Lisa Brown (center)

Lisa Brown

A native of Milwaukee, Wis., Lisa Brown completed her doctoral degree requirements in September 2004 (to be conferred in December) and started postdoctoral training at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mentored by Karen Pridham, PhD, professor emerita, Brown researched ways to help moms relate better to their preterm infants through improved ways of feeding. Her postdoctoral research at Chapel Hill expands on her work done at the SoN, including developing an instrument for nurses that signals confusion for mother and baby during feeding.

Sigríður Gunnarsdóttir

Sigríður Gunnarsdóttir's area of research has focused on attitudinal barriers (e.g., fear of addiction to analgesics) to cancer pain management. Such attitudes can impede optimal management of cancer pain. Gunnarsdóttir conducted a study in her homeland of Iceland to evaluate attitudinal barriers among the general public. Professor Sandra Ward, her major advisor, and secondary advisor Prof. Ronald C. Serlin, professor of educational psychology, "were outstanding mentors," says Gunnarsdóttir, guiding her "through the challenges of research." After completing the PhD program, she will begin work as a research specialist at the University Hospital of Iceland, Division of Oncology.

Pornpat Hengudomsub

Pornpat Hengudomsub, whose homeland is Thailand, focused her dissertation research on the well-being of Thai older adults and determining its relationship to health and social factors within the Thai culture. Hengudomsub says that she has been inspired by Professor Susan Heidrich, PhD, her advisor, to immerse herself in the “world of research and knowledge development.” After graduation, she will return to Thailand to teach nursing students at Burapha University. Her future plans include research collaboration with the World Health Organization in order to improve the quality of life for Thai elders.

Dolores Severtson

With master's degrees in both nursing and land resources, Dolores (Lori) Severtson targeted an area of doctoral research that explored responses to risk information about arsenic-contaminated well water. Results will be used to design and pilot-test arsenic risk information with the goal of better meeting public information needs and reducing environmental health threats. Professor Linda Bauman, PhD, her advisor, “has fostered scholarly ownership and independence,” says Severtson, by allowing exploration of various research interests. She already has begun a postdoctoral traineeship in the Computation and Informatics in Biology and Medicine Program with mentors Professor Patricia Brennan, PhD, expert in nursing informatics, and Professor Frederick Blattner, PhD, professor of genomics.

Kanittha Volrathongchai

A native of Thailand, Kanittha Volrathongchai has focused her research on the use of knowledge discovery via databases, or data mining, to build information models that classify falls among the elderly and calculate the likelihood of their occurrence in long-term care facilities. Volrathongchai’s major advisor, Professor Patricia Brennan, PhD, professor of nursing and industrial engineering, is a well-established leader in the area of nursing informatics. Her secondary advisor is Michael Ferris, PhD, professor of computer science. Diversity among advisors and within foci areas, Volrathongchai says, has helped “to broaden knowledge about current research and meet key persons in areas of nursing informatics and computer science.” Upon graduation, Volrathongchai will return to her homeland to teach nursing in higher education.