Dr. Diane Pace is a Professor and the Director of Special Academic Programs at the UTHSC College of the Nursing. She obtained her initial preparation as a registered nurse from the Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in Memphis in 1971 and has been dedicated to nursing and nurse leadership throughout her career.

Dr. Pace teaches in the Doctor of Nursing Practice program at the UTHSC College of Nursing, where she is also responsible for identifying and developing new special academic programs or fellowships. In 2017, Dr. Pace worked with colleagues to launch the Registered Nurse First Assistant Program at UTHSC – the first such program in Tennessee. She holds a dual appointment in the College of Medicine/Department of Ob-Gyn with whom she collaborated to establish the first menopause/sexual health clinical practice at Regional One Health. She co-directs a menopause division where she and a collaborating MD mentor residents and partner on women’s health research.

Not only is Dr. Pace dedicated to educating the next generation of nurses, she has attained multiple degrees during her career. She completed a certificate in the Family Nurse Practitioner program at the University of Arkansas Center for Health Sciences in 1976. Dr. Pace completed a BSN from Union University in 1995, an MSN from UTHSC in 1996, and her PhD in nursing from UTHSC in 1998.

Dr. Pace served six years on the Board of Trustees of the North American Menopause and is the only Nurse Practitioner to serve as President of the Society (2012-2013). She is a NAMS-Certified Menopause Practitioner (NCMP) since 2001 and continues to serve on many of the organization’s committees, serving as the only APRN on the Clinical Pearls Task Force. She was named by NAMS as the 2016 Certified Menopause Practitioner of Year.

Dr. Pace has published and presented significantly on menopause and sexual health, is a contributor to three NAMS textbooks, Menopause Practice: A Clinician’s Guide, and helped in the beta-testing of the NAMS Menopause app, MenoPro. She serves as a reviewer for The Journal of Menopause, co-edited a special edition, The role of nursing with the journal Menopause and NAMS over the last 25 years, and served on expert advisory panels which developed and published NAMS international Position Statements. She has also published in book chapters, CE national programs, posters and has given multiple community and media presentations.

Dr. Pace has been inducted as a Fellow in the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, the American Academy of Nurses, and the International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society and the American Nurses Association. She is an active member of the Tennessee Nurses Association (TNA) and served as Chair of the APN Council. She has received numerous awards from TNA and in 2016 was presented their esteemed Award for Nursing Excellence in Advanced Practice. AANP awarded her the 2016 Nurse Practitioner State Excellence Award, She was awarded the 2014 Inspirations in Women’s Health Award from the National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health, the 2012 Memphis Women to Watch Award, the 2011 STTI Chapter Outstanding Clinical Practice Award and the Celebrate Nursing Great 100 Nurses of Memphis Award, as well as many other professional clinical, leadership, and educational awards over her nursing career.