April College of Health Sciences For the Record
May 01, 2023 Written by CHS Staff | Photo by Ashley Barnas
For the Record provides information about recent professional activities and honors of 91原创 faculty, staff, students and alumni.
Recent appointments, presentations, publications and honors in the College of Health Sciences include the following:
Presentations
Karin Gr盲vare Silbernagel, professor and associate chair of聽physical therapy, was recently featured on the聽, which features world-renowned experts in rehabilitation, performance and pain, to discuss Achilles tendinopathy, Achilles tendon ruptures and the recovery process. 鈥淕enerally, recovery from Achilles tendinopathy takes six months to a year,鈥 Silbernagel said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 consider you fully recovered until you have no pain for one year. That鈥檚 a very high bar, but I鈥檝e seen so many patients that get well doing their exercises, then they stop doing their exercises and they don鈥檛 fully recover. You must continue that maintenance on the road to recovery.鈥 Silbernagel also gave a sneak peek into the results of a new study she conducted that shows the timeline for recovery from Achilles tendinopathy can vary. 鈥淥ur data shows a large improvement at eight weeks, which I wasn鈥檛 necessarily expecting,鈥 she said. 鈥淏y teaching them about their injury, they get a lot better, and they continue to progress. Then, they hit a plateau at four to five months. So, we see this progression where some people improve really quickly, and others take a longer period of time.鈥 The discussion also centered on the largest findings in tendon-related research over the past two decades as well as risk factors, surgical and non-surgical considerations, recommendations and objective testing for tendon-related injuries. The podcast is available or download on Spotify and聽.
Jennifer Horney, founder of 91原创鈥檚聽epidemiology program聽and core faculty for the聽, recently appeared on the Emerald聽聽series to talk about her latest聽,听COVID-19 Frontline Responders and Mental Health: A Playbook for Delivering Resilient Public Health Systems Post-Pandemic. 鈥淲e know that people involved in the response to disasters, outbreaks and public health emergencies are actually impacted, physically and mentally, by being a participant in the response,鈥 Horney said. On the podcast, Horney also discussed lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very easy to return to the status quo. It鈥檚 harder to critically examine what we did well, what we did not do well and change,鈥 she said. 鈥淚n a pandemic, it鈥檚 harder to define what that status quo looked like, but we shouldn鈥檛 go back to a time where people came to work sick because they didn鈥檛 have any sick time.鈥 Horney鈥檚 book also makes recommendations for changes needed to address growing gaps in the public health workforce as the COVID public health emergency prepares to expire in Delaware in May. 鈥淚 hope that the end of the emergency doesn鈥檛 mislead us into thinking there isn鈥檛 more work to do. Because there is a lot more work to do especially around equity.鈥
Honors
Kayla Seymore, a fourth-year doctoral student in聽biomechanics and movement science, has received a prestigious聽聽from the National Institutes of Health. Seymore was awarded the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award for Individual Predoctoral Fellowships to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research. Seymore鈥檚 research focuses on Achilles tendon injuries in adolescents. 鈥淭here鈥檚 not a lot of acknowledgement of people from underrepresented or minority backgrounds succeeding in STEM,鈥 Seymore said. 鈥淭his award means a lot to me, and I鈥檓 proud to represent the 91原创 and underrepresented populations as we work to advance the science around the treatment and prevention of tendon injuries.鈥 Seymore is working closely with聽Karin Gr盲vare Silbernagel, professor in the聽Department of 聽Physical Therapy聽in the聽College of Health Sciences, who鈥檚 received international recognition for her research into tendon injuries. 鈥淚t has been amazing to see Kayla grow as a scientist since she came to 91原创,鈥 Silbernagel said. 鈥淪he is a very deserving recipient of this highly competitive fellowship.鈥
Alicia Downer, facilities coordinator for the CHS Facilities Team, recently received the 2023 Zeta of the Year award. Downer was originally initiated into Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated, Chi Theta Chapter, in May 1992. She has served more than 22 years as a professional painter for the 91原创, which aided her to take classes and finish her degree. During her employment, Downer served critical roles as vice president and executive board member for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees 3472. She was the first woman to serve as vice president in the local 3472鈥檚 history, the first woman in the skilled trades to attain the title of Senior in the 91原创鈥檚 history, and led negotiations for multiple collective bargaining agreements. Downer was promoted to facilities coordinator last month and is an active member of the Epsilon Rho Zeta Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated where she serves on three committees.聽
Jennifer Graber, associate dean of academic affairs and practice initiatives for the School of Nursing, was honored at the聽聽(ISPN) 2023 conference in Southern California in late March. She received the ISPN Education Award, which recognizes exceptional creativity and effectiveness in curriculum development and teaching strategies. ISPN Education Award recipients are considered mentors and role models by both colleagues and students. 91原创 School of Nursing doctoral alumna聽Rebecca Ivory聽nominated Graber for the award. 鈥淭his is my specialty area, and it鈥檚 a great honor to be recognized at an international conference,鈥 Graber said. Graber has been an active member of ISPN since 2016. She currently serves as the coordinator for the Northeast region. At this year鈥檚 conference, she presented along with Ivory on Operator Syndrome and Navy SEALs and what their brain health predicts about asymmetric warfighters鈥 and survivors鈥 future mental health needs from the Ukrainian battlefield and beyond.
闯耻苍颈辞谤听nursing聽major聽Rayne Roberts聽took home first place in the undergraduate poster contest at the聽聽annual conference in Philadelphia. This year鈥檚 conference theme was 鈥淧romoting Liberty: Addressing Determinants of Health Through Nursing Science.鈥 As a聽聽at 91原创, Roberts worked with聽Lauren Covington, assistant professor of nursing, in her ongoing research into sleep and stress in socioeconomically disadvantaged families.聽Roberts conducted data analysis on a past study of Covington鈥檚 and found correlations between depressive and anxiety symptoms in caregivers鈥 sleep efficiency. She also found those mental health symptoms impacted child sleep efficiency as well. 鈥淭his was my first time conducting research, so I was in shock when I received the first-place ribbon,鈥 Roberts said.聽聽鈥淚t鈥檚 surreal to think I鈥檓 not even 20 years old, and I鈥檝e already surpassed many goals I鈥檝e set for myself. It鈥檚 a humbling experience.鈥澛
Covington was impressed with Rayne from the moment she met her. As a Summer Scholar, Roberts received research training and one-on-one mentorship from Covington. 鈥淪he is the first undergraduate nursing student, who reached out to me unsolicited, having already reviewed my research program. She was eager to get involved in any way she could,鈥 Covington said. 鈥淚 was thrilled to have Rayne represent my work. My time working with Rayne has highlighted her passion for working with underserved groups, her sharp critical thinking skills and her desire to enhance her knowledge in all areas. She鈥檚 a budding nurse scientist, and I鈥檓 incredibly proud of her hard work and perseverance.鈥 聽Roberts also won second place at the College of Health Sciences Research Day poster competition.
Nursing science聽doctoral candidate聽Sanaz Taherzadeh聽won third place in the Ph.D. poster contest at the聽聽(ENRS) annual conference in Philadelphia. This year鈥檚 conference theme was 鈥淧romoting Liberty: Addressing Determinants of Health Through Nursing Science.鈥 Taherzadeh鈥檚 research included a secondary analysis of the association between sleep disturbances and pain and the impact of social determinants of health on these associations in people over the age of 40 with arthritis. 鈥淚t was so unexpected,鈥 said Taherzadeh, who鈥檚 in her second year in the program. 鈥淚t鈥檚 so competitive. Many great universities had amazing research on display at the ERNS conference so it鈥檚 a great feeling to have contributed to nursing science and an honor to represent the 91原创 at ENRS.鈥澛Xiaopeng Ji, assistant professor of nursing, served as a research mentor to Taherzadeh during her independent study, which provides new insights for mitigating health disparities in pain management among Black adults through improved sleep health. 鈥淚鈥檓 incredibly proud of Sanaz for winning this prestigious award. The competition is impressive with many great schools and Ph.D. programs represented,鈥 Ji said. 鈥淏eing recognized as among the best of the best is a significant accomplishment, and it鈥檚 a reflection of the hard work and dedication of Sanaz and the School of Nursing鈥檚 great commitment to student success.鈥
To provide information for inclusion in For the Record, submit a聽. To view a recent For the Record regarding the entire university,听search here.