IMPART Alliance assistant director Bethany Duyser, DNP, RN, AGPCNP, has been named a Rising Star by the Gerontological Advanced Practice Nurses Association (GAPNA), a national honor recognizing emerging leaders who are working to improve care for older adults.
GAPNA describes its Rising Stars as professionals who demonstrate passion, innovation, and a clear commitment to strengthening the future of advanced practice nursing. Bethany’s leadership in education, systems development, and direct care workforce advancement earned her the honor.
Bethany sees the recognition not as a personal award, but as a motivation to continue advancing the work she believes is necessary for the field.
“It is important to recognize people who are trying new things, because it encourages them to keep going. This award is not so much an affirmation as it is encouragement. You have an idea you are working toward, and it is on you to take it to the next step,” she said.
Her career began in 2008 when she entered critical care nursing and discovered a deep commitment to caring for older adults. The work drew her in because of the trust and vulnerability that define care relationships.
“People trust you, count on you, and invite you into some of the most intimate moments of their lives. It’s deeply engaging with the human experience,” she said.
This understanding shaped her pursuit of advanced education and her long-term engagement with gerontology.
As she completed her Doctor of Nursing Practice at Michigan State University, Bethany focused on system-level improvement, evidence-informed practice and the central role of education in care quality. Those interests led her to IMPART Alliance, where she now leads statewide training programs for Michigan’s direct care workforce. Her work involves developing curriculum, supporting instructors, collecting evaluation data and teaching direct care workers the critical skills and judgment required for person-centered support.
“Bethany has been invaluable to the development of our training program since day one. She has built it into a well-respected program with multiple service lines that can be scaled statewide. She is uniquely positioned for this work, and her leadership is crucial to strengthening a high-caliber resource for Michigan’s direct care workforce,” said Clare Luz, Ph.D., executive director of IMPART Alliance. “This award reflects the depth of Bethany’s impact on healthcare. Her contributions set a standard of excellence that uplifts the entire field.”
Bethany believes the future of health care depends on a fuller recognition of the essential role direct care workers play in supporting Michigan’s aging and disabled populations.
“Long-term supports and services are a life-sustaining organ system and their functional unit is the direct care worker,” she said. “If you want to understand long-term supports and services, you have to understand the direct care workforce.”
She views investment in these workers as inseparable from improving outcomes for the people they support.
Bethany has been a GAPNA member since 2012. She now contributes at both the local and national levels, including service on the Health Affairs Committee. She said her involvement has helped her learn more about the wide range of roles in the field and its emerging needs.
“There are so many different ways to do this work. Being in a professional organization helps you learn from people who are doing things you did not even know were possible,” she said.
She also emphasizes the importance of professional identity and shared responsibility across care professions.
“Everyone in their profession is a leader. Everyone is a steward of their profession,” she said.
She notes that while fields such as nursing have established structures for accountability and advancement, direct care workers are still defining that framework.
Bethany believes professionalization and expanded education will give the workforce the visibility and structure needed to shape its own standards and mission.
“Direct care workers are already doing the work. Professionalization offers the opportunity to decide what the standards should be and what the mission of the profession is,” she said.
Looking ahead, she hopes to expand interdisciplinary education that helps direct care workers, nurses, physicians and others collaborate more effectively.
“The interests of older adults and people with disabilities and the interests of direct care workers are inextricably tied. Anything you do to advance one advances the other,” she said.
Bethany’s Rising Star award reflects her growing impact, but she remains focused on strengthening the systems that support dependable, person-centered care.
“This is a people-powered profession,” she said. “The best way to make an impact is to invest in the people providing care.”
For media inquiries, please contact the IMPART Alliance communications team at COM.Communications.IMPART@msu.edu
This project is supported by grants to MSU IMPART Alliance administered by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
