Award
Dr. Valerie Flattes is the recipient of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) 2025 State Award for Outstanding Contributions. AANP “empowers all nurse practitioners (NPs) to advance accessible, person-centered, equitable, high-quality health care for diverse communities through practice, education, advocacy, research, and leadership (PEARL).” The award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated excellence that supports the NP role in the areas of PEARL, and is given to only one deserving recipient from each state. Dr. Flattes feels honored to be chosen to represent the state of Utah and the University of Utah College of Nursing, and will receive the award at the 2025 AANP National Conference in San Diego.
Grant Awards
Huntsman Cancer Institute Cancer Control and Population Sciences awarded a $29,714 pilot grant to principal investigators Sheetal Hardikar and Chia Jie Tan and co-investigator Dr. Djin Tay for their project titled Real-World Longitudinal Evidence on Immune-Related Adverse Events in Melanoma Survivors: Incidence and Patient Experience.
The University of Utah’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute awarded a $3,949.75 voucher to Dr. Djin Tay for her project titled Partnering with Rural Cancer Patients to Optimize Self-Advocacy for Financial Empowerment-SAFE. Dr. Tay will obtain feedback on adapting her rural cancer financial toxicity toolkit with Hispanic/Latino community leaders for Spanish speaking rural populations.
Presentations
Vernell DeWitty, adjunct instructor Joan Gallegos, and Dr. Teresa Garrett will deliver a presentation titled Eliminating Structural Racism in Nursing Education: Utah Action Strategies at Campaign for Action's Advancing Health Equity in Nursing Education webinar on January 30 from 12-1:30 PM MST. To register, click here.
Dr. Sheila Deyette delivered a presentation titled The Significance of Implementing a Trauma-Informed Health Care Model in Community Health Clinics to College of Nursing Practice and Community Collaboration nurse practitioners, registered nurses, and staff. The presentation was a key component of PACC's ongoing initiative to integrate trauma-informed care across all PACC-affiliated clinics.
Dr. Linda Edelman and Josh Dallin delivered a presentation titled Ag Wellness – Addressing Mental Health in Utah’s Farm and Ranch Families and Communities for the Integrative Primary Care and Substance Abuse Use Disorder Treatment ECHO series.
Cervivor, Inc. invited Dr. Deanna Kepka to participate as a panelist at the 2025 Cervical Cancer Summit in Washington DC. The summit celebrated 20 years of dedication to ending cervical cancer and providing support to communities across the United States affected by the disease.
Dr. Lauri Linder presented a webinar titled Considerations for Central Venous Catheter Selection and Maintenance Care to the International Society of Paediatric Oncology’s Supportive Care Network.
Caring Connections faculty and staff delivered several presentations.
- Dr. Katherine Supiano delivered a presentation titled Grief of Suicide Death to Washington County, Iron County, and Intermediate School Districts, as well as to the Southwest Behavioral Health Adolescent Unit, with Cathy Davis from the Utah State Board of Education.
- Dr. Katherine Supiano delivered a presentation titled Traumatic Grief to the Utah Funeral Directors Association.
- Dr. Katherine Supiano, Laura Bradbury, Taryn Hiatt, Adrienne Bott, Anna Fetzer, and Dr.Sara Bybee will present a workshop titled Best Practices in Supporting Patients & Families as They Prepare for End of Life and Grief, at Larkin Sunset Gardens on January 29, 2025. Sherri Kerney and two College of Nursing Simulation Center actors collaborated with Dr. Bybee and will perform two short plays about advance care directives, which align with the Hospice Foundation of America's Advanced Directive Project, during the workshop.
- Dr. Katherine Supiano and Anna Fetzer will present an online workshop titled Grief of Overdose Death Training: A Clinical Training and Education Program on January 31, 2025.
Faculty and staff presented at the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Doctoral Education Conference in Coronado, CA.
- Dr. Diane Chapman, Dr. Ann Butt, Somer Aly, Dr. Van Gip-Duran, and Dr. Gwen Latendresse delivered a podium presentation titled Simulation Pilot for Student Led Clinic.
- Dr. Jennifer Clifton delivered a podium presentation titled College of Nursing-Practice Partnership in the Juvenile Justice System.
- Dr. Linda Aiken and Dean Marla De Jong delivered a podium presentation titled Charting Innovations in PhD Education.
- Dean Marla De Jong facilitated the Academic Health Center Like Schools Focused Discussion.
