Barbara J Riegel, DNSc, RN, FAAN, FAHA
Professor of Nursing; and Interim Chair, Family and Community Health Division
Contact Information
University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
Room 335 Fagin Hall
418 Curie Blvd.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4217
UNITED STATES
tel: (215) 898-9927
email: briegel@nursing.upenn.edu
Heart failure remains the most common cardiac diagnosis in elders and one of the major reasons for hospital admission. Dr. Riegel provides national and international leadership in clinical research with this patient population. She is widely known for her studies of heart failure self-care and disease management and is currently Editor of The Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing.
Teaching
Dr. Riegel teaches NURS 104 "Healthy Life Styles I" in the sophomore year of the nursing program. In this course we examine the risk factors for various diseases, ways to decrease risk factors, and nurses' roles in prevention. This is the first clinical course in the nursing program. Students learn skills in the School of Nursing laboratory and then apply those skills and the material learned in class to various community settings.
Research
Since 1994, Dr. Riegel has led interdisciplinary research in chronic heart failure, an extremely common and debilitating syndrome. Approximately 550,000 new cases of heart failure occur each year in the United States and one year mortality rates for newly diagnosed cases averages 35-45%. In her research, Dr. Riegel has tested various disease management approaches and developed psychometrically sound methods of measuring the self-care of persons with heart failure.
• Currently Funded Grants
• NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health
Clinical Practice
Dr. Riegel is certified as a Clinical Nurse Specialist by the American Nurses Association. Since moving from San Diego, California to join the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Riegel has maintained her formal relationship with Sharp HealthCare in San Diego as a Clinical Researcher. Her research is conducted in that environment in preparation for direct implementation into clinical practice. Dr. Riegel has published her clinically relevant research widely in peer reviewed journals and books.
Honors/Credentials
A selection of her honors include the first annual Nursing Research Award of the Heart Failure Society of America, the Distinguished Research Lectureship Award from the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, the Heart Failure Research Prize from the American Heart Association Council on Cardiovascular Nursing and Otsuka America, Inc., and research awards from the Gamma Gamma Chapter, Sigma Theta Tau. She received the San Diego State University Alumni Association Distinguished Alumna Award and the award for Outstanding Faculty Contributions. Dr. Riegel is a Fellow in both the American Academy of Nursing and the American Heart Association.
| Publications (select year) 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 and Prior | In Press | More Publications |
The research we have been doing into the self-care practices of people with heart failure is so exciting to me. And, I've found that this topic resonates with students, clinicians, and other investigators. This excitement stems from the fact that patients who don't get involved in their own care have extremely poor quality of life and die earlier than they need to. 