Online RN-to-BS Program

Faculty

Deborah Mahony
Associate Professor
Curriculum development Health Assessment and Health Promotion for online RN-BS Program
ScD, Harvard School of Public Health / ScM, Harvard School of Public Health / MS, Boston College / BSN Boston College
Research interests: Children witnessing domestic violence; vignette research; childhood obesity; substance use during pregnancy. Practice: Practicing pediatric nurse practitioner at MGH Chelsea Health Center; run well child clinic at Whitman-Hanson VNA. Educational interests: Coordinate Pediatric Nursing (Undergraduate), Family Nurse Practitioner Program (Family seminar, health assessment)
Kristine Alster
Associate Professor
Curriculum Development Professional Issues for Online RN-BS Program
EdD, Boston University / MSN, Boston University / BS, Illinois Wesleyan University
Dr. Alster’s clinical interest is community health nursing with a focus on home health care for the frail elderly. Her recent scholarly work focuses on nursing quality of care.
Carol Ellenbecker
Associate Professor
Curriculum development for Research and Informatics for online RN-BS
PhD, Brandeis University / MSN, Boston College / BS, University of New Mexico
Dr. Ellenbecker’s research has focused on the exploration of health care delivery systems for the purposes of expanding knowledge in the area of regulation, development and implementation of health policy. Her initial work explored the delivery of home health care services as well as the organizations and individuals involved in delivering services, the changing nature of home health care services, the documentation of care, and the quality of service delivery. Additional research explored managed care and hospital delivery systems, developing mechanisms to evaluate care. Most recently Dr. Ellenbecker’s research has focused on the concept of the quality of care and the methods used to assess quality. She has proposed nurses’ job satisfaction and retention as an indirect measure of quality in home healthcare. Her research on developing a model of nurse retention is funded by an RO1 grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
Joan Garity
Associate Professor
Curriculum Development nursing ethics and research, for online RN-BS program
Ed.D, Boston University / MSN, Northeastern University / BS, Boston College
Joan Garity, Ed. D., R. N. Associate Professor,. Dr. Garity’s areas of scholarly interest and research are learning styles, the Alzheimer family caregiver, ethics, patient education, parish nursing, and career development for nurses.
Joanne Dalton
Assistant Professor
Developed curriculum Community Health Nursing for the online RN-BS Program
PhD, University of Rhode College of Nursing / MSN, Boston University / BS, Boston College
Dr. Dalton specializes in Community Health Nursing and is a certified community health specialist with clinical and research areas of interest in home care. Dr. Dalton has completed research in collaborative decision making during admission home visits as well as cardiac and diabetes disease management in home care programs.
Laurel Radwin
Assistant Professor
Curriculum development for evidence-based practice for online RN-BS Program
PhD, Boston College / MSN, Boston College / BS, Northeastern University
Dr. Laurel Radwin is the recipient of a five-year Agency for Health Care Research and Quality Mentored Clinical Scientist Development Award. She is studying the quality of cancer nursing care and relations among interpersonal nursing interventions, positive patient outcomes, health care system characteristics, and patient characteristics. Studies are guided by the Quality Health Outcomes Model. Dr. Radwin’s clinical interest is acute care nursing.
Sherry Merrow
Undergraduate Nursing Program Director
Curriculum Development Professional Issues online RN-BS Program
EdD, Northeastern University / MSN, University of California San Francisco / BS, Cornell University
In September 2002, after an eight year hiatus, Dr. Merrow returned to UMass Boston as the Undergraduate Nursing Program Director. While away from UMass Boston, she served for seven years as the Associate Dean for Health Sciences at Endicott College and then spent a year traveling the United States. Dr. Merrow’s background is in medical surgical nursing. Prior to taking on administrative roles, she was a certified medical-surgical clinical specialist. She has taught a variety of courses at both the baccalaureate and master’s levels. Her recent research has focused on factors associated with success on the nursing licensure examination (NCLEX).