SHAPING A NEW GENERATION OF MENTAL HEALTH CLINICIANS
From the dean
Dear friend,
Nurses bring together a unique mix of compassion, expertise, leadership, and skill. Their work inspires hope and admiration, and it’s why I’m always excited to share the latest issue of Voice magazine. This publication is our way of shining a spotlight on the incredible achievements of the Connell School of Nursing community and celebrating the profound impact nurses have on health and wellness.
At Boston College, we are dedicated to amplifying the ways in which nurses advance the profession to address society’s most pressing health challenges. The winter 2025 edition of Voice reflects our unwavering commitment to this ideal. Within its pages, you will read about our legacy of excellence and leadership in nurse anesthesia. You will learn about our formative approach to mental health. And you will meet a new cohort of Connell School faculty members who are bringing their own talents and interests to our community. These articles underscore the ways in which we are pushing the boundaries of knowledge, translating research into practice, and preparing nurses to lead in an increasingly complex health care landscape.
As you explore this edition, I hope you are inspired by the remarkable work showcased here—work that continues to elevate the voice of nursing and shape a healthier, more equitable future for all.
Sincerely,
katherine e. gregory Dean
dean
Katherine E. Gregory
editors
Sara Shay
Kathleen Sullivan
managing editor
Tracy Bienen
art director
Christine Hunt
graphic design
Owen Edwards
contributors
Kara Baskin
Tracy Bienen
Steven Constantine
Tim Gower
Ellen Seaward
Corinne Steinbrenner
Kathleen Sullivan
photographers
Caitlin Cunningham
Tony Luong
Jaiden Nicholson
Lee Pellegrini
Voice is published by the William F. Connell School of Nursing and the Boston College Office of University Communications.
Address letters and comments to: csonalum@bc.edu
Associate Director, Marketing and Communications
William F. Connell School of Nursing
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Winter 2025
news
2 A Hulu docuseries explores Prof. Burgess’s work, two faculty members named American Academy of Nursing Fellows, two doctoral students become Jonas Scholars, and undergraduates present research at the Hamilton Research Symposium.
Features
4 Shaping a new generation of mental health clinicians
Internationally renowned nursing pioneer Ann Burgess, and Associate Professors of the Practice Julie Dunne and Karen Pounds are redefining what it means to treat the whole person.
8 The patient’s advocate CSON’s Nurse Anesthesia program helps fill a crucial need in medicine.
13 Meet Connell’s new faculty
16 Publications
The Connell School welcomed six scholars with a range of global and local experience to the faculty this fall. achievements
Select summaries of faculty research in peerreviewed journals.
17 Faculty presentations
Summaries of talks by faculty on empowering young Korean nurses, health in mid-later life couples, and understanding menopause.
IMAGE CREDITS Cover illustration, iStock/GarryKillian. Left, Caitlin Cunningham. Above, clockwise from top left, Hulu, iStock/GarryKillian, Caitlin Cunningham, Lee Pellegrini
Faculty
Professor Ann Burgess, a psychiatric and forensic nurse who has spent a nearly sixdecade career in criminal profiling, is the subject and consulting producer of Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer. The Hulu docuseries, which explores Burgess’s groundbreaking work, premiered at the Tribeca Festival last summer.
Assistant Professor Lindsey Camp was awarded a Boston College Teaching, Advising and Mentoring Grant for her project titled “Curriculum Redesign in Nursing Education: A Design Thinking Approach.” Her grant collaborators include Assistant Professor Brittney van de Water, Associate Professor and Strakosch Family Faculty Fellow Tam Nguyen, Assistant Professor of the Practice Ashley Longacre, and Associate Professor of the Practice Donna Cullinan.
Alumni
Anne Gross, M.S. ’90, was named the Ning Zhao Chair of Nursing, the first endowed nursing position of its kind at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Gross is chief nursing officer at Dana-Farber.
In a Boston College Magazine article, Katie Fitzgerald Jones, Ph.D. ’22, discusses her research and care for patients with a comorbidity of chronic pain and past issues with substance abuse.
Event
Assistant Professor of the Practice Alison Marshall received the Kelly Armstrong Excellence Award from the Boston College Women’s Center.
Associate Professor Jinhee Park was awarded a Boston College Research Expense Grant for her project “Ultrasound for Body Composition Assessment: Pilot Study Analysis.”
