Ms. Novak is a board-certified nurse practitioner in both Adult Health and Advanced Diabetes Management and has over 20 years of experience in diabetes mellitus.
Her passion for assisting people with diabetes began in 2000 with the establishment of the Diabetes Institute of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center located in Bethesda, Maryland. Her many contributions included clinical practice, research, and education. Recognizing an urgent need to fill a void and improve the quality of education in the area of advanced diabetes management, she served as an Adjunct Assistant Professor for The Daniel K. Inouye Graduate School of Nursing of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences located in Bethesda, Maryland from 2008-2018.
She is highly regarded among her peers and students and is sought by other health care providers for her clinical expertise and in-depth knowledge of diabetes mellitus and its associated complications. In 2015, she was designated Master Clinician for her proven leadership and clinical acumen, an accolade that placed her among the top 2% of the health care providers of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
Her patients also recognize her passion and caring attitude, and they have described her as a truly “patient-focused provider” in her approach to their care, always making them feel truly valued. In 2010 she was awarded The DAISY Foundation Award for Extraordinary Nurses – a distinction she cherishes because she was nominated by a patient.
From July of 2016 through January 2020, she was the Director of the Riverside Diabetes Center of Riverside Medical Associates located in Prince George’s County of Maryland. This Center serves a highly diverse population that is predominantly African American and Hispanic and who carry a significant burden for diabetes mellitus and its co-morbidities. She transformed this practice with her knowledge and expertise of the technology available to better manage diabetes and provided insulin pump and continuous glucose monitoring therapies to her patients.
In January 2020, she joined Capital Diabetes & Endocrine Associates of Silver Spring, Maryland as a Diabetes Expert. Bringing her passion, knowledge, skills and leadership to this highly regarded and rapidly growing practice, she will be instrumental with the development of both an insulin pump/CGM program and an obesity management clinic. Her experience with technology will be key to the inclusion of a Remote Patient Monitoring program to enhance patient care.
Ms. Novak has been an active member of the American Association of Diabetes Care and Education Specialists (formerly known as the American Association of Diabetes Educators) since 2005 and is currently co-chairing the Advanced Practice Community of Interest. Her additional professional activities include her current role as a member of the ADA Therapeutic Inertia Steering Committee and is an Associate Editor for Clinical Diabetes, a peer-reviewed publication of the American Diabetes Association. She herself has also authored/co-authored many published peer-reviewed articles, webinars, podcasts and continuing education presentations. She has also provided her expertise pertaining to diabetes as a Contributing Author for the Lippincott Manual of Nursing Practice for the last 4 editions. She is also a Contributing Author for the 1st edition of Genomic Essentials for Graduate Level Nurses.
Her nearly 30 years of nursing experience also includes active duty service as a Commissioned Officer of the United States Army Nurse Corps. Of all of her contributions, she is most proud to have been able to provide the highest-quality health care to the deserving men and women of the US Military.