The Outstanding Research Article Award is just one way to honor the research that is conducted and subsequently published in GNJ to advance the science of gastroenterology nursing. Over the past few years, the decision on who should get the award has become increasingly difficult due to the increased number of research articles published in GNJ. To this end, the SGNA Research Committee has developed criteria to assist in scoring the research articles (see below). The use of these criteria has made the process much more objective. In addition, these criteria are reviewed annually by the members of the Research Committee to assure relevancy. Research Committee members apply these criteria and score all of the research articles annually to determine the winner. Totals are tabulated and the article that receives the highest score is the one that receives the annual award. The award recognizes the author(s)' contribution to the advancement of gastroenterology nursing.