Associate Professor Jinhee Park and Assistant Professor Brittney van de Water were inducted as fellows into the American Academy of Nursing, joining the field’s most accomplished leaders in policy, research, administration, practice, and academia.
The Academy of Forensic Nursing and The DAISY Foundation named Assistant Professor Victor Petreca a 2024 Forensic Nursing Scholar, one of its inaugural DAISY Nurse Leader Awards in Forensic Nursing.
Associate Dean M. Colleen Simonelli received Boston College’s 2024 Community Service Award in recognition of her work to establish a nursing program at St. John’s College in Belize.
The Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners presented Associate Professor of the Practice Sherri St. Pierre with an Exceptional Preceptor Award and Associate Professor of the Practice Laura White with its Eileen Hayes Mentoring Award.
The Council for the Advancement of Nursing Science presented Assistant Professor Brittney van de Water with the Brilliant New Investigator Award at its 2024 State of the Science Congress on Nursing Research.
Director of Experiential Learning Shelley White discussed social determinants of health and what students should know about nonmedical factors that affect a person’s well-being on HealthcareDegree.com.
Professor Ann Burgess, Assistant Professor Victor Petreca , and retired FBI Agent Jeff Wood were the Dr. Maureen P. McCausland Pinnacle Keynote Speakers at the fall Pinnacle lecture panel discussion, “Psychiatric/ Mental Health Nursing and Its Effect on the Law, Forensics, and Patient Care.” BC Presidential Scholar Johany Jeune ’25 moderated the discussion.
image creDits: Hulu (above left), Tony Luong (left), Lee Pellegrini (above)
Boston College President William P. Leahy, S.J., and M. Colleen Simonelli
Students
Zina Aghdasi, M.S. ’24, D.N.P. ’26, was part of a Boston College delegation at a Dublin symposium that focused on the spectrum of resources and services needed to aid forcibly displaced people around the world.
Jonas Nursing and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing named doctoral students Taylor Bellfield and Nicholas Raposo ’18 to the Jonas Scholars 2024–2026 cohort.
Nurses Educational Funds awarded Maura Cornyn, D.N.P. ’25, its Mary V. Insall Scholarship for 2025.
Ashley Dossous ’24 created the Inaugural Hair Show last spring to celebrate hair as an art form and centerpiece of Black culture. Dossous launched the hair braiding business Slayed by Asho as a first-year student.
Undergraduates presented posters at the 2024 Student Research Day of the Hamilton Research Symposium, including:
• Victoria Ferguson ’25, “Delirium in the Older Adult.” Advised by Associate Professor Patricia Tabloski
• Caroline Kern ’26, “Investigating Marketplace Plans and the Variation in Deductibles, Co-Insurance, and Co-Payment across Diabetic Compliance Profiles.” Advised by Associate Dean Diana Bowser
• Ranan Kim ’25, “An Exploration of How Simulation-Based Learning Promotes Nurses’ Ethical Knowledge and Competency: A Systematic Review.” Advised by Assistant Professor Melissa Uveges
• Anna Laytham ’24, “Risk of Death among Nursing Home Residents: A Cross-National Perspective.” Advised by Associate Dean Elizabeth Howard
Lucas Geromini ’26 was awarded a David L. Boren National Security Education Program Scholarship to study Arabic in Amman, Jordan.
Aissatou (Aysha) Gueye, M.S. ’14, D.N.P. ’26, received the Exceptional Preceptor Award from the Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners at its 2024 New England Regional Nurse Practitioner Conference.
Oluchi Ota ’24 was named one of four Seniors to Remember from the Boston College Class of 2024. As a student, she served as a delegate to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Egypt (COP27).
In a video, Esther Udoakang ’25 talks about how her nursing studies and extracurricular activities help prepare her to make a difference in the world.
Community
U.S. News & World Report ranked the Connell School 9th out of 684 schools in its Best Undergraduate Nursing Programs survey.
A $1 .8 million grant from the Bedford Falls Foundation will support the Connell School’s undergraduate nursing program through scholarships, a new learning specialist to oversee student success programming, and an emergency fund for students.
Leah Gordon, CSON’s associate dean for inclusive excellence, diversity, and belonging, and Tamara Webster, M.S. ’24, D.N.P. ’26, participated in Your Healthy Java / Joseph R. Betancourt Health Fair ’24 at Roxbury’s Thelma Burns Center.
