NEWSLETTER

March 2022

CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE AND EQUITY

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Center of Excellence and Equity Spotlight:

This edition of the Nursing Research and Scholarship newsletter highlights our Translational Research and Clinical Practice pillar.

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Advancing Care for Infants with Tongue-tie

Rebecca Hill, PhD, DNP, FNP-C, CNE, Program Director for the prelicensure programs and associate professor at the MGH Institute of Health Professions School of Nursing, is a family nurse practitioner, certified nurse educator, and certified lactation counselor.

Last summer, Dr. Hill was published in Global Pediatric Health for the project, “The Gastrointestinal and Gastroesophageal Reflux (GIGER) Scale for Infants and Toddlers ," where she and her team explored the gastrointestinal and gastroesophageal reflux (GER) symptoms observable by parents of infants and toddlers to develop a clinical assessment tool called the Gastrointestinal and Gastroesophageal Reflux (GIGER) Scale. The purpose of this tool is to provide guidance for decision-making and personalized care interventions for infants and toddlers with GI symptoms that may warrant further intervention. This GIGER scale showed significant upper and lower GI symptom improvement in babies with tongue-tie after correction of the anomaly. These findings generated ideas for the current microbiome study Dr. Hill is leading.

In 2020, Dr. Hill was awarded a School of Nursing Seed Grant which she went on to publish. "A pilot study of non-nutritive suck measures immediately pre-and post-frenotomy in full term infants with problematic feeding," was published in the Journal of Neonatal Nursing. This work was an important interdisciplinary collaboration between nurse researchers, dentists, and speech

language pathologists.

“The data collected from the Seed Grant project is an important first step to understanding the physiologic implications of this oral anomaly,” Dr. Hill explained. She was awarded a second seed grant last year for her project, "Exploring gastrointestinal symptoms and the gut microbiome of infants with tongue-tie." She is applying for a foundation grant to take this work to the next level to examine nutritive sucking in the setting of tongue-tie and post-correction via frenotomy.

Dr. Hill's recent work has been published in Nursing for Women’s Health, and her dissertation work that explored the relationship between maternal breastfeeding symptoms and infant feeding problems in the setting of tongue-tie was published in Global Pediatric Health (GPH) last month. Both publications involved IHP Master of Science students she mentored through their scholarly project course.

Looking forward, Dr. Hill hopes to secure extramural grant funding for larger-scale studies. “Specifically, I hope to create a large-scale study that will aid in the development of an assessment tool for the mother-infant dyad to inform clinical practice guidelines that are currently sorely lacking," she said.

Dr. Hill is collaborating with other researchers to study the infant gut microbiome, based on the findings from development of the GIGER tool and early research using that assessment measure.

“It’s all very exciting – there is so much work to do, but I am committed to improving the care of babies with tongue-tie and their families.”

Lifting Voices in Patient Care and Education

Clara M. Gona, PhD, FNP-BC, teaches in the Direct-Entry MS in Nursing program (Family track) and in the Interprofessional Certificate in Global Health, Equity, and Innovations program. Dr. Gona is also a faculty nurse scientist at the Yvonne L. Munn Center for Nursing Research at MGH.

“My research focus has been in vulnerable populations. While vulnerable populations cover a large umbrella of individuals in society, my research specifically focuses on bringing individual voices to the forefront of patient care and education. Over the span of my career, I have examined the lived experiences of women living with HIV, Black students at a predominantly white institution, and African immigrants in the United States. Teaching a graduate course on immigrant and refugee health enlightened me on the dearth of literature on the health of African immigrants outside of infectious disease.

Because of my interest in research in African immigrants and to better understand the community, I conducted a pilot needs assessment of Zimbabwean immigrants, looking at formal diagnoses of chronic conditions, body weight, blood pressure and hypertension, and HIV risk perception. We found high rates of diagnosed hypertension, overweight/obesity, mental health issues, and low propensity to have ever been tested for HIV.

Building further on this pilot work and understanding the difficulties of recruiting individuals to participate in studies, we developed a community advisory board (CAB) in the Zimbabwean immigrant community. Recruiting leaders into the CAB gave me a formal entry into the community and helped me to conduct additional community-based research, such as facilitating focus group interviews to explore attitudes and beliefs regarding cardiovascular disease risk in the Zimbabwean immigrant community. We found that participants in this study were mistrusting of Western style healthcare, often did not speak about their chronic illnesses, did not like to take medications or engage in physical activity, and consumed a Westernized diet high in sugar and saturated fat.

