News Archives

Penn Nursing Podcast Special Edition: Advanced Care Planning in the Era of COVID-19

April 3 -

The number of COVID-19 cases continues to grow. This week’s edition of Amplify Nursing features Elise Tarbi   and Brianna Morgan , who are both board-certified Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioners with advanced certifications in Hospice and Palliative care, as well as doctoral students at Penn Nursing. With demands on both hospitals and providers expanding, and resources predicted to become scarce, there has been heightened public discourse about rationing. Both will discuss how advance care planning has increased in importance in this landscape in order to support people with an increased risk of dying, as well as the healthcare providers and family members who may be facing these difficult decisions. Listen here  or wherever you listen to podcasts. 

Big Data Helps Shape Patient Care: Nursing scientists use large-scale research for outsize results

April 1 -

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has rallied behind healthcare workers—to both protect and support this critical community that continues to save lives in the face of personal danger. Now more than ever, it’s essential to understand how this workforce of nurses, doctors, and other indispensable personnel can be more effective through scientific research.

Researchers, Schools Answer the Call for Personal Protective Equipment and Critical Supplies

March 31 -

Penn Nursing doing its part by donating face masks, boxes of gloves, N95 masks, isolation gowns, surgical gowns, eye shields, caps, anesthesia machines, and a ventilator to the University of Pennsylvania Health System.

Humans of Penn Nursing: Sarah Shin, Nu’18, GNu’19

March 31 - “As an intensive care nurse, I spend many shifts face-to-face with suffering, pain, and death. My critically ill patients fight to live, day in and day out. With all the procedures, imaging, monitors, lights, beeping, and poking, patients have asked me if it is easier to die than to suffer.

Penn Nursing Podcast Special Edition UPDATE: COVID-19

March 27 -

COVID-19 is sweeping across the country with the number of cases rising dramatically. It’s been two weeks since Penn Nursing’s Alison Buttenheim, PhD , a public health researcher and behavioral epidemiologist and Penn Medicine’s Carolyn Cannuscio, ScD , a social epidemiologist, joined Amplify Nursing to discuss the coronavirus. Since a lot has occurred in that time, they are back with an update to discuss where we are at in this pandemic, how it has been handled locally and nationally so far, and what is still to come. Listen here or wherever you listen to podcasts. 

ENRS Names Chao a ‘Rising Star’

March 24 -

Penn Nursing ’s Ariana Chao, PhD, CRNP , Assistant Professor in the Department of Biobehavioral Health Sciences , will be awarded with the 2020 Rising Star Research Award from the Eastern Nursing Research Society (ERNS), during its 32nd Annual Scientific Sessions (virtual this year) in Boston, Massachusetts, March 26-27, 2020.  This award recognizes a Junior Investigator that has shown promise in establishing a program of health and/or nursing research.

Charlotte Cecarelli, Nu’22

March 23 - “One of the aspects of Penn that I am most grateful for is the opportunity to explore nursing through many different experiences. These experiences I have had are what sparked my interest in neonatal nursing beginning in my freshman year. My developed passion has pushed me past boundaries of exploration and has inspired me to become the best nurse possible.

Nurse Practitioner Clinical Settings Key to Delivery of Patient-Centered Care

March 19 -

It’s long been understood that care that respects and integrates the wants, needs, and preferences of patients results in higher ratings of satisfaction and improved health outcomes. Yet, several barriers still often impede the delivery of patient-centered care. A new study from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing) shows that organizational supports for nurse practitioners (NPs) can enhance their ability to deliver patient-centered care.

Humans of Penn Nursing: Lisa Lewis, PhD, RN, FAAN

March 17 - “My heart flutters a bit. This happens every time I am getting ready to share my story. It is even scarier now that I am writing it down as a permanent document – for the world to see.

Penn Nursing Podcast Special: COVID-19

March 16 -

As the COVID-19 pandemic grows across the US, Penn Nursing ’s Alison Buttenheim, PhD , a public health researcher and behavioral epidemiologist and Penn Medicine’s Carolyn Cannuscio, ScD , a social epidemiologist, join Amplify Nursing to discuss the coronavirus – what we need to know, what we need to do to help lessen the spread, and what we should expect in the days and weeks to come. Listen here or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Lauren Jones, Nu’20

March 10 - “This past summer I spent working as a patient care tech in a hospital, where I floated between a few different floors. One day I was in the ICU and a patient had recently been extubated, and I went into her room with the nurse to check on her. The patient was saying a lot of things that didn’t make sense, but she kept referring to the nurse and me as her ‘guardian angels.’

Compton Selected for Induction to the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame

March 9 -

Penn Nursing ’s Peggy Compton, PhD, RN, FAAN , the van Ameringen Chair in Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing and an Associate Professor in the Department of Family and Community Health , will be honored by Sigma Theta Tau International  (STTI) for her contributions to the nursing profession during the 31st International Nursing Research Congress in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, July 23-27, 2020. 

Firearm Violence Solutions from a Public Health Perspective

March 6 -

While firearm violence is a major public health challenge in the United States, it has often been considered a law enforcement issue with only law enforcement solutions. An article by two University of Pennsylvania researchers advises that treating firearm violence as a disease and taking a public health approach to prevention and treatment can help reduce its harms.

Penn Nursing Ranked #1 Nursing School for Fifth Straight Year

March 4 -

The University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing) continues its streak of being the number one nursing school in the world according to a recent ranking by QS World University . The rankings highlight the world’s top universities in 48 different subject areas based on academic reputation, employer reputation, and research impact. This is the fifth consecutive year that Penn Nursing has taken the top spot.

Arnold Ventures Awards $6 Million Grant to Study Replication of Penn Nursing’s Transitional Care Model

March 4 -

The study will evaluate the effectiveness of TCM in reducing rehospitalizations and promote widespread use of the program in a number of health systems.

Holly Bischof, RN, Nu’18, GNu’20

March 3 - “Blue jolly ranchers are my favorite. That’s a good thing because my iLEAPP patient’s favorite were green apple.

Improved Work Environments Enhance Patient and Nurse Satisfaction

March 2 -

Healthcare provider burnout is a mounting public health crisis with up to half of all physicians and one in three nurses reporting high burnout, data show. Burnout rates among nurses also correlate with lower patient satisfaction. While both factors are recognized, little is known about how effective interventions in nurse working conditions, managerial support, or resource enhancement can lessen burnout and improve patient satisfaction.

For Babies with Congenital Heart Disease, Skin-to-skin Contact Proves Safe and Beneficial

February 28 -

Research from Penn Nursing and CHOP argues that for this population, “kangaroo care” can and should become routine.

Lindsay Krott, Nu’21

February 25 - This past summer, I interned at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) on the Opioid and Substance Abuse Prevention Team. I applied on a whim because I wanted to do something nursing-related but also something that would expand my view of nursing. I was always told that nursing was expansive far beyond just a hospital setting, but I knew I needed to experience this for myself.

PA School Nurses on the Frontlines of the Opioid Epidemic

February 24 -

As opioid overdoses continue to grab headlines, more states are providing their communities with easier access to naloxone, which can prevent death by reversing opioid overdoses. But while naloxone may be available at township buildings, libraries, or other community locations, little is known about how schools maintain a supply and use naloxone to prepare for treating overdose.

Gift to Barbara Bates Center Underscores Rich Chapter of Civil Rights and Nursing History

February 21 - This month, an important chapter in black history is getting some well-deserved attention—as well as a generous donation. The archives of West Philadelphia’s Mercy Douglass Hospital School of Nursing have been housed for decades at Penn Nursing’s Barbara Bates Center for the Study of the History of Nursing.

Penn Proposal Advances to Top 100 in MacArthur Foundation’s $100 Million Grant Competition

February 19 -

A proposal spearheaded by the University of Pennsylvania has been named in the Top 100 in the MacArthur Foundation 100&Change competition , which offers a single $100 million grant to help solve one of the world’s most critical social challenges. Penn Nursing’s Alison Buttenheim, PhD, MBA , and Penn Medicine’s Harsha Thirumurthy, PhD , are co-leads on the global project. Both are associate directors at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Health Incentives & Behavioral Economics (CHIBE ).

Innovating for Life and Living Campaign Tour: Final Stop in NYC

February 19 - While Penn Nursing’s Innovating for Life and Living Campaign continues, the multi-city tour came to a close in New York City on February 11, 2020, where it highlighted the 30^th anniversary of the School’s Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research (CHOPR) and efforts to raise $1 million for the Center’s future . The event featured Margaret Bond Simon Dean of Nursing, Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN , and a panel discussion led by CHOPR Founder and Director, Linda H. Aiken, PhD, RN, FAAN, FRCN .

Breanne Mastromarino, RN, Nu’19

February 18 - “My experience as a Penn Nursing student has been colored by both triumphs and challenges that together became the foundation of my resilience as a nurse. One particular challenge occurred during my second year when I did not pass my first high-stakes pass/fail simulation assessment.

PIK Professor Named Medical Pioneer

February 17 -

Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, MD, MBA , a world-renowned expert in health policy and geriatric medicine, has been named one of Becker’s Hospital Review’s ’25 medical pioneers to celebrate this Black History Month.’ She has joint appointments in Penn Nursing, the Perelman School of Medicine, and the Wharton School.

Second Annual Story Slam

February 14 - On Wednesday, February 12, nurses (and one “non-nurse” who has been on a personal journey alongside many nurses for 20 years) from Penn Nursing and Penn Medicine came together to share their true, personal, and heartfelt and inspiring stories of courage in front of a sold out crowd at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts.

Tarik Khan, MSN, RN, FNP-BC, GR’22

February 11 - “I know what it’s like to receive bad patient care. Ignored. Be given poor advice. Left in the dark. Patronized. Judged. Disrespected. Dealt with like I was faking.

Penn Nursing Professor Part of Team Establishing First-of-its-Kind HIV ‘Nudge Unit’ in South Africa

February 10 -

Associate Professor Alison Buttenheim, PhD, MBA , who is also one of the Associate Directors of Penn’s Center for Health Incentives & Behavioral Economics (CHIBE) , is part of the team that recently received a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to establish a nudge unit focused on HIV prevention in South Africa.

New Chair of Penn Nursing’s Department of Family and Community Health

February 7 -

José A. Bauermeister, PhD, MPH , Presidential Professor of Nursing, will be the next Chair of the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing’s (Penn Nursing) Department of Family and Community Health, effective July 1, 2020.

Penn Nursing Launches New Podcast

February 5 - Amplify Nursing, the new podcast created and hosted by Marion Leary and Angelarosa DiDonato, features nurses who are leading the way in nursing science, policy, and innovation. Made possible by the Krista and Rich Pinola Fund for Innovation in Nursing, new episodes will be available every other Wednesday through iTunes, Spotify, GooglePlay, and more.