Students’ Commendation of Faculty
At the end of each semester, students have the opportunity to provide feedback about each course they took, and the faculty who taught the course. The following unedited quotes are from students who took courses during Fall Semester 2023.
Anna Alder: NURS 3410 Acute Care Practicum. “I cannot sing the praises of Anna Alder enough. Anna was a fantastic course lead who I really respect. She is very evidenced based in her approach to how she teaches/answers questions. She was able to facilitate a safe and caring environment in ACD. My only complaint is that we didn't get to see her enough! The few times she filled instructors in post–conference was really lovely – she does a very good job of making room to share struggles of clinicals and also turn those hard clinical experiences into teaching moments.”
Dr. Nancy Allen: NURS 7702 DNP Scholarly Project II. “ Nancy does a great job in the canvas videos explaining content and assignments. Her knowledge of the research and writing process has been very valuable to us as students. I have a lot of respect for her and enjoy our interactions. She is well organized and provides a template for U DNP students to produce quality projects.
Dr. Cynthia Beynon: GERON 5001 Introduction to Aging. “Professor Beynon was incredibly kind and always responded to my emails. I love the way she had her course set up, and I felt like I genuinely learned from her course. Most courses like these, I remember the material long enough for each quiz; but I really learned in this class.”
Melissa Black: NURS 3410 Acute Care Practicum. "Melissa was great!! She was detailed at explaining everything before, during, and after our clinicals. She gave great feedback and was always there if we needed anything or got confused with some paperwork."
Dr. Sara Bybee: NURS 7101 Research Ethics & Protection of Human Subjects. “Dr. Bybee was very easy to approach and gave great feedback. Her lectures were well prepared and brought in important ethical issues that feel relevant to our lives.”
Dr. Sue Chase Cantarini: NURS 4650 Capstone Clinical. “Sue was very positive and supportive throughout the course. When I had to email her with some questions, she responded in a timely manner and was very willing to help. When I had some concerns about my capstone, Sue was very helpful and helped me explore all my options. She is great at advocating for her students and has a great energy.”
Dr. Diane Chapman: NURS 7053 Advanced Pathophysiology for DNP Students I. “Excellent instructor who draws from her clinical experience to inform classroom discussions; I appreciate her honesty and straightforward manner. Thank you for an excellent semester!”
Dr. Katie Davis: NURS 7602 PCNP Practicum II. “There are no words to explain how unbelievably incredible Dr. Davis is. She is tough with her expectations, but this makes you learn more and provides more benefits in the long run, even when you feel like students outside of her group have it easier. Katie cares so much about her student's education and her students as individuals. She is encouraging, kind, inspiring, and an invaluable part of my education. I hope that she teaches more of our courses.”
Dr. Sheila Deyette: NURS 6301 Foundations of Psychotherapy: The Art & Science of Healing in Relationship. “Dr. Deyette, You possess significantly greater insight into each modality, and role, than the typical instructor. I feel this arrives as a benefit of the thirty–plus years you have helped others move toward resolution. I believe your teaching style offers the student an appropriately nuanced view of the role, client–provider alliance, and the therapies we will be using to assist our patients in a way that lays the onus on the individual, as learners, yet offers firm instruction and guidance along the way. That is the best available path, in my opinion. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.”
Angie Fenton: NURS 3305 Foundations of Clinical Nursing Care. “Angie always had great feedback and made sure to explain everything well. I learned a lot from her!”
Dr. Val Flattes: NURS 6603 Chronic Problems of Adults and Elders. “Val, YOU are an amazing teacher, and I LOVED your class. It was a safe place to learn and explore and you will always be one instructor I will not forget and always appreciate during my time at the university. I had a preceptor who took your class 7 years ago she also agreed you are one of the most comfortable and cherished instructors. Thank you for pointing out or showing us that although you are a guru on the mountain, you are still a learner at heart.”
Dr. Katarina Friberg Felsted: GERON 5370 Health and Optimal Aging. “Dr. Felsted is one of my favorite instructors at the university. She has high standards for achievement that she implements with fairness, compassion, and grace; this is a powerful combination that keeps me striving to do my best without added anxiety. Dr. Felsted is the embodiment of ethical leadership with responsible use of power.”
Amanda Keddington: NURS 4650 Capstone Clinical. “Mandi is a wonderful instructor. I couldn't have been happier with my capstone group/experience. Keep up the good work Mandi, you're an asset to the College of Nursing and your field!”
Dr. Nanci McLeskey: NURS 3430 Nursing Across the Lifespan. “Nanci is amazing and really makes the material engaging and unique! I loved her section of the class.”
Erica Nelson: NURS 4600 Professional Roles IV. "Erica was very helpful throughout the course and was very attentive to student's mental health. I could tell that Erica cares about her students by making herself approachable through Canvas. She reached out for a mental wellness check–in halfway through the semester and that was very heartwarming as a nursing student."
Dr. Shawna Sisler: NURS 4110 Global Health Nursing. "Professor Sisler is the definition of excellent. She is very open to feedback and makes an effort not to let the fact that a class is online stop her from building relationships with students. She is also invested in their overall experience, not just their experience in her class.”
Jacqueline Telonidis: GERON 5235/6235 The Aging Mind. “I have really enjoyed this class. You seem to really care about your students and our success.”
Award
Dr. Julie Valentine was awarded Fellow designation in the American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS). AAFS presented the award at its 76th Annual Conference, which was held February 19-24 in Denver, CO. Fellowship recognizes service to AAFS, the general area of forensic sciences, forensic science research, and forensic science education and training. Dr. Valentine is one of only nine nurses globally who has achieved this distinction as a Fellow.
Community Engagement
Amanda Keddington gave a guest lecture titled Stop the Bleed at the Career and Technical Education program in the Salt Lake School District. The lecture was intended for high school juniors pursuing a career in health science. Amanda partnered with Jamie Troyer, the U Health Trauma Education Outreach & Injury Prevention Coordinator, who provided materials for the class. It was a great experience for Amanda to share her knowledge and help students learn about this important topic.
Grant Award
The Alzheimer’s Association awarded a 3-year $199,964 research grant to Dr. Sara Bybee for her study titled Fostering Equitable Dementia Care for Hispanic/Latino Communities. Dr. Bybee aims to provide equitable dementia care by translating the LEAD Guide (Life-Planning in Early Alzheimer's & Other Dementias) into Spanish (S-LEAD). She will incorporate community-based participatory research practices within a cultural adaptation framework to refine S-LEAD, design an intervention, and evaluate its effects among Hispanic/Latino Alzheimer’s disease-related dementia dyads. Co-investigators include Drs. Kara Dassel and Eli Iacob.
Presentation
First-semester prelicensure student Sofia Flowers (mentor Dr. Lauri Linder) presented her honors thesis research at the Huntsman Cancer Session at the Utah Conference on Undergraduate Research, which was held February 16 at Utah Valley University. Sofia’s presentation was titled The Parent Caregiving Experience of School-Age Children with Cancer.
Publications
Allison TA, Stephens CE, Kotwal AA. Supporting technology access for older adults through in-home, intergenerational involvement: The case for ethnographic methods and student service-learning courses (invited editorial). J Am Geriatr Soc. In press.
Alnajar M, Darawad M, Khater W, Alshahwan R, Mosleh S, Nofal B, Abdalrahim M. Exploring palliative care needs among patients with cancer and non-cancer serious chronic diseases: A comparison study. Am J Hosp Palliat Med. Epub ahead of print. https://doi.org/10.1177/10499091241235920
Bybee SG, Waters AR, Smith K, Warner EL. Misalignment of social support in the social media posts of young adult cancer caregivers. Cancer Reports. 2024;7(2):e1998. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/cnr2.1998
Christensen S, Wilson BL, Cummins MR, Eaton JL, Iacob E, Hansen SD. Exploring nurses’ emotional reactions to and reporting of patient-on-nurse workplace violence: A mixed-methods study. Int J Nurs Stud. Epub ahead of print. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2024.104724
Matovu SN, Whitley DM, Young HM. A global perspective on intersecting social and systemic barriers experienced by grandparent-caregivers: A qualitative systematic review. GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy. 2024;7(2):7-54.
Nicholson B, Sloss EA, Fausett A, Davis C, Dumas K, Littledike M, Mooney K. Rural access to the cancer hospital at home care model. NEJM Catalyst. 2024;5(3). DOI:10./0/56/CAT.23.0336.
Ong T, Wilczewski H, Soni H, Ivanova J, Barrera J, Cummins M, Welch B, Bunnell BE. Therapist perspectives on telehealth-based virtual reality exposure therapy. Virtual Reality. In press. doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-3161151/v1
National Ranking
The College of Nursing is ranked #32 in National Institutes of Health funding to colleges of nursing. We commend our hard-working and innovative scientists, their collaborators and team members, and the Emma Eccles Jones Nursing Research Center staff who support them.
In the Media
Aaron Tallent recently interviewed Dr. Sara Bybee for an article in Cancer Discovery News titled LGBTQ+ Individuals Vulnerable to Cancer Disparities. The article highlights that LGBTQ+ individuals are more at risk of cancer and face disparities in healthcare due to minority stress and discrimination. Mental health problems and substance misuse further worsen these disparities. The article emphasizes the importance of personalized care for LGBTQ+ patients, including training for healthcare providers and collecting sexual orientation and gender identity data in electronic health records to address disparities effectively. Dr. Bybee emphasizes the need for inclusive research and clinical guidelines to ensure equitable cancer care for LGBTQ+ individuals.
Drs. Matthew Howard, Esther Chipps, and Dr. Perry Gee published The Collaborative Edge in Nursing Centered, Sigma's online resource center. The article emphasizes the pivotal role of nurse scientists in integrating research and evidence-based practice in healthcare organizations, highlighting their contributions to strategic planning, consulting, mentoring, and securing research funding. Despite facing challenges such as limited resources, ethical considerations, and diverse research demands, the authors proposed collaboration among nurse scientists across multiple health systems as a solution. Collaborative efforts offer benefits such as resource sharing, data pooling, interdisciplinary collaboration, and ethical guidance, ultimately enhancing research quality and relevance. By fostering collaboration, nurse scientists can overcome challenges, drive progress in healthcare research, and improve patient care outcomes, leading to a culture of innovation and satisfaction within the healthcare community.