In memory
Professor Emeritus Carol R. Hartman, who taught at BC from 1967 to 1995 and was a pioneering force in psychiatric nursing, died in August. Read more from Professor Ann Burgess: bc.edu/carol-hartman.
creDits: Jaiden Nicholson (above), John Walsh (right)
Ashley Dossous
Esther Udoakang
by Kara b as K in photography
These educators, galvanized by Ann Burgess, are redefining what it means to treat the whole person.
Ann Burgess has analyzed the minds of some of the world’s most infamous murderers, from Kansas serial killer Dennis Rader, known as BTK, to Ed Kemper, whose first crimes were killing his grandparents as a teen. For nearly six decades, she’s educated practitioners and students to understand crime victims—and perpetrators—beyond their violent circumstances.
Karen Pounds focuses on the therapeutic relationship between psychiatric patients, nurses, and interpreters, which she says “is the basis of healing and the work of psychiatric nursing.”
Julie Dunne emphasizes the humanity in all workers, understanding that nobody is impervious to mental illness, including health care providers. She helps them take care of their own mental health through a combination of medication and mindfulness strategies.
These three faculty members at the Connell School of Nursing (CSON) share their expertise and their commitment to prioritizing the voiceless. They do this through their clinical practice and in the classroom, educating graduate nursing students pursuing the psychiatric/mental health (P/MH) specialty. Their dedication and experience are especially needed now as the faculty prepare the newest generation of students to face growing public health crises in the U.S., including increased suicide rates, a climbing number of deaths from excessive alcohol use, and a daunting shortage of mental health professionals.
by l ee pellegrini and c aitlin cunningham
CONFRONTING THE TOUGHEST MENTAL HEALTH CASES
Professor Ann Burgess pioneered a deeply human approach to mental health by providing the context necessary to understand and make predictions about the behavior of violent offenders. She teaches popular courses in forensic mental health, forensic science, and victimology—all grounded in her intense personal experience.
In the early 1970s, Burgess co-founded one of the first hospital-based crisis counseling programs in the world at Boston City Hospital with Boston College sociologist Lynda Lytle Holmstrom, interviewing 146 victims of sexual assault ranging in age from 3 to 73. Their resulting American Journal of Nursing article, “The Rape Victim in the Emergency Ward,” was a multidimensional portrait of these victims that outlined their emotions, from anxiety to humiliation to self-blame.
Based on Burgess’s victimology work, the FBI asked her to consult on behavioral patterns among rapists and serial killers. Lawyers began to consider her a key part of their teams, too, bringing her into the fold as an expert witness on high-stakes cases. In 2016, she was named a Living Legend by the American Academy of Nursing.
Burgess described her most notorious cases in A Killer by Design: Murderers, Mindhunters, and My Quest to Decipher the Criminal Mind (Hachette, 2021) with CSON’s Steven Matthew Constantine. Another collaboration about appealed cases will debut in 2025.
In July 2024, Hulu introduced Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer, a threepart series chronicling Burgess’s FBI profiling. She still collaborates with law enforcement, weighing in on cases such as abuse in nursing homes and the recent assassination attempt on Donald Trump.
While Burgess untangles deep inhumanity, her instincts are profoundly humane: she wants to understand what makes people, even criminals, tick. Nobody is inherently evil, she says. Instead, many criminals experience trauma without proper intervention. A grudge develops; without what she calls a “neutralization” of that grudge, anger can fester and explode into violence.
“Thoughts drive behavior. If you’re looking at someone who’s committed a horrendous behavior, you’ve got to get back inside the thought—what is prompting it, what is driving it? You have to deal with it, and try to neutralize it, so it doesn’t become a driving force within the individual,” Burgess says.
In the Menendez brothers case, for instance, Burgess testified about the brothers’ domineering, abusive father, José. Eric had hoped to go to UC Berkeley, but his father wanted him closer to home, at UCLA. When Eric realized he wouldn’t be getting away to a dorm, Burgess says, he panicked: “That was one of the turning points. He had a fear of his parents. I remember looking at this case and saying, ‘This is not a case of money. They have all the money. It’s got to be the family.’”
Burgess also lends her forensic expertise to cases closer to home. She’s enthusiastic about her work with CSON’s new Center for Police Training in Crisis Intervention, directed by Assistant Professor Victor Petreca, which studies evidence-based approaches for improving first responders’ interactions with people experiencing behavioral health issues.