Expanding on this work, we are currently writing a grant proposal utilizing mixed methods to determine the feasibility of an intervention to help reduce risk factors for cardiovascular disease in Zimbabwean immigrants. By focusing on this work, I am building new knowledge that can be applied to provide better care for these and similar immigrant populations.”

- Clara Gona. PhD, FNP-BC

Assessing the Effectiveness of Ruth Sleeper Center Behavioral Health Practices

Lead by Dr. Kathryn Sabo, this three-year project, "Assessing Effectiveness of Ruth Sleeper Center Behavioral Health Practices," will utilize patient-centered outcomes research to evaluate the behavioral health services provided through the Ruth Sleeper Nursing Center for Clinical Education and Wellness.

In addition to conducting patient-centered outcomes research, this project will host nursing faculty development sessions to aide faculty in designing and implementing outcomes research projects. With the support of May and Tom Chin, and their generous gift of $200,000, Dr. Sabo and her team will facilitate this project over the next three years; the first year of the project will focus on expanding behavioral health telehealth practice to older adults in the local community.

The project will also be under the direction of the Associate Dean of Research and Director of the SON Office of Research and Scholarship, Dr. Ruth Palan Lopez and Dr. Elaine Tagliareni.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

FACULTY SEED GRANT APPLICATION

Application deadline: March 15

SON seed grants support faculty efforts to achieve external funding for their research program by providing a seed grant of up to $10,000 for one year to conduct pilot studies that serve as preliminary data for subsequent efforts.

Questions and applications should be submitted to Ruth Palan Lopez (rlopez@mghihp.edu).

VIEW APPLICATION GUIDELINES

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS: VIRTUAL CLIMATE CHANGE SYMPOSIUM

From Patrice Nicholas, Center for Climate Change, Climate Justice, and Health

The Center for Climate Change, Climate Justice, and Health is seeking abstracts from the IHP community (faculty, staff, students, and alumni) for our upcoming annual virtual symposium, Climate Change & Health 2022: A Roadmap for Grassroots Advocacy on Saturday, April 09.

Abstracts should relate to the following conference objectives:

Examine the 21st century impacts of climate change and associated negative health consequences.
Discuss federal and regional legislation to curb planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions and the impact of climate injustice on communities.
Explore policy and advocacy initiatives for local and global grassroots climate action.

Submit an abstract by Friday, March 11. Registration is now open for the symposium.

SON Recent Publications and Presentations

Banks, M. (DNP ’18), & Phillips, A. B. (2021). Evaluating the effect of automated hand hygiene technology on compliance and C. difficile rates in a long-term acute care hospital. American Journal of Infection Control, 49(6), 727–732. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajic.2020.10.018

Bose, E., Wood, L. J., & Wang, Q. M. (2021). Topographical data analysis to identify high-density clusters in stroke patients undergoing post-acute rehabilitation. Topics in Stroke Rehabilitation, 28(7), 498-507. https://doi.org/10.1080/10749357.2020.1841439

Bose, E., Paintsil, E., & Ghebremichael, M. (2021). Minimum redundancy maximal relevance gene selection of apoptosis pathway genes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of HIV-infected patients with antiretroviral therapy-associated mitochondrial toxicity. BMC Medical Genomics, 14(1), 285. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12920-021-01136-1

Brown, M. J., White, B. P., & Nicholas, P. K. (In press, 2021). Mental health impacts of climate change: Consideration for nurse practitioners. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nurpra.2021.07.013

Chisholm, H., Kershaw, T., Sotelo Guerra, L., Bocek, K., Garcia, Y., & Casey Lion, K. (2021). A realist evaluation analysis of a novel multi-faceted inpatient patient navigation program. Academic pediatrics, S1876-2859(21)00450-2. Advance online publication https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2021.09.009

Flanagan, J. M., Post, K., Hill, R. & Winters, L. N. (2021). Findings from a provider-led, mindfulness-based, Internet-streamed yoga video addressing the psychological outcomes

of breast cancer survivors. Holistic Nursing Practice, 35(5), 281–289.

https://doi.org/10.1097/HNP.0000000000000465

Good, A., & Olans, R. (2021). CE: pediatric antibiotic stewardship. The American Journal of Nursing, 121(11), 38–43. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NAJ.0000798052.41204.18

