NIH funding and a salute to graduates

Faculty members receive prestigious grants; NINR director (and commencement keynote speaker) calls on graduates to be problem-solvers, particularly in high-needs communities.

Mindfulness helps support NICU moms

AS A WOMEN’S HEALTH NURSE PRACTITIONER, Lindsey Garfield, PhD, RN, witnesses the devastating impact of postpartum depression — and she noted a large percentage of the moms affected were women of color.

“The statistics are really startling,” says Garfield, who is an assistant professor in the School of Nursing. “African-American moms are almost four times more likely than white moms to have post-traumatic stress after the birth of their baby and are three times more likely to have depressive symptoms,” she says. “I could spend my whole career focused on the why, but my real interest is helping these moms.”

Through a highly competitive selection process, Garfield received a K23 Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award from the National Institute of Nursing Research. The funding will support her training and a clinical trial on mindfulness as a stress reduction tool for Black mothers who have an infant in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). She will be mentored by Loyola professor emeritus Linda Janusek, PhD, RN, FAAN, who has extensive research expertise examining the impact of chronic stress on well-being.

“We know that mindfulness is an effective intervention to decrease stress, and Black women who have a baby in the NICU have added stress,” says Garfield. “Moms who have additional stress have impaired mother-infant interactions and bonding because they’re less responsive to subtle cues. Reducing stress would help moms and babies. We really can have a transgenerational improvement of health and quality of life,” says Garfield.

Because many mindfulness resources are geared to white women, Garfield worked with Natalie Watson-Singleton, PhD, a clinical psychologist and associate professor at Spelman College (Atlanta), to adapt the popular Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn and make it more culturally appropriate for Black moms. A mindfulness coach who identifies as a Black woman will manage the class, offer virtual mindfulness sessions, and create a community of Black moms. Clinical trial participants will meet weekly in person or over Zoom in small groups for course sessions to discuss topics such as mindful responding, health and illness, and cultural connections to food. The coach also will teach the moms how to incorporate their current spirituality and stress-reduction practices with mindfulness.

After the eight-week program, Garfield will measure participants’ stress, depression, and anxiety levels to see if psychosocial wellbeing is improved as compared to a control group that receives an education program focused on maternal and infant health. If the intervention is effective, Garfield will seek additional funding for a larger trial. Ultimately, she wants to see it offered through hospitals, churches, and community organizations.

“A culturally appropriate mindfulness program is a promising intervention to address stress in Black moms, improve their health, and ultimately improve the health of their babies,” she says.

Improving self-management in young patients with spina bifida

CHILDREN WITH SPINA BIFIDA are living longer than ever before. So what sets apart those who thrive in adulthood from those who don’t?

That’s what Associate Professor Monique Ridosh, PhD, RN, hopes to discover. Recently, Ridosh received a highly competitive K1 Mentored Research Scientist Development Award from the National Institute of Nursing Research to advance her research with adolescents and young adults living with spina bifida. The funding allows her to spend the next three years concentrating on research under mentor Grayson Holmbeck, PhD, a Loyola University Chicago psychology professor who has followed families with spina bifida for more than 20 years. Ridosh will delve into data already collected from 140 families, learning new skills in advanced statistics and longitudinal analysis.

“It’s an opportunity awarded through a very competitive process. Honestly, it required great persistence and a rigorous research plan. The award validates that my plan for research and training is promising,” she says.

People with spina bifida face a higher risk of early mortality because of related secondary conditions, but interventions to better manage their condition could make a difference.

“I want to partner with families so they have the tools to help their children become independent sooner because that is the key for them to be healthier,” Ridosh says. “Delays in reaching independence, known to occur in children with childhood chronic conditions such as spina bifida, likely impact development of important skills needed to manage their conditions such as ordering supplies, managing insurance, making health care appointments, and problem solving. But no one really has studied families who have children with spina bifida over time to determine what has contributed to their independence and successful self-management. We think if we can get them to manage their health better during childhood and adolescence, we can help them be healthier adults.”

Using a self-management and independence measure, Ridosh will study longitudinal data on individuals 18 and older to see if there are factors that predict a healthier trajectory. This research could inform interventions to optimize outcomes for children and adolescents living with spina bifida. And what she learns may apply to chronic conditions other than spina bifida.

“Researching this very complex condition absolutely gives us information that can inform other chronic conditions,” she says. “Kids are now living longer with chronic conditions, such as cardiac defects and respiratory ailments, but they don’t necessarily have the skills to manage their own conditions. There are lessons here that could help us change that.”

NINR director urges graduates to reduce disparities

LOYOLA NURSING WELCOMED leading nurse scientist Shannon Zenk, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN, director of the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), as keynote speaker at its virtual commencement in May.

“There is no one path for nurses,” Zenk told the audience. “Our skills are needed wherever decisions affecting health are made, such as in hospitals, public policy, community health centers, school systems, and criminal justice settings. You will bring your voices to all these conversations, to advocate for your patients, our profession, and everyone that it touches.”

Zenk’s accomplished career has included work as a clinician, scientist, educator, and now director of the nation’s leading funder of nurse scientists. The NINR supports and conducts research to solve critical health challenges and provides the scientific basis for policy and nursing practice. Prior to joining the NINR in September 2020, Zenk was a professor at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) College of Nursing and a fellow at the UIC Institute for Health Research and Policy.

Zenk is well known for her pioneering research on racial/ethnic and socioeconomic health disparities. Her work on urban food deserts sparked national attention to the lack of healthy, affordable foods in low-income and Black neighborhoods. She has studied how community environments and personal factors like stress and income interact to influence health behaviors such as diet and physical activity.

Working as a home health nurse early in her career, Zenk realized her interest in research. “Spending time in patients’ homes and in different communities, I was struck by the tremendous differences in their home and community environments, both in terms of privilege and poverty,” she says. “I found it difficult to talk with some patients about healthy eating when what they really needed to restore their health was far more fundamental: having enough to eat, decent and stable housing, reliable electricity, and a safe environment. These experiences inspired me to pursue my PhD to understand how resources are distributed among communities, and the impact of this distribution on some of the large and persistent health disparities across our country.”

Zenk isn’t surprised that COVID-19 has taken its highest toll in communities of color, she said. “Consider this: Although washing your hands with soap and water is a critical public health strategy to prevent the spread of coronavirus, people living in low-income communities and people of color are at highest risk to have their water shut off,” she says. “Working from home has helped prevent the spread of the virus. Yet, again, people of color are much less likely to be able to work from home.” She notes that the pandemic has exacerbated income inequities that will continue to affect the health of individuals and families for years to come.

Zenk urged Loyola Nursing graduates to use their education to help solve these problems. “Listen to your patients; get to know their communities. Use your expertise, your skills, and your voice to advocate for solutions that will meet their needs,” she says. “Whatever path you choose in your nursing career, we need your ideas. They will lead to solutions for our most pressing health problems and most stubborn health disparities.”