M. Rebecca O'Connor
Associate Professor
Child, Family, and Population Health Nursing
Dr. Rebecca O'Connor is an Associate Professor and Marilee Rasmussen Endowed Faculty Fellow in