Gona, C. M., Lupafya, T. H., Zhou-Chidavaenzi, N., Mafundikwa, E., & Gona, P. N. (2021). The health status of Zimbabwean immigrants in the US: A needs assessment. Clinical Nursing Research, 30(7), 969-976. https://doi.org/10.1177/1054773821995496

Gona, C. M., Palan-Lopez, R., Wood, L., Gotora, R. S., & Gona, P. N. (2021). African immigrant health: The health promotion beliefs of Zimbabwean immigrants in the United States. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-021-01318-0

Hendricksen, M., Mitchell, S. L., Lopez, R. P., Mazor, K. M., & McCarthy, E. P. (2021). Facility characteristics associated with intensity of care of nursing homes and hospital referral regions. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jamda.2021.10.015

Hill, R.R., Hines, M., Martens, A., Pados, B.F., & Zimmerman, E. (2021). A pilot study of non-nutritive suck measures immediately pre- and post-frenotomy in full term infants with problematic feeding. Journal of Neonatal Nursing. Electronically published ahead of print. https://doi.org/10/1016/j.jnn.2021.10.009

Hill, R. R., Lee, C. S., & Pados, B. F. (2021). The prevalence of ankyloglossia in children aged <1 year: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Pediatric Research, 90(2), 259–266. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-020-01239-y

Hill, R. R., Wong, J., & Parikh, G. S. (MSN ’21). (2021). Relationship between infant tongue-tie and maternal wellbeing. The American Journal of Maternal Child Nursing. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1097/NMC.0000000000000739

Hill, R. R., Hines, M., Martens, A., Pados, B. F., & Zimmerman, E. (2021). A pilot study of non-nutritive suck measures immediately pre- and post-frenotomy in full term infants with problematic feeding. Journal of Neonatal Nursing. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnn.2021.10.009

Hill, R. R., Lyons, K. S., Kelly-Weeder, S. & Pados, B. F. (2022). Effect of frenotomy on maternal breastfeeding symptoms and the relationship between maternal symptoms and problematic infant feeding. Global Pediatric Health. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/2333794X211072835

Hillier, M. M., DeGrazia, M., Mott, S., Taylor, M., Manning, M. J., O'Brien, M., Schenkel, S. R., Cole, A., & Hickey, P. A. (2021). Utilizing high-fidelity simulation to improve newly licensed pediatric intensive care unit nurses' experiences with end-of-life care. Journal for Specialists in Pediatric Nursing, e12360. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jspn.12360

Hoyt, A., O’Reilly-Jacob, M., & Souris-Kraemer, M. (2022). Certification alignment of nurse practitioners in acute care. Nursing Outlook, 21.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2021.12.009

Jenkins, J., Woodside, F., Lipinsky, K., Simmonds, K., & Coplon, L. (2021). Abortion with pills: Review of current options in the United States. Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.13291

Lavelle, M., Darzi, A., Starodub, R., & Anderson, J. E. (2021). The role of transactive memory systems, psychological safety, and interpersonal conflict in hospital team performance. Ergonomics. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2021.2006771

Mei-Sheng Riley, M., & Olans, R. (2021). Implementing an antimicrobial stewardship program in the intensive care unit by engaging critical care nurses. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 33(4), 369–380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cnc.2021.07.001

Mevawala, A. S., Strunk, F. A., Haghiri-Vijeh, R., Corless, I. B., Ramaswamy, P., Kamp, K. J., Scott, S., & Gray, S. (2021). Scientific global nursing hackathon experience. Nurse Educator. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1097/NNE.0000000000001066

Nicholas, P. K., Breakey, S., Tagliareni, E., Simmonds, K, & Sabo, K. (2021). Climate change and populations health Incorporating stages of nursing’s political development. Nursing Outlook. 69(1), 65-73.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2020.08.001

Nicholas, P. K., Evans, L. A., Albert, M. (MSN/s), Kelly, D., & Michelson, N. (2021). The nurse practitioner's role in addressing chronic sequelae of Lyme disease as a climate change related disease. Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1097/JXX.0000000000000670

Njie-Carr, V. P. S., Zhu, S., Williams, G. C., Corless, I. B., & Himelhock, S. (2021). Evaluation of a technology-enhanced intervention for older women with HIV infection: A proof of concept study. AIDS Care, 33(8), 983-992.

https://doi.org/10.1080/09540121.2020.1810617

Pados, B.F., Repsha, C., & Hill, R. R. (2021). The Gastrointestinal and Gastroesophageal Reflux (GIGER) Scale for Infants and Toddlers. Global Pediatric Health, 8, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1177/2333794X211033130

Pusey-Reid, E., Gona, C., Gall, G. & Lussier-Duynstee, P. (2021). Microaggression in Nursing: Experiences of Black Nursing Students at Predominantly White Institutions [Poster presentation]. 2021 Spring Conference of Massachusetts/Rhode Island League for Nursing (MARILN). Virtual.

