School of nursing news

Vaping marijuana associated with more symptoms of lung damage than vaping or smoking nicotine
Mar 03, 2021Adolescents who vape cannabis are at greater risk for respiratory symptoms indicative of lung injury than teens who smoke cigarettes or marijuana, or vape nicotine, a new University of Michigan study suggests.
The result challenges conventional wisdom about vaping nicotine, says the study’s principal investigator, Carol Boyd, the Deborah J. Oakley Collegiate Professor Emerita at the U-M School of Nursing.
Boyd, who also co-directs U-M’s Center for Drugs, Alcohol, Smoking and Health, stressed that the findings do not mean that vaping nicotine or smoking cigarettes or marijuana... Read more

As learners and volunteers, nursing students play an important role in the fight to conquer COVID-19
Feb 26, 2021Over the last year, University of Michigan School of Nursing students and faculty have both created and capitalized on new opportunities to apply their skills in a wide range of efforts to bring the COVID-19 pandemic under control.
Griffin Klaft and Maureen Luddy are seniors in U-M’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program who have been volunteering at Michigan Medicine’s COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic at Michigan Stadium. Over the last few months, they’ve been assisting with the intake process by screening and directing patients, verifying appointments and providing a knowledgeable... Read more

U-M School of Nursing announces Preceptor of the Year Awards
Feb 22, 2021The University of Michigan School of Nursing’s Office of Practice and Professional Graduate Studies has announced the winners of the latest Preceptor of the Year Awards. These awards are given annually to individual preceptors and departments who have shown exceptional dedication to providing learning experiences and support to nursing students as they transition to advanced practice providers. Recipients are selected based on nominations through the faculty and student evaluation process.
In four separate categories, the School of Nursing recognized individual and departmental... Read more

Alumna receives American Nurses Association's 2021 Innovation Award
Feb 18, 2021University of Michigan School of Nursing alumna Becky Cherney (BSN ’12) received the American Nurses Association’s 2021 Innovation Award for her work creating TrachTrail™, the first comprehensive, standardized adult tracheostomy care education program of its kind. Cherney, a staff nurse and evidence-based practice fellow in Michigan Medicine’s 8D Intermediate Care Unit, developed TrachTrail™ as a toolkit to bridge adult tracheostomy education from hospital to home for nurses, patients and caregivers.
“It’s about setting patients up for success while also helping nursing staff provide... Read more

An announcement on Spring Commencement from Dean Hurn
Feb 12, 2021Dear U-M School of Nursing spring 2021 graduates,
I hope this note finds you, your family and friends well and strong.
All of us in the school are excited about your impending graduation and the plans we have in store to honor your collective achievements at the May 1 U-M School of Nursing Spring Commencement 2021. In addition to the university-wide Spring Commencement 2021 ceremony, our event will be virtual, yet together. With elements of our traditional ceremony, we are planning an event that now allows all to be “on stage,” where all can see and be seen. The ceremony... Read more

Meet your professor: Akshay Sharma, Ph.D., MBBS, MPH
Feb 11, 2021Dr. Sharma will discuss the incidence and prevalence of infectious diseases during a mock lecture for admitted students on Tuesday, Feb. 16.
A recipient of the U-M School of Nursing’s 2020 Mae Edna Doyle Teacher of the Year Award, Assistant Professor Akshay Sharma leads undergraduate nursing students through courses in pathophysiology, microbiology and infectious diseases. Trained as a physician and an infectious disease epidemiologist, his research focuses on HIV and STD prevention, sexual and gender minority health and more.
“I employ an interactive approach that emphasizes... Read more

U-M midwifery students receive scholarship to attend ACNM annual meeting
Feb 10, 2021Two students in the University of Michigan School of Nursing’s master’s program in nurse-midwifery have won a scholarship from the Michigan affiliate of the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) to attend the organization’s annual meeting in May.
Anup Bhullar and Katie Bolling were selected for the scholarship during a virtual meeting of the ACNM Michigan affiliate in late January. The award provides the midwifery students with a unique opportunity for career advancement, professional networking and more.
“Attending the ACNM Annual Meeting will help me develop a... Read more

U-M School of Nursing appoints new Ph.D. program director
Feb 04, 2021Associate Professor Sarah Stoddard, Ph.D., RN, CNP, FSAHM, has been named the new director of the University of Michigan School of Nursing’s Ph.D. program.
Stoddard is an accomplished researcher and public health nurse practitioner who has dedicated her career to promoting the health and well-being of adolescents in communities facing substantial health and social disparities. Stoddard is widely recognized for her leadership in adolescent health and her interdisciplinary research to prevent substance use and violence among vulnerable youth populations.
“Dr. Stoddard has... Read more

A Parallel Pandemic Hits Health Care Workers: Trauma and Exhaustion
Feb 04, 2021Thousands of health care workers have already paid the ultimate price for their workaday devotion. Since March, more than 3,300 nurses, doctors, social workers and physical therapists have died from Covid-19, according to a tally by Kaiser Health News and the Guardian.
Experts say the death toll is most likely far higher. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention counts 1,332 deaths among medical personnel, which is striking given that its sister agency, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, lists roughly the same number of deaths just... Read more

Amid the isolation of COVID, Michigan Alzheimer’s deaths soar
Jan 27, 2021In 2020, as COVID-19 tore through Michigan, deaths from Alzheimer’s jumped 18 percent from the previous six-year average, according to a Bridge Michigan analysis of state data. Similar rises were noted nationally. A growing body of research suggests a link between extended isolation and poorer outcomes for seniors, posing a health risk much like smoking, obesity and physical inactivity. State death data from 2020 would seem to lend credence to the theory.
From 2014 to 2019, Michigan recorded an average of 4,100 Alzheimer’s related... Read more