Robin Dawson, PhD, RN, CPNP-PC

Congratulations to Dr. Robin Dawson! Dr. Robin Dawson was inducted as a 2022 Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing on October 29, 2022 in Washington DC. The American Academy of Nursing is one of nursing’s highest honors with only 3000 total fellows throughout the world. Fellows are recognized as leaders who champion health and wellness, locally and globally and who are experts in policy, research, administration, practice, and/or academia. Dr. Dawson was recognized for her practice-based research to optimize patient-provider communication to improve the quality of care.

Cindy Corbett, PhD, RN, FAAN

Dr. Cindy Corbett is serving as a member of the South Carolina Institute of Medicine & Public Health (IMPH) Social Isolation in Older Adults Taskforce. The task force will contribute to a IMPH-authored published report. The report will contain a literature review, South Carolina-specific data, and recommendations for actionable strategies to reduce social isolation in South Carolina.

Elizabeth M. Combs, MA

Lizzy Combs serves as a project coordinator for the ACORN Center. Recently, she presented two posters at the Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision.  Combs, E.M.¸ Toomey, T.M., & Lewis, O. (2022, November) Substance misuse and wellbeing in the LGBTQ+ population during the COVID-19 era. Poster presented at the Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision Conference. Baltimore, MD. Gilreath, R., Saunders, M., & Combs, E.M. (2022, November) A Scoping Review of Mindfulness and Substance Misuse Among College Students. Poster presented at the Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision Conference. Baltimore, MD.

Kathrine (Kate) Jones, DNP, RN, CENP, CCM

Dr. Kate Jones has two presentations at the January 2022 AACN Doctoral Education Conference in Coronado, California. She has a poster presentation, “Establishing Practice Sites for Nursing Faculty Pursuing a DNP Degree” and a podium presentation, “Supporting DNP Students and Faculty Using a Mentor Group Model”.

Abbas S. Tavakoli, DrPH, MPH, ME

Congratulations to Dr. Abbas Tavakoli who was elected as the Vice President for the South Easter SAS User Group (SESUG).

Coretta M. Jenerette, PhD, RN, AOCN, CNE, ANEF, FAAN

Dr. Coretta Jenerette, College of Nursing Associate Dean for DEI, is an MPI of the NIH-funded USC FIRST FIRRE program. The multi-year NIH FIRST (Faculty Institutional Recruitment for Sustainable Transformation) initiative intends to enhance inclusive excellence at competitively determined institutions across the United States. In the context of USC’s strategic plan, the FIRST FIRRE (Faculty Initiative for Improved Recruitment, Retention, and Experience) team has developed a tailored strategy to achieve significant and sustainable institutional culture change by implementing institutional programs and practices that support inclusive excellence.  

Phyllis A. Raynor, PhD, APRN, PMHNP-BC

Dr. Phyllis Raynor had a podium presentation, “Leveraging community-based partnerships and digital technology to support pregnant and early parenting women seeking recovery”, at the International Society of Addictions Nurses 45th Annual Education Conference. Calgary, Canada in October 2022. 

Gayenell Magwood, PhD, RN, FAHA, FAAN

Dr. Gayenell Magwood, Myrtle Irene Brown Endowed Professor of Nursing, presented “Improving the collaborative health of Black COVID-19 survivor and care partner dyads: A research protocol” and “Refining a theory-based intervention (iCINGS FAM) for African American COVID-19 Survivors and Care Partners Dyads,” at the Council of the Advancement of Nursing Science, State of the Science Congress, Washington DC in September 2022.

Malissa Mulkey, PhD, APRN, CCNS, CCRN, CNRN

Dr. Malissa Mulkey, Assistant Professor, presented “Machine Learning Detects Delirium on Limited Lead EEG” at the Council for Advancing Nursing Science, State of the Science Congress, Washington DC in September 2022 and “Is Limited Lead EEG an option for Delirium Detection Monitoring?” at the International Neuroscience Research Symposium in August held virtually.

April Hutto

Hutto, A. & Baliko B. A Scoping Review of Shared Trauma. Abstract accepted for poster presentation at the 33rd Annual Boston International Trauma Conference, May 2022, Boston, Massachusetts.

Lori Lynn Vick, PhD, RN

Vick, L. (2022). Mental Health Disorders: Co-morbidities with Sickle Cell Disease. Invited Presentation at the International Association of Sickle Cell Nurses and Professional Associates (IASCNAPA), St. Jude Children's Hospital, and University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Sickle Cell Disease Curriculum Boot Camp. June 2022 Memphis, TN Sylvestre. C. & Vick, L. Neurological Disorders: Acute and Chronic Complications in Person with Sickle Cell Disease. Invited Presentation at the International Association of Sickle Cell Nurses and Professional Associates (IASCNAPA), St. Jude Children's Hospital, and University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Sickle Cell Disease Curriculum Boot Camp. June 2022 Memphis, TN

Phyllis A. Raynor, PhD, APRN, PMHNP-BC

Dr. Phyllis Raynor recently received a seed grant from Prisma Health—Health Sciences Center, Leveraging Data to Promote Health Equity: Assessing Maternal Health Outcomes During the 4th Trimester for Women with Substance Use Disorders Receiving Perinatal Care at the Magdalene Clinic.  From among a “large pool of exceptional applicants”, Dr. Raynor was also selected as a fellow into the NIH mHealth Training Institute as a 2023 scholar.

