organizations in Washington addressing the needs of frail adults who are Medicare and Medicaid eligible. Dr. Cortes was also appointed by Community Catalyst as a geriatric consultant to the Medicare Rights Center to work with New York State on the implementation of the Fully Integrated Duals Advantage (FIDA) program, a CMS demonstration project.
Dr. Cortes is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and a Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine. She is a Past Fellow of the prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Executive Nurse Fellows Program. She received the Distinguished Alumni Award from New York University, where she completed her PhD and Masters degrees. Her BSN is from Villanova University, where she served on the Board of Trustees for 10 years. In 2011 she was awarded the Medallion for Outstanding Contributions to the Profession from Villanova University College of Nursing. She was named one of the New York Women’s Agenda 2011 STARS for exemplifying the qualities embodied in NYWA’s mission to advocate and collaborate for the interests of New York women in public policy decisions. Dr. Cortes has served on many boards and is presently a member of the board at Archcare: The Catholic Healthcare System of New York, Pacific College of Health and Science, MedReview, and the American Assisted Living Nurses Association. She was appointed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services to the Advisory Committee for Primary Care Training in Medicine and Dentistry and served on an NIH expert panel to review the efficacy and safety of COVID19 vaccine protocols for older adults.
Speaking At