In addition, she oversees the Wounded Warriors in Transition course, open to all Boston College students. Again, Burgess wants students to understand people with complicated backgrounds. Veterans visit her classroom to share intense stories about deployment. For their term paper, students interview a veteran. To their surprise, they often end up talking with a family member who hadn’t previously been forthcoming about their experience.
“I say: ‘Check your family first.’ They find people in their family who they didn’t even know had been in a war,” Burgess says. “The papers are amazing.”
FOSTERING COMPASSIONATE COMMUNICATION
“Ann has brought so much knowledge and nursing to people who have no voice,” says Associate Professor of the Practice Karen Pounds. As a psychiatric clinical nurse specialist, Pounds says she often sees stigma in mental health care, especially among people who present with complex diagnoses, have a cultural reluctance to get help, or experience language barriers.
In the case of language barriers, the relationship between patient and provider becomes essential, she says. Pounds worked at the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, where most of her patients required an interpreter; that relational science is also a focus of her research, writing, and speaking career.
“Now, we have a greater population of patients from different countries, and we need to consider that impact,” she says.
Pounds often reminds her students that people are more than a diagnosis.
“I help nurses get to the point where they’re able to see comorbidities,” she says. “Somebody can have anxiety and depression. There are people with schizophrenia who can have depression.”
She says that’s why it’s essential for nurses to see patients from a holistic perspective and to grasp their layered circumstances.
“The essence of psych nursing is the therapeutic nurse-patient relationship: how can we develop the next generation of psych NPs with that person-to-person contact?” she says. “I came to work at Boston College because of that emphasis, and because of the values of the Jesuit education model: respecting the whole person. A lot of programs in this country focus primarily on psychopharmacology. At CSON, we’re saying to students: ‘That’s not all: you have to do psychotherapy.’”
CARING FOR THE WHOLE PERSON
“Thoughts drive behavior. If you’re looking at someone who’s committed a horrendous behavior, you’ve got to get back inside the thought—what is prompting it, what is driving it?” —ANN BURGESS
Like Pounds and Burgess, Associate Professor of the Practice Julie Dunne believes in giving voice to the marginalized—including burnt-out health care providers, who may avoid seeking mental health care for fear of retribution.
As recently as 2021, medical boards in 37 U.S. states and territories asked questions that could require a doctor seeking licensure to disclose mental health treatments or conditions. And in a 2017 paper, nearly 40 percent of physicians reported being reluctant to seek mental health care because it could jeopardize their chances of obtaining or renewing their medical licenses.
During the pandemic, many providers wrestled with stress, fear, and burnout. Now, about half of Dunne’s private practice caseload comprises physicians, nurses, social workers, and nutritionists.
She has gained an appreciation for the challenges health care workers face while addressing their own mental health, and this has become a key part of her classroom teaching. “All of the students we teach at BC are going to become clinicians,” she says. “I’m excited when they ask: How do I prevent burnout and keep myself in this field? How can I make sure that I can still help people in one year, five years, and 10 years?”
Dunne teaches courses on diversity in health care as well as CSON’s graduate-level family and group psychotherapy courses. She also leads mindfulness-based cognitive therapy groups through the Harvard and Cambridge Health Alliance Center for Mindfulness & Compassion and through her own practice, Drishti Holistic Wellness.
She praises CSON’s emphasis on confronting social and racial injustice. Her students see psychiatric patients throughout Greater Boston, many of whom are treated in community health settings due to a lack of inpatient beds. She wants students to understand how demographics and intimate personal histories inform patients’ stories—including those of providers. And she wants them to think about how nurses can contribute to policy change.
“Students are able to see the disparities between various hospitals and funding, which invites conversation: ‘here’s how much funding goes to research around mental health as compared to physical health.’ There are many different reasons why that happens,” says Dunne. “We talk about stigma as one piece and how certain groups may be misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed.” She says she continues to appreciate Burgess’s work amplifying the experience of marginalized, often misunderstood populations.