Pusey-Reid, E., Quinn, L., & Foley, C. A. (2021). Review of COVID-19 for nurses. MEDSURG Nursing, 30(5), 297–333.

http://www.medsurgnursing.net/archives/21sep/297.pdf

Pusey-Reid, E., Gona, C., Reidy, P. & Tagliareni, M. E. (2021). The journey towards social justice and equity in a school of nursing [Poster presentation]. American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Transform 2021 Conference. Dallas, TX.

Riley, M., & Olans, R. D. (2021). Implementing an antimicrobial stewardship program in the ICU by engaging critical care nurses. Critical Care Clinics. Online.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cnc.2021.07.001

Rogers, A. H., Epps, F., Hendricksen, M., Roach, A., Akunor, H. S., & Lopez, R. P. (2021). Trust of nursing home staff caring for residents with advanced dementia: A qualitative descriptive study of family caregivers' perspectives. Geriatric Nursing, 42(6), 1362–1366. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gerinurse.2021.09.003

Roy, K., Hunt, K, Sakai, K., & Fletcher, K. Social justice in nursing education: A way forward (case presentation).

Journal of Nursing Education. In Press (March 2022)

Roy, K. (2021). Aid-In-dying: One family’s journey. American Journal Of Nursing. In Press (March 2022)

Roy, K. 2021. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: The trajectory of care. American Nurse Journal. In Press (March 2022)

Roy, K. Hunt, K., Sakai, K., & Fletcher, K. (Poster). Addressing the hidden curriculum in nursing education. AACN Diversity Symposium. 2021

Roy, K. (2022). Medical aid in dying: What every nurse needs to know. The American Journal of Nursing. February 10. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NAJ.0000822660.87763.45

Ruggiero, K. M., Wong, J., Sweeney, C.F., Avola, A., Auger, A. Macaluso, M., & Reidy, P. (2021). Parents’ intentions to vaccinate their children against COVID-19. Journal of Pediatric Health Care. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedhc.2021.04.005

Sabo, K. K., Chin, E. D., Sethares, K. A., Hunter Revell, S. M., & Nicholas, P. K. (2022). Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of primary healthcare providers with assessing and supporting older informal caregivers. Geriatric Nursing, 44, 159–166.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gerinurse.2022.02.004

Simmonds, K., Schwartz-Barcott, D., & Erickson-Owens, D. (2021). Nurse practitioners' and certified nurse midwives' experiences providing comprehensive early abortion care in New England, USA. Health Care for Women International. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/07399332.2021.1929991

Simmonds, K., Breakey, S., & Nicholas, P. K. (2021). Educating nurse practitioners about climate change, health, and climate justice. Journal of Nurse Practitioners. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nurpra.2021.10.006

Simmonds, K. E., Jenkins, J., White, B., Nicholas, P. K., & Bell, J. (2021). Health impacts of climate change on gender diverse populations: A scoping review. Journal of Nursing Scholarship. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jnu.12701

Stauffer, C. S., Samson, S., Hickok, A., Hoffman, W. F., & Batki, S. L. (2021). Intranasal oxytocin for stimulant use disorder among male veterans enrolled in an opioid treatment program: A randomized controlled trial. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 12, 804997. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.804997

Tran, J. & Hill, R.R. (2022). Breastfeeding experiences and changes in feeding plans among parents of infants diagnosed with tongue-tie. Nursing for Women’s Health. Electronically published ahead of print. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nwh.2021.11.004

Yuan, F., Lopez, R. P., Crane, M., Montgomery, A., & Zhao, X. (2021). Feasibility and acceptance of robotic care of Alzheimer's disease and related dementia. Alzheimer's & Dementia, 17(Suppl 11), Article e052585. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.052585

Zang, S. M., Benjenk, I., Breakey, S., Pusey-Reid, E., Barone, L., & Nicholas, P. K. (2021). The intersection of climate change with the era of COVID-19. Public Health Nursing. 38(2), 321-335. https://doi.org/10.1111/phn.12866

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