Kathryn Barnard was a previous board and Founding Member of ZERO TO THREE
Contributions to the Field
Barnard’s research focused on the mother-child relationship, especially with neonates. She earned her doctorate from the University of Washington in 1972 with a dissertation on the role of rocking in infant development. Barnard also founded the Nursing Child Assessment Satellite training (NCSAT), which offers evidence-based training programs to parents and healthcare providers. Through the NCSAT program the Parent-Child Interaction Feeding and Teaching Scale (PCI) evolved. It was the first parent-child interaction tool in clinical research and continues to be the gold standard to determine a child’s cognitive development. She was part of the team that invented the isolette neonatal incubator to support sensorimotor development and weight gain. Her research showed how physical contact is important to development and created interventions for children at risk of future problems.
Affiliations
Emerita Professor, University of Washington
Honors/Awards
- Gustav O. Leinhard Award, 2002
- Episteme Award, American Academy of Nursing
- Living Legend Award, American Academy of Nursing (2006)
- Lucille Petry Leone Award for Teaching
- M. Scott Award for Contributions to Nursing Science
- Martha May Eliot Award for Leadership in Maternal-Child Health
- Nurse Scientist of the Year Award
