Speaker Profile
David C. Benton

David C. Benton RGN, RMN, BSc, MSc, MPhil, PhD, FFNF, FRCN

Nursing, Physiology and Biophysics
Chicago, Illinois, United States of America

Connect with the speaker?

David Benton took up his current post as Chief Executive Officer of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing in the United States on the 1st of October 2015. For the previous 10 years, he worked at the International Council of Nurses in Geneva, Switzerland, first as their consultant on nursing and health policy specializing in regulation, licensing, and education; and then as chief executive officer.

Dr. Benton qualified as a general and mental health nurse at the then Highland College of Nursing and Midwifery in Inverness, Scotland. His M Phil research degree focused on the application of computer-assisted learning to post-basic nurse education. He has, during the past 30 years published articles in relation to research, practice, education, leadership, regulation, and policy topics. He has a Ph.D. Summa Cum Laude from the University of Completeness for his work researching an international comparative analysis of the regulation of the nursing practice.

Dr. Benton has held senior roles for 25 years across a range of organizations. These roles have included working as Executive Director of Nursing at a Health Authority in London, as a senior civil servant in Northern and Yorkshire Region, as Chief Executive of a Nurse Regulatory body in Scotland, and as Nurse Director of a University Trust Health System.

Dr. Benton is the recipient of several awards and honors. He is particularly proud of being awarded the inaugural Nursing Standard Leadership award in 1993. He was presented with Fellowship of the Florence Nightingale Foundation in 2001, awarded Fellowship of the Royal College of Nursing in 2003 for his contribution to health and nursing policy, and most recently became a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing in 2015.
EVENTS & ACTIVITIES (Speaking, Spoken, and Authored)