The Arnold P. Gold Foundation and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) have announced Larner Associate Professor of Family Medicine Stephen Berns, M.D., and palliative care nurse Kacey Boyle, M.S.P.C., RN, CHPN, creators of TalkVermont at University of Vermont Health, as the 2025 recipients of the AACN-Gold Interprofessional Humanism in Healthcare Award.

TalkVermont is a multi-component intervention to improve conversations between clinicians and seriously ill patients across UVM Health, fostering meaningful and critical conversations with patients and their families around their goals of care. TalkVermont uses evidence-based methods, developed with national innovators, to train clinicians in state-of the art communication around serious illness and re-engineer the practice environment to support timely, effective communication.

This prestigious annual award recognizes high-impact collaboration by nurses and physicians that advances humanistic care. Together, Berns and Boyle founded TalkVermont in 2018 to address a “conversation gap,” in which more than 95 percent of clinicians reported that goals-of-care discussions were important—yet fewer than 20 percent routinely had them.

“Clinically excellent care that is kind, safe, and trustworthy is only possible when we truly communicate. Humanism in health care does not happen in a silo. It requires collaboration across fields and disciplines, and we need leaders like Dr. Stephens and Ms. Boyle who model the way.” — Kathleen Reeves, M.D., FAAP, president and CEO of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation

“Their collaboration has inspired a cultural shift across UVM Health,” Jennifer Franzoni, M.S.W., UVM Health director of case management, wrote in her nomination. “Serious illness communication is no longer viewed as the domain of palliative care alone; it is a shared responsibility, supported by a shared language and skill set. This systemic change has improved patient care, strengthened teamwork, and elevated the culture of compassion across UVM Health.” 

Berns and Boyle serve as director and associate director, respectively, of TalkVermont. Boyle is an advance care planning facilitator at Iris Healthcare/Aledade. Berns is division chief of hospice and palliative medicine at UVM Health and holds the Holly and Bob Miller Endowed Chair in Palliative Medicine at the Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine at the University of Vermont.

“Humanistic health care is built on a strong foundation of trust and open communication between patients, nurses, physicians, and all members of the health care team,” said Deborah Trautman, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, president and CEO of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. “On behalf of academic nursing, we applaud the leaders of TalkVermont for their commitment to compassion, communication, and collaboration—the cornerstones of high-quality patient- and family-centered care.”

Berns and Boyle will receive their award and present a session at the 2026 Gold Humanism Summit, the Gold Foundation’s national conference, in Pittsburgh in September 2026.

“We are honored to recognize Dr. Stephens Berns and nurse Kacey Boyle for their remarkable work at TalkVermont, fostering greater communication in health care,” said Kathleen Reeves, M.D., FAAP, president and CEO of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation. “Clinically excellent care that is kind, safe, and trustworthy is only possible when we truly communicate. Humanism in health care does not happen in a silo. It requires collaboration across fields and disciplines, and we need leaders like Dr. Stephens and Ms. Boyle who model the way.”

TalkVermont has had an enduring impact. Since its creation in 2018, TalkVermont has trained more than 1,000 learners and 1,600 practicing health care professionals, including physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, and others. Ninety-nine percent of participants report that they would recommend the course and 96 percent plan to change their behavior based on the training, according to Franzoni.

The Serious Illness Conversation Navigator, a system in the electronic health record that Berns and Boyle helped establish, shows the impact of TalkVermont: Serious illness conversations have risen by 33 percent for health care professionals who have participated in TalkVermont, representing an additional 40,000 such conversations across the UVM Health system. 

“On behalf of academic nursing, we applaud the leaders of TalkVermont for their commitment to compassion, communication, and collaboration—the cornerstones of high-quality patient- and family-centered care.” — Deborah Trautman, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, president and CEO of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing

“The combination of person-centered skill development with interprofessional collaboration has changed not just what clinicians say, but how they think about their work,” Franzoni wrote in her award nomination of Berns and Boyle. “One graduate reflected, ‘It reminded me why I went into medicine … to be present, even when there are no perfect words.’ By teaching clinicians across disciplines to listen deeply, ask meaningful questions, and respond with empathy, Dr. Berns and Ms. Boyle restore the human connection at the center of care.”

Shalina Nair, M.D., M.B.A., chair of the Department of Family Medicine at UVM Health and Morris Goldman ’29, M.D.’32, Professor of Family Medicine at the Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine, congratulated her colleague. “Through a career defined by purpose and grounded in humanism, Dr. Berns has shaped both patients’ lives and future clinicians,” she said. “This national recognition honors his leadership and impact in serious illness communication and inclusive, team-based care and brings distinction to the Larner College of Medicine, reflecting its enduring commitment to compassionate, values-driven care.”

About the Partnering Organizations

The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) is the national voice for academic nursing, representing more than 875 schools of nursing nationwide. AACN establishes quality standards for nursing education, influences the nursing profession to improve health care, and promotes public support of baccalaureate and graduate nursing education, research, and practice.

The Arnold P. Gold Foundation is the leading national nonprofit organization that champions humanism in health care, defined as clinically excellent care that is kind, safe, and trustworthy. The Gold Foundation is home of the White Coat Ceremony, the Gold Humanism Honor Society, the Gold Humanism Summit, and more programs and tools that create and sustain the human connection in health care.