BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Sandra Ryan, vice president of Walmart Care Clinics, has received the 2016 Loretta C. Ford Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Nurse Practitioner Symposium.

Sandra Ryan with the 2016 Loretta C. Ford Lifetime Achievement Award.

Ryan was presented the award earlier this month at the symposium’s conference and exhibition in Keystone, Colo. With more than 25 years of health care experience in clinical, management and leadership settings, she was recognized for her integrity, professional achievement and advocacy in advanced practice nursing on a national level.

Ford, co-founder of the first nurse practitioner program and a mentor to Ryan, cited Ryan’scontributions to the nurse practitioner profession.

“She is essentially a pioneer, innovator and inspiring leader of this particular movement,” commented Ford, who started the pediatric nurse practitioner program at the University of Colorado in 1965. “There is no one I know who has made more contributions and deserves more credit and recognition than Sandra Ryan.”

Ryan became vice president of Walmart Care Clinics last year, joining the company from CareCam Health Systems, where she spent two years as chief clinical officer. Previously, she served as chief nurse practitioner for Walgreens’ Take Care clinics, overseeing clinical and business operations for 400 in-store clinics and 1,300 nurse practitioners across the country.

Walmart opened its first Care Clinic in 2014 and now operates 18 clinics in Georgia, South Carolina and Texas. The Walmart Care Clinics provide diagnosis and treatment of chronic and acute illnesses as well as preventive health care services, such as immunizations, physical exams and a range of health ­screenings.