November 2023

30th Annual NightGala
CNR Research
Student Spotlight
International Collaborations
myResearch Portal
Translating Research to Innovations in Practice
CNR Resources

Friends of the

National Institute of Nursing Research

NightinGala

The 30th FNINR NightinGala was a success again this year. In attendance: Front Row: Eric Messner, Sister Agnes Marie Cummings, Judith Hupcey, Laurie Badzek, Jessica Wellington, Sherif Adewale Olanrewaju, Back Row: Timothy Adekeye, Jennifer Kowalkowski, Monique Balthazar, and Sheldon Fields

CNR Research

Ying-Ling Jao, PhD, RN, FGSA

Associate Professor

Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing

Julian Wang, PhD

Associate Professor

College of Engineering

The Effect of Smart Ambient Bright Light for Nursing Home Residents with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias

Principal Investigators: Dr. Jao and Dr. Wang

Agitation occurs in 93% of persons with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) living in nursing homes and is a challenging behavioral symptom for persons with ADRD and their caregivers. Lighting interventions have shown a positive impact on agitation; yet the design, measures, and clinical feasibility of implementing these interventions have not been well established. This study will develop a smart ambient bright light (SABL) intervention incorporated with daylighting to automatically provide a 24-hour lighting scheme and will evaluate its effects, along with intervention fidelity and feasibility, which will inform the design of ambient lighting interventions to reduce agitation for persons with ADRD living in nursing homes. National Institute on

Aging. R21AG078544. $411,982. 8/15/2022 - 4/30/2024. To read more about this research click on the "Read More" button, below.

Student Spotlight

Yo-Jen Liao, MSN, FNP-BC, RN

PhD Candidate

I suffered from biliary atresia and poor health at a young age with frequent hospital visits. I had many nurses with compassion and kindness that inspired me to become a nurse. Nursing is a challenging but rewarding profession, and my clinical experiences in oncology and long-term care inspired my area of interest to focus on older adults with dementia and pain. The classes that I have taken that relate to older adults and palliative care (NURS522, NURS523, NURS823) tremendously advanced my knowledge in this area.

Since joining the nursing Ph.D. program at Penn State, other students in the Doctoral Student Organization (DSO) have been kind and supportive to me. Therefore, I was excited to serve as a secretary in 2020, then as president and peer mentor in 2021, and peer mentor in 2022 to continue supporting incoming and current nursing Ph.D. students. I am also involved in the Taiwanese Student Association (TSA) and served as a secretary in 2020, during which I enjoyed connecting with students from the same country as me.

I plan to obtain a faculty position at a university after graduation to continue conducting research related to persons with dementia and pain. I want to inspire future nursing researchers. My advice to new students is to 1) keep learning and stay open-minded, 2) not be afraid to ask for help, and 3) be kind and supportive of others. Mochi and Taro are my cats and they were adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Building Successful International Research Collaborations

Penn State is committed to open scholarly collaboration and promoting an environment that supports working together on both a domestic and international level to expand knowledge and solve challenging problems. This resource will help you get started with building international relationships while staying in compliance with federal regulations and corresponding Penn State policies. More information can be found HERE

myResearch Portal

To help manage your external award finances, please look into the myResearch Portal . For those of you with internal funding, you may need to coordinate with the finance office in the college that has that funding account. Feel free to reach out to the CNR with additional questions you may have.

Translating Research to Innovations in Practice

May 8 & 9, 2024

Hershey Lodge

We are calling for abstracts for the next Translating Research to Innovations in Practice Symposium. Please submit your abstracts HERE by November 15

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Resources

Center for Nursing Research Office provides an organized infrastructure designed to support graduate research faculty and their interdisciplinary teams throughout the various stages of their projects, from preparing proposals and obtaining funding to disseminating results in peer-reviewed journals and at national and international conferences. If you have any questions use the resource list below.

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Research Faculty

Research Opportunities

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