Sarah Bemis, DNP, BA, RN

Dr. Sarah Bemis is a distinguished leader dedicated to transforming community health through strategic workforce and policy reforms. She holds degrees in Criminal Justice, Nursing, Nursing Education, and a Doctorate in Nursing Practice in Professional Leadership.

Dr. Bemis began her nursing career in the Emergency Department at Arkansas Children’s in Little Rock, advancing to Trauma Program Coordinator. She played a key role in the development of a unified trauma system in Arkansas and served as the first Trauma Regional Advisory Council Injury Prevention Committee Chair. As the first Nursing Research Fellow at Arkansas Children’s, she established a standardized inpatient injury prevention program and advocated for policies to enhance pediatric health outcomes and improve access to care.

In 2016, Dr. Bemis transitioned to academia, teaching at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and Capella University. In 2021, she served as Assistant Director for the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing at the University of Arkansas, leading health care workforce initiatives. In 2023, she was elected President of the Arkansas Center for Nursing, collaborating with Senator Kim Hammer to pass nursing legislation and develop workforce funding initiatives. These enabled Arkansas nurses to participate in apprenticeship training models for the first time and established a statewide portal to monitor clinical placement utilization and other workforce metrics for health care professionals. Her contributions were recognized when she was named one of the Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas.

In 2024, Dr. Bemis joined the Heartland Whole Health Institute as Associate Vice President of Workforce and Policy Affairs, where she advances policy priorities that promote value-based care, enhance reimbursement rates, improve specialty care access for rural communities, and support workforce initiatives such as participation in the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact.