Margaret Wineman, dean at the College of Nursing at the University of Akron, wants a greater role for nurses in medical homes, primary care, wellness and fighting the H1N1 flu. Some of her thoughts would require changes in Ohio law. But Wineman thinks proposed legislation on medical homes could open the door to expand duties for nurse practitioners.

If all goes well, the two schools could offer a Doctor of Nursing Practice by 2010. Eighty schools already offer the DNP, which the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. Members of the association decided that, by 2015, the DNP will be required for all advanced practice nurses.

Seven out of 10 Innovation Awards to be given Wednesday evening by NorTech and Crain’s Cleveland Business will go to companies or institutions that have developed products for the biomedical industry.

Technology transfer — moving research out of institutions and into companies that can develop and market products with it — was a healthy enterprise nationwide in fiscal 2007. Northeast Ohio institutions were more successful than those elsewhere in the state at leveraging research spending with licensing revenues.