“Her work with forensic mental health has been huge. It embodies caring for people who may not be as seen, who may be more stigmatized,” says Dunne. “Something unique about Boston College is our emphasis on taking care of the whole person. It’s not just about fixing someone’s broken leg; it’s about understanding them.” ▪
The Patient’s Advocate
CSON’s Nurse Anesthesia program helps fill a crucial need in medicine.
by tim gower
It was 2000, and Susan Emery was witnessing a decline in the quantity of nurse anesthesia programs, both locally and nationally. For Emery, the chief certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) at Anaesthesia Associates of Massachusetts (AAM)—a service that provides anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists to several Bostonarea hospitals—that was a concern that hit close to home. Part of her job was to recruit nurse anesthetists, but due to the nationwide shortage, Emery couldn’t keep up with demand. “It was hard to recruit them to come to work here,” says Emery. “The salaries were fine but didn’t make up for the high cost of living.”
Then Emery had an idea: Why not increase the local pool by starting a CRNA program at a nursing college in Boston?
Emery’s determination led to the creation of the Nurse Anesthesia program at the Connell School of Nursing (CSON) in 2002. She’s overseen the program ever since, educating and mentoring hundreds of CRNAs—many of whom, inspired by Emery, are now leaders and
mentors in their own right. Its 20th class graduated in May, the first cohort to complete the Nurse Anesthesia program with Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.) degrees, which are now required of all newly minted CRNAs due to changes in accreditation standards.
“It’s been a wonderful ride and wonderful to be at BC,” says Emery. “I’ve never been at a school where the faculty cared so much about the students.”
Susan Emery
photo creDits: Caitlin Cunningham
s tudents First
CRNAs are advanced practice registered nurses who provide care in any setting where anesthesia is delivered, including surgical suites, delivery rooms, and outpatient clinics. In rural U.S. counties, 80 percent of anesthesia providers are CRNAs, according to the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology.
A shortage of anesthesia providers in the United States has long been a problem, one that persists
today. Back in 2000, surgeries were being delayed and canceled due to the shortage of CRNAs across the country.
Emery came up with a plan. With the approval of AAM’s leadership, she emailed several Boston-area nursing schools requesting a meeting to discuss setting up a nurse anesthesia program. All but one declined: Barbara Hazard, dean of BC’s school of nursing at the time, was skeptical, but she ultimately agreed to meet with
Emery. “All we have to lose is an hour of our time for a professional colleague,” Hazard responded (Emery has saved her email).
During that 60-minute meeting, Emery convinced Hazard to consider her plan, though the dean remained uncertain. After several more meetings with Hazard and other Boston College officials, Emery got the green light to establish the program. She was excited, but daunted. “I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into,” she recalls. “I had thought that somebody else would take this project and operationalize it. I didn’t really think it would be me.”
The Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs (COA) provided support for Emery, suggesting a consultant to guide her. She also enlisted Denise Testa, a friend and colleague at AAM, to be the assistant director of the program, which COA accredited in 2002. “We were the faculty in the beginning. It was just the two of us,” says Emery. She taught chemistry, and Testa taught respiratory physiology.
Testa served as the program’s assistant director until her death in 2020.
“They were perfect partners,” says John Welch, M.S. ’12. “It was just clear that they were really enjoying what they were doing. And they always put students first.”
photo creDits: Caitlin Cunningham
“We are the last person a patient sees before they go to sleep and the first person they see when they wake up.… We are their voice and their advocate.”
—Denise Testa (d. 2020), when asked how the CRNA program fit into BC’s mission of service to others
p reparation and support
One of those students was Caitlin Vitale ’04, M.S. ’11, Ph.D. ’20, an intensive care unit nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital. Several colleagues there described their experiences in CSON’s CRNA program, piquing her interest. In her admissions interview with Emery and Testa, Vitale asked how the program fit into the Boston College mission of service to others.
“I’ll never forget Denise’s answer,” Vitale says.
“She said, ‘We are the last person a patient sees before they go to sleep and the first person they see when they wake up. We feel strongly that we’re giving back to the people. We are their voice and their
advocate.’” Vitale enrolled in the Nurse Anesthesia Program in 2009 and became its assistant director in August 2024.
It’s that ethos of community and compassion, along with the program’s rigorous academics and variety of clinical experiences, that alumni cite as crucial to their success. Tamaya Tompoe, D.N.P. ’24, for example, remembers relying on her training to help her calm a distressed woman about to undergo a mastectomy during one of her rotations. “The program emphasizes the importance of building trust and rapport with the patient,” she says. “Being prepared leads to feeling confident, which allows you to provide safe anesthesia.”
