College of Nursing Duo Inducted into
International Researchers HOF

Angela Starkweather and Jeanne-Marie Staccarini, are among the most recent inductees to the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing International Researcher Hall of Fame! The pair were inducted on the basis of their impactful and prodigious body of research. The induction will take place during the organization’s 35th congress in Singapore on July 27. Congratulations!

College Breaks into Top 10 for NIH Research Funding

The College of Nursing’s National Institutes of Health funding for 2023 cracked the top 10 among public colleges for the first time. The college also ranked No. 17 nationally among all schools after receiving 10 awards for more than $5.5 million.

Don't Miss the 2024 Nursing Research Summit and Malasanos Lectureship

The College of Nursing, UF Health, and the North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System are partnering to present the 2024 Nursing Research Summit and Malasanos Lectureship on April 12. The Nursing Research Summit will showcase innovative research that can be used to solve complex health problems. 

Researchers Find Nurses Providing Dignity Therapy as Effective as Chaplains

Diana Wilkie was the co-lead author of a recently published article detailing the efficacy of dignity therapy whether offered by a nurse or a chaplain. The therapy allows a palliative care patient to reflect on their lives and give meaning to their experiences. Later, a legacy document is compiled. The five-year study was published in Journal of Palliative Medicine.

Having a Capital Time 

Ashley-Marie Mendez, a DNP student, and Magali Rezende de Carvalho, a PhD student, both represented the college during the recent American Association of College's of Nursing Student Policy Summit in Washington DC. 
Mendez was moved to send a note thanking those who made the trip possible and sharing some of her take-aways. The following is an excerpt from her message:

"Thank you to the CON for supporting me attending the AACN SPS conference. Some of the highlights were… dinner with Anna Hoffman and Kacie Perryman, networking with other graduate nursing students and future nurse educators from around the country, training on how to discuss policy change at the national level, going to Capitol Hill for the first time (along with FSU’s Dean of the CON Dr. Jing Wang) and going to dinner with Dr. Demetrius James Porche (LSU’s Dean of the CON) and their nursing students. 

Non-nursing related favorite parts: One of the offices had an “office dog” golden retriever named Franklin, cherry blossoms and delicious French pastries."

Rocky Mountain High: DNP students present at National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners Conference

The college's DNP students were well represented at the recent National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners Conference in Denver. Three students — Amanda Vickers and Elizabeth Brothers, both members of the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board, and Charity Plum — presented posters of their work through the college. While there, they met with industry leaders like NAPNAP President Regena Spratling and the PNCB Board CEO Sheri Sesay Tuffour.

PhD Students Attend Simuvacation in Atlanta 

Rigan Louis and Keliy Fordham, both PhD students at the college, recently attended the Simuvacation conference in Atlanta. The in-person event was the culmination of six to eight weeks of training in preparation for a replicated meeting of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence. The participants were assigned roles on the question of how best to ensure that AI doesn't increase health inequities. The students wrote, debated and voted on the issue during the mock meeting.  

Holbrook Award Goes to PhD Student Presenting at American Association of Cancer Research Conference  

Elham Samami Kojidi, a PhD student, will present a research study entitled: "Finding the Association Among Pain, Gut Microbiota, and Dietary Intake of Macronutrients" at the American Association of Cancer Research conference in April in San Diego. She was recently chosen for a $2,000 Holbrook Award to help cover her travel expenses. The award is one of two given annually to UF PhD students in the health sciences by the Karen A. Holbrook Graduate Research Endowment. Additionally, Elham received an award from the Oncology Nursing Foundation to attend April's Oncology Nursing Society's Congress in Washington, DC.