Dr. Martha Libster is an educator, healthcare historian, and Herbal Diplomat® known internationally for her work on the complementarity of nursing practice and healing traditions, in particular the use of botanical therapies.  She is the author of: Demonstrating Care - The Art of Integrative Nursing, The Integrative Herb Guide for Nurses (book and CD-ROM) and Herbal Diplomats: The Contribution of Early American Nurses (1830-1860) to 19th Century Healthcare Reform and the Botanical Medical Movement for which she received the American Association for the History of Nursing 2005 Lavinia Dock award for Outstanding Research and Writing.  Her new book Enlightened Charity documents the pioneering work of American Sisters of Charity nurses in th19th century who sustained a centuries-old holistic healing tradition of their French predecessors in caring for the poor, sick, and mentally ill.  Dr. Libster is the director of Crossing the Bamboo Bridge, a community-building project in collaboration with Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society in Nursing, that promotes global partnership and cultural diplomacy between nurses and traditional, community healers.  She is a member of the advisory board of the American Botanical Council and is chair of the Ethics and Advocacy Committee of the American Holistic Nurses Association. 

Dr. Libster has spoken for the World Health Organization, the Royal College of Nursing, the United States Botanic Garden, professional organizations, healthcare providers, and the public on integrative care, botanical therapies, self care, healing traditions and the history of healthcare and health reform.  She has over 20 years of clinical experience in a wide variety of healthcare settings where she has developed the integration of conventional nursing and healing traditions.  Dr. Libster holds Bachelor degrees in dance education/movement therapy from New York University and in nursing from Mount St. Mary’s College, and a Master’s degree in psychiatric nursing with a specialty in infant mental health from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.  Her doctorate degree is in Humanities – Healthcare History from Oxford Brookes University, Oxford,England.  She is presently an Associate Professor of Nursing at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina where she lives in a historic home and herb garden with her husband Harold and her West Highland White Terrier Sheeva.