Welch agrees. During his rotation in obstetrics at North Shore Medical Center (now Salem
CRNAs by the numbers
142 accredited nurse anesthesia programs in the United States as of 2023
—Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs
279
BC CRNA graduates as of May 2024
22 clinical sites associated with BC’s CRNA program
Tamaya Tompoe
Caitlin Vitale
John Welch
Hospital) while he was a student in the program, a woman with preeclampsia needed an emergency C-section that required general anesthesia—a potentially risky procedure. “This is probably the only time in your career you’re going to have to do this,” the attending anesthesiologist told Welch. The delivery was successful.
After graduating, Welch taught future nurse anesthetists and treated pregnant women in Haiti, which was still recovering from a destructive 2010 earthquake, through his work with Partners In Health. “Access to prenatal care in Haiti is very low, so the number of obstetric emergencies and complications is huge,” says Welch. Many women needed emergency C-sections that required general anesthesia. “I probably did that at least once a day,” he recalls. “I think that obstetrics rotation probably saved a lot of women’s lives.”
Welch is just one graduate of the CRNA program who is not only practicing, but teaching anesthesia to other nurses. He is a senior nurse anesthetist at Boston Children’s and program director for the new nurse anesthesia program at The Ohio State University. Another program alum, Jennifer Ross Majumdar, M.S. ’13, is the assistant specialty director of the Nurse Anesthesia Adult Gerontology Acute Care D.N.P. program at Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing in Manhattan, which will welcome its first class in May 2025. Tamaya Tompoe, D.N.P. ’24, has taught virtual courses for nurse anesthetists in Liberia, where she was born.
“The past 20 years have seen many of our graduates assume leadership positions in the clinical, academic, and global arenas,” says Emery. “But I’m perhaps most proud of the many excellent CRNAs who have graduated from our program, who in the spirit of cura personalis (care of the whole person) are providing safe, patient-centered anesthesia care every day.” ▪
A brief history of nurse anesthetists
• First use of anesthesia occurs in Boston.
• Catherine S. Lawrence becomes the first nurse to administer anesthesia, during the Civil War.
• Catholic nuns begin teaching nurses to administer anesthesia.
• First nurse-led educational program in anesthetics begins at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Portland, OR.
• The National Association of Nurse Anesthetists, later renamed the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists, is founded.
• Credentialing of Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA) begins.
• All new CRNAs will need to hold a doctoral degree.
Sources: Journal of Clinical Anesthesia and “CRNAs: A short history of nurse anesthesia and the future of anesthesia care” (LinkedIn).
photo creDit: John Welch
Meet Connell’s
by corinne steinbrenner
p hotographs by lee pellegrini and caitlin cunningham
the connell school welcomed six scholars and educators with a range oF global and local experience to the Faculty this Fall.
Soojung Ahn
AssistA nt Professor, n ursing
Focus: Researcher who seeks to improve cardiovascular health among family caregivers of older adults living with chronic illness
Education: Ph.D., nursing, University of Virginia, M.S., nursing, Yonsei University (South Korea), B.S., nursing, Yonsei University (South Korea)
Previous position: Postdoctoral Scholar, Vanderbilt University School of Nursing
What brought you to CSON?: “I was particularly drawn to BC’s commitment to formative education and the inclusive and supportive atmosphere the Connell School faculty fosters.”
Teaching: Nursing Assessment of Health, Adult Health Nursing Clinical
“Our society relies heavily on family caregivers for the health care of aging populations, but caregivers’ own health needs are often overlooked. Addressing the health of these ‘hidden patients’ is a significant public health concern and I believe nurses are uniquely positioned to support them, enhance their well-being, and advocate for their needs.”
Carol Connolly
Associ Ate Professor of the Pr A ctice, n ursing
Focus: Adult acute care nurse practitioner
Education: Ph.D., nursing, University of Massachusetts Boston, M.S., acute care nursing, Northeastern University, B.S., nursing, The Catholic University of America
Previous positions: Lecturer, Clinical Instructor, and Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Program Coordinator, Northeastern University
What brought you to CSON?: “I was inspired by the strength of the school’s academic programs and its commitment to social justice. I am excited to guide students as they develop the skills and confidence needed to thrive in a complex health care environment.”
