Grace Dean awarded NIH grant to study CBT delivered by bedside nurses.

At UB School of Nursing researchers believe that mentorship is key to the development of a successful research program. Through the Mecca S. Cranley Mentorship Award we are able to connect faculty with expert researchers from around the country to collaborate on high quality publications and grant applications. This year, Drs. Grace Dean, Suzanne Dickerson, Carla Jungquist, and Davina Porock received the group mentorship award to focus on sleep research which is emerging as a critical mass of scholarship in our school. This group of faculty are primed for successful research programs in the area of sleep. Additionally, UBSON has faculty with research programs that would like to integrate sleep and circadian rhythms measures in their work. Through the Mentorship Award they received expert consultation and mentorship from Dr. Michael Perlis, PhD, University of Pennsylvania. Three major grants have been submitted this year from this group’s work with Dr. Perlis.

The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) is an on-going telephone health survey system run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tracking health risk behaviors, preventive health practices, and health care access related to chronic disease and injury. The data received from these surveys establishes priorities for state and federal health department initiatives that serve to improve public health. This data is also used by National Institutes of Health to set priorities for research. Drs. Jungquist and Dickerson along with their research team were funded by the CDC to validate the survey questions about sleep behaviors and disorders. Their study discovered 2 of the 5 questions currently used in the CDC telephone surveys were not reliably capturing sleep problems likely causing automobile accidents and poor or dangerous performance at work. The team is developing more specific questions in collaboration with the CDC. Study results have been disseminated at the UB Celebration of Student Academic Excellence and at the 2014 International Sleep Conference.

Understanding sleep disturbance and improving sleep quality in older adults living in long-term care (LTC) settings has been the focus of study for Junxin Li, PhD ’14 since she arrived at UB to pursue her PhD. Dr. Li states, “Sleep is important for health and well-being and this is no different for LTC residents. However, disturbed sleep is a common complaint in this group who frequently report experiences of excessive daytime sleepiness, difficulty falling asleep, increased duration and frequency of awakenings at night, and disrupted sleepwake rhythms.