Dr. Styles was the president of the American Nurses Association from 1986 to 1988, and wrote five books and many articles published in medical journals.
[1] She graduated from Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania with degrees in biology and chemistry, and earned her master's degree in nursing at Yale University, and her doctorate in education from the University of Florida.
[2] Styles played a significant role in efforts to develop stricter certification and credentialing systems for nurses.
The Margretta Madden Styles Credentialing Research Grant, presented by the ANCC, encourages research on the impact of credentialing processes on nurses and the profession, as well as the accumulation of evidenced-based data to support quality patient care.
Their son, Mike Styles, was the founder and race director of the Midnight Sun Run in Fairbanks, Alaska.