Miriam O Ezenwa, PhD, MSN, BSN, RN, FAAN

TEACHING

Dr. Ezenwa has contributed to teaching and learning of both undergraduate and graduate students through classroom and online instruction and one-on-one mentoring. Her teaching philosophy is based on the constructivist learning theory (CLT). The CLT states that “teaching is based on the belief that learning occurs as learners are actively involved in a process of meaning and knowledge construction as opposed to passively receiving information.” In applying this philosophy to her teaching approach, Dr. Ezenwa’s goal as a teacher is to cultivate active and independent, yet collaborative learners who engage in the exchange of ideas. To this end, Dr. Ezenwa views her role as a facilitator as she involves students in their learning. She encourages students to view her not as an “all-knowing orator” but as one of the resources for their academic success. Dr. Ezenwa has achieved her teaching goal by teaching in core research courses at the undergraduate and graduate level. Dr. Ezenwa is slated to teach NUR 4829 in both Spring and Fall 2016.

RESEARCH

Dr. Ezenwa’s research interests focus on health disparities in pain management, particularly, healthcare injustice, a psychological stressor, as an explanatory factor for the disparities; pain and symptom management for people with sickle cell disease or cancer; palliative care for end-of-life cancer patients; biobehavioral research including cortisol as a biomarker of stress and use of computer technologies for stress and pain measurement, and delivery of stress reduction intervention in sickle cell disease.

SERVICE

Dr. Ezenwa serves on the Midwest Nursing Research Society Grant Review Committee. She is a peer reviewer for health disparities and pain management journals, journals with publications relevant to her research expertise. Dr. Ezenwa is a member of the American Pain Society, Midwest Nursing Research Society, Council for the Advancement of Nursing Science, Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Honor Society, and Golden Key International Honor Society.

EDUCATION

Dr. Ezenwa earned her BSN from Hunter College, part of the City University of New York where she graduated Cum Laude, her MS from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and PhD with a major in nursing and distributed minor in Anthropology and Educational Psychology with a focus on chronic pain management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Ezenwa completed post-doctoral work as a National Institutes of Health/National Heart Lung & Blood Institute Basic and Translational Research Program Sickle Cell Scholar at the University of Illinois at Chicago with a focus on sickle cell pain management.

Health disparities in pain management, particularly, healthcare injustice, a psychological stressor, as an explanatory factor for the disparities; pain and symptom management for people with sickle cell disease or cancer; palliative care for end-of-life cancer patients; biobehavioral research including cortisol as a biomarker of stress and use of computer technologies for stress and pain measurement, and delivery of stress reduction intervention in sickle cell disease.