Teaching: Pathophysiology, Clinical Pharmacology, Adult Health Nursing Theory II
“I am deeply committed to fostering creative thinking in students by encouraging curiosity, innovative problemsolving, and reflective practice. I challenge my students to approach complex patient cases from multiple perspectives and to think beyond conventional solutions.”
Meet Connell’s
Wonkyung (Kelly) Jung
AssistA nt Professor, n ursing
Focus: Researcher who works to promote independence and healthy aging among older adults with brain injuries and other disabilities
Education: Ph.D., nursing, University of Washington, M.S., nursing, Sungkyunkwan University (Korea), B.S., nursing, Catholic University of Korea
Previous position: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, RESILIENCE Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
What brought you to CSON?: “I was attracted first to the reputation for excellence in nursing, and I truly fell in love with the school once I met the people and experienced their kindness and warmth.”
Teaching: Health Assessment Clinical
“I firmly believe that everyone—including people with disabilities—has the right to an enjoyable life and that the community should build an environment that supports equitable access to essential resources such as education, employment, recreational activities, and health care.”
Anna Klarare
AssociAte Professor, n ursing
Focus: Administrator and researcher who studies health equity, particularly among women experiencing homelessness and people with complex palliative care needs
Education: Ph.D., nursing, Karolinska Institutet (Sweden), M.S., nursing education, Lärarhögskolan (Sweden), R.N., Karolinska Institutet (Sweden)
Previous positions: Associate Professor and BSN Nursing Program Director, Marie Cederschiöld University (Sweden)
What brought you to CSON?: “I appreciate the school’s commitment to social change and the right to health for diverse populations. The sense of quality, community, and joy in doing this together is humbling and inspiring.”
Teaching: Principles of Evidence-based Nursing, Research Design and Methods I
“I hope to empower nurses to advance health equity by addressing and eliminating stigma and discriminatory behavior in health care. By learning more about social determinants of health and their complexities and intersectionality, nurse graduates can make a real difference as clinicians, leaders, and administrators.”
Katy Sileo
Associ Ate Professor, g lob A l
Public h e A lth
Focus: Researcher who investigates inequities in sexual and reproductive health in global settings, with a recent focus on Uganda
Education: Ph.D., global public health, San Diego State University and University of California San Diego (joint program), M.P.H., public health, University of Connecticut Health Center, B.A., psychology, women’s studies, University of Connecticut
Previous position: Assistant Professor, Department of Public Health, University of Texas at San Antonio
What brought you to CSON?: “As a public health researcher, I am excited for opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration with CSON and other BC faculty and to share with students ways to prioritize equity in global health programs, research, and partnerships.”
Teaching: Public Health Planning, Practice, and Evaluation
“Many communities around the world lack access to high-quality sexual and reproductive health services. I hope to improve the delivery and use of these services because they are central to people’s health, well-being, and social outcomes.”
Katherine Wentzell AssistA nt Professor, n ursing
Focus: Researcher who examines financial anxiety and other emotional burdens for emerging adults living with diabetes
Education: Ph.D., nursing, Boston College, M.S., nursing, Boston College, B.A., biology, English, Colby College
Previous position: Research Fellow, Section on Clinical, Behavioral, and Outcomes Research, Joslin Diabetes Center
What brought you to CSON?: “As a double Eagle, my dream was always to return to the Heights! My research, clinical care, and teaching have always been focused on caring for the whole person, aligning with BC’s mission of cura personalis and social justice.”
Teaching: Health Assessment Clinical
“I’m a scholar who lives with diabetes, so I’m sensitive to the challenges disabled students face. I will make a point to include a range of voices in my classroom, and I’m committed to mentoring disabled students so that they can succeed in the college setting.”
publications & presentations
Summaries of notable articles and talks
by ellen seaward publications
Caring for Long-Term Care Residents with Serious Persistent Mental Illness
Increasing numbers of people who live in long-term care (LTC) facilities have serious persistent mental illness (SPMI), and for long-term care practitioners, caring for these individuals can present challenges. In a study recently published in Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, Associate Professor Jane Flanagan and colleagues describe how health care professionals perceive the barriers and facilitators to providing care for LTC residents with SPMI. Using a qualitative design, the team analyzed data obtained through open-ended interviews with health care professionals and coded their responses. Three main themes emerged: one, getting to know the individual and their unique needs takes time; two, offering choices and being flexible creates trust; and three, respecting the worth of each individual promotes caring. “LTC facilities must continue to adapt to accommodate older adults with SPMI,” writes Flanagan and her co-researchers, citing the importance of the principles and practices of respect, flexibility, and taking the time to build trust and caring relationships.
Trisomy 21 and Congenital Heart Disease: A Scientific Statement
In most scenarios today, the lifespan of children and adolescents with trisomy 21 and congenital heart disease matches the lifespan of children with congenital heart disease and no genetic condition. But people with trisomy 21 and congenital heart disease have complex physical, developmental, and psychosocial care needs— as well as multisystem conditions that can interact with cardiovascular health. Assistant Professor Melissa Uveges contributed to a Scientific Statement that identifies these concerns for children
with trisomy 21 and congenital heart disease and offers a framework for monitoring and management to improve the quality of life and functional status for these individuals. Published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, the statement mandates a shift in clinical and research focus and recommends that comprehensive, quality care take an interdisciplinary approach that includes children and families as team members.
The Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias in Older Adults with Diabetes
Many older adults with diabetes also experience Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD). Assistant Professor Patricia Underwood wanted to know if, for older individuals with diabetes, maintaining stable glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels in patient-specific target ranges is associated with a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. For a study for JAMA Network Open, Underwood and colleagues examined the relationship between HbA1c variability over time and ADRD in veterans 65 years and older with diabetes. The study looked at 374,021 older veterans who had at least four HbA1c tests during a three-year baseline period and found that greater HbA1c stability was associated with a lower risk of ADRD. When HbA1c levels were out of range, more time below patient-specific HbA1c target ranges was associated with an increased risk of ADRD.
Full list of faculty output
presentations
Empowering Young Korean Nurses
Assistant Professor Eunji Cho was invited to speak at the Global Korean Nursing Foundation-USA Webinar Series for the Young Korean Nursing Community, which offered strategies for developing nursing careers and leadership in academic and clinical settings. As a foundation board member and program committee member, Cho presented on what international graduate and postdoctoral students can expect regarding programs in the United States. She explained the Ph.D. process—from applying to surviving programs and, ultimately, to preparing for an academic faculty role. According to Cho, because there are limited postdoctoral opportunities available in nursing for international students, her experience of completing both doctoral and postdoctoral programs in the U.S. is an uncommon pathway for Korean international students.
Health and Mid-Later Life Couples
The International Association for Relationship Research (IARR) traditionally focuses on young couples and relationships. Several members of the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) made an intentional decision to attend this year’s IARR conference in Boston to present on the benefits and challenges of relationships in the context of health in mid-later life couples. As the convener of the Dyadic Health Science interest group at GSA, Professor Karen Lyons facilitated the discussion. The four papers presented at the conference investigated and asked questions about similarity and congruence in relationships, couples’ closeness in the context of chronic pain, the role personality plays in sex in older adults and older couples’ lives, and the lack of dyadic health research focused on same-sex couples. Reflecting
on the conference, Lyons noted, “There is much to be gained from taking a lifespan perspective to better support couples and caregiving dyads as they navigate illness and health challenges into later adulthood.”
Understanding and Navigating Menopause
Assistant Professor Alison Marshall gave a lecture for Healthy You, a health management program designed to help Boston College faculty and staff understand, improve, and maintain their health. The lecture focused on describing the process of menopause, normal body changes, and evidence-based management. Estrogen levels naturally decrease as women age, leading to changes such as sleeping disruption, mood swings, dry skin, thinning hair, increased cardiac events, and more. Marshall emphasized that these changes are normal and that managing symptoms and understanding body changes are key to eliminating the stigma around menopause. She described how evidence-based symptom management can help women navigate menopause—for example, increasing movement and hydration, dressing in layers, talking to a provider about hormone replacement therapy, and seeking care for significant mood changes.
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Ensuring a legacy of academic excellence
The Bedford falls f oundaT ion has given a transformational $1.8 million grant to the Connell School of Nursing. Joanne and William Conway Nursing Scholarships will benefit 47 undergraduates; a new, full-time learning specialist will oversee student success programming; and an emergency fund will support emerging student needs.
“Our nation needs more nurses, but the cost of a nursing education can make it seem like an unattainable dream to some. Partnering with Boston College will reduce the financial burden so that students can earn a high-quality nursing education, achieve their dreams, and help reduce the nursing shortage.”
— William E. Conway Jr. Co-Founder and Co-Chairman, Carlyle Group