Coretta M. Jenerette, PhD, RN, AOCN, CNE, ANEF, FAAN

Congratulations to Dr. Jenerette who received the Faculty Mentor Award at the College of Nursing Research and Scholarship Day! Well deserved!

Pamela J. Wright, PhD, MS, MEd, RN, CEN

Congratulations to Dr. Wright who received the College of Nursing Outstanding Dissertation Award! We are proud of you!

Magellan Grant

Congratulations to our undergraduate student scholars who secured Magellan grants for their research:  Natalie Trimble for study titled, TRICARE Beneficiary Experiences with Pediatric Specialty Healthcare (mentors: Corbett, Wright, and Taylor) Khushi Patel for study titled, Exploring Medical Mistrust by Income Level in South Carolina: Patient Perceptions of Primary Care Providers (mentors: Dawson and Corbett) Baily Goldschmidt for study titled, Healthcare Transitions: Exploring Young Adults’ Perceptions of the Transition from Pediatric to Adult Care (mentor: Dawson)

Outstanding Poster

Congratulations to ACORN Center Undergraduate Scholar Sydney Reichardt who received the outstanding undergraduate student poster award at the College of Nursing’s Research and Scholarship Day for her poster titled, Depressive Symptoms and Quality of Life in People with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome: A Descriptive Feasibility Study. Ms. Reichardt also received a South Carolina Honors College Grant to conduct work that will support her honor’s thesis titled, Exploring the Relationships between Depressive Symptoms, Quality of Life and Total Daily Activity of People with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome.

ACORN SEEDS (student scholar) Natalie Trimble was featured in a recent College of Nursing e-newsletter, The CONnection.

Coretta M. Jenerette, PhD, RN, AOCN, CNE, ANEF, FAAN

Dr. Coretta Jenerette participated in a Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation blog titled: Improving Equity Through Nursing: Honoring Black History Month with Drs. Coretta Jenerette and Danica Fulbright Sumpter. Read more here: https://macyfoundation.org/news-and-commentary/improving-equity-through-nursing?utm_source=Website&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Improving+Equity+Through+Nursing

Jonathan Richey

Congratulations to Jonathan Richey, Undergraduate Research Assistant, who participated in USC Wind Ensemble’s tribute to Dr. King during Black History Month as part of the College Band Director’s National Association Conference at the University of Georgia in Athens, GA.  See the ensemble photo and read more here: https://www.sc.edu/study/colleges_schools/music/about/news/windensembleatcbdna.php#.Y_i6NnbMK70

Welcome New Members

The ACORN Center has been delighted to welcome three new faculty and a new Graduate Student Scholar over the past few months. Drs. Joy Deupree, Donna Kazemi, and Pam Wright joined the Center as Core faculty in December 2021. We look forward to their contributions to our mission in the upcoming months and years. Please refer to their biographies for information about their programs of research. April Hutto joined the Center as the Graduate Student Scholar in February 2022. Hutto is a PhD in Nursing Science student at UofSC and employed as a psychiatric nurse practitioner. She is board certified as both a family nurse practitioner and a psychiatric nurse practitioner. For her dissertation research, Hutto plans to study the impact of shared trauma reality on health care providers and their therapeutic relationships with patients.

Communication Exchange Patterns of Pregnancy-Related Substance Use Disorder on Twitter During COVID-19 Pandemic

Drs. Phyllis Raynor, Dezhi Wu  and colleagues presented, Communication Exchange Patterns of Pregnancy-Related Substance Use Disorder on Twitter During COVID-19 Pandemic, at the Big Data Health Science 2022 Annual Conference (February 2022) in Columbia, South Carolina.

Cultivating human subjects protection knowledge and social justice advocacy: A PhD student escape room

Drs. Cindy Corbett and Coretta Jenerette and colleagues’ poster presentation, Cultivating human subjects protection knowledge and social justice advocacy: A PhD student escape room, was presented at the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Doctoral Education conference in January 2022 and received the first place award in the category for “quality improvement and evidence-based practice."

Breakthrough Graduate Scholar Award

Dr. Pam Wright, new ACORN faculty member and former ACORN Center Graduate Faculty Scholar, received a Breakthrough Graduate Scholar Award, from the University of South Carolina in December 2021. The award recognizes students who have made considerable contributions to research and scholarly activities.

Natalie Trimble, Undergraduate SmartStart Student, had a poster presentation, Tricare Beneficiary Experiences with Pediatric Specialty Healthcare: A Feasibility Study, at the 2023 National Collegiate Research Conference, Harvard University, Boston, MA, January 2023.

Sydney Reichardt, Undergraduate SmartStart Student, had a poster presentation, Depression and Quality of Life in Patients with POTS: A Feasibility Study, at the 2023 Clinical Practice Conference, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, February 2023.

April Hutto, PhD Student, received the travel award from the International Society of Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurses (ISPN), to attend their 2023 conference and present her poster, Shared Trauma: An Evolutionary Model Concept Analysis. The Conference is March 29-April 1, 2023 in Redondo Beach, CA.