Professional Service
The Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) appointed Dr. Deanna Kepka as the inaugural leader of its newly launched Global Oncology Initiative, which addresses the growing burden of cancer in low- and middle-income countries, where more than 75% of cancer-related deaths are projected to occur in the next decade. These countries face significant challenges, including limited access to screening, detection, treatment, and palliative care. Given that many synergies exist among work in these low-resource settings, the Initiative aims to foster a collaborative community of global oncology investigators in the Mountain West, strengthen research partnerships, and provide mentorship opportunities to amplify the global impact of their work. Leveraging HCI’s expertise in cancer prevention and treatment, the Initiative supports its mission through activities such as meetings, newsletters, and research retreats. Dr. Kepka will convene local researchers interested in global health and help foster activities to maximize HCI’s impact worldwide.
Community Engagement
The Global Deaf Research Institute invited Dr. Michelle Litchman and Bruno Rodriguez-Gonzales to Quito, Ecuador to discuss improving access to healthcare for deaf Ecuadorians. They met with the Ministerio de Salud Pública (Ministry of Public Health), Federación National de Sordos de Ecuador (National Federation of the Deaf of Ecuador), and Casa de la Diabetes (Diabetes House focused on improving quality of life through diabetes care, education, and prevention).
Professional Development
The National Cancer Institute Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities accepted Dr. Djin Tay as an Early Investigator Advancement Program (EIAP) Associate. Dr. Tay will attend a Grant Seminar in February and receive a grant writing workbook.
Professional Recognition
Dr. Sharon Bigger is Volunteer of the Month for the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association(HPNA), where she Co-Chaired the Emerging Scholars Special Interest Group, serves on the Research Committee, and mentors members of HPNA.
Publications
Carney KB, Wilkes J, Aderibigbe T, Stegenga K, Spraker-Perlman H, Linder LA. Symptom documentation in unstructured palliative care notes of children and adolescents with cancer. J Pain Symptom Manage. Epub ahead of print. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2025.01.004
Garcia K, Alvarez G, Iacob E, Kepka D. Focus groups with Guatemalan community leaders about barriers to cervical cancer prevention and control. Health Promot Pract. Epub ahead of print. https://doi.org/10.1177/15248399241309897
Greteman BB, Cole A, Charlton ME, Shannon J, Kepka D, Paskett ED, Borrayo EA, Studts JL, Thompson HS, Scarinci I, Hinton LC, Chrischilles EA, Garcia-Auguste CJ, Christini K, Aker H, Plascak JJ, Harper FWK, Baskin ML, Bae S, Pandya V, Kim YI, Faseru B, Befort C, Kuo H, Dignan M, Canedo J, Champion V, Drake BF, Davis KL, Friedman DL, Elsaid MI, Mama SK, Cohn WF.Cancer-related health behaviors during the COVID 19 pandemic in geographically diverse samples across the US. BMC Cancer. 2025;25:50. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-024-13373-5
Hughes AS, Mirus K, Heydarian NM, Litchman M. Diabetes care disparities in Deaf/hard of hearing and blind/low vision populations. Curr Diab Rep. 2025;25:14. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11892-024-01565-z
Iacob E, Hollingshaus M, Utz R, Tay D, Ornstein KA, Alexander R, Barrientos P, Ellington L, Newman M, Belnap T, Cizik AM, Smith K, Meeks HD, Stephens CE. Caregiving at end-of-life: How do family structure and dementia status impact antidepressant and anxiolytic prescriptions among families? Alzheimers Dement. In press.
Kent-Marvick J, Cloyes KG, Clark A, Angulo M, de la Haye K, Debbink MP, Creal C, Wong B,Simonsen SE. Listening to understand: Exploring postpartum women’s perceptions of their social networks and social support in relation to their health behaviors and weight. Women's Health (Lond). 2025;21. https://doi.org/10.1177/17455057241309774
Scholarship
Undergraduate student Stephanie Quist has been awarded the 2024-2025 Francis Family Scholarship for undergraduate research. Stephanie is a member of the Taylor-Swanson lab and has been accepted into the master’s program in Special Education at the University of Utah, starting fall 2025. With faculty mentorship support from Dr. Lisa Taylor-Swanson, Stephanie will conduct research titled ACUAWARE, exploring changes in interoceptive awareness in patients as they undergo a course of acupuncture treatment for chronic pain, monitoring patients’ pain levels, and assessing whether patients also experience changes in how they feel and perceive their own body in relation to their pain.