Dr. M. Lindell Joseph is a healthcare leader, innovator, professor, and distinguished scholar in nursing. She teaches leadership, innovation, health systems improvement, and project development within the College of Nursing MSN-NSA and DNP programs.

At a national level, Dr. Joseph serves on the AONL Foundation Board of Directors and is currently the research committee co-chair. She co-leads the ALSN and AONL-F, Leadership and Systems Science Council.  She chairs the American Association for Colleges of Nursing Health Policy Advisory Council(HPAC).  Lastly, she is the co-founder and chair of the National Consortium for Innovativeness in Healthcare.

From 2016-2018, Dr. Joseph served on the American Organization for Nurse Executives (AONE) Board of Directors and was an Ex Officio Member of the American Hospital Association, Regional Policy Board for Region 6 (Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, North Dakota, and South Dakota). In 2014- 2016, she served on the Board of Directors for CGEAN ( now ALSN) and was the Vice President for Programs and Professional Development. While in that role, she served as the Chair for the International Nursing Administration Research Conference (INARC) in 2014 and 2016. 

At the university and college level, she is involved in faculty governance. She has served as a senator and councilor on the Faculty Senate. She is the current chair of the College of Nursing Faculty Organization and has served as the past chair of the Council on Curriculum. 

Before joining the University of Iowa, she was the co-developer and lead research scientist for an eight-hospital healthcare system nursing research and innovation program for a healthcare system in the Southern United States. In that role, she managed the knowledge enterprise for evidence-based nursing and leadership practice. Dr. Joseph used research and evaluation methods to enable leadership effectiveness and nursing practice council effectiveness. She also evaluated workplace cultures and social systems to redesign leadership practices, nursing practices, and patient care. She co-developed and directed the Center for Continuing Education early in her career. In that role, she directed corporate-level interdisciplinary continuing education using creative teaching strategies, multiple evaluation levels, and industry partnerships.

Dr. Joseph’s research program focuses on Leadership and Health Systems Effectiveness. Specifically, Innovativeness across Practice and Academia, Professional Identity in Nursing, Leadership Science, Nurse Manager Recognition, and the General Effectiveness Multilevel Theory for Shared Governance (GEMS Theory). 

In 2018, she was inducted as a Fellow into the American  Academy of Nursing; in 2021, she was inducted as a Fellow of The American Organization for Nursing Leadership; and in 2022-2024, she was named a Distinguished Scholar in Nursing within the College of Nursing. She is active in her local church community, St. Patrick in Iowa City, where she leads the Healthy Habits and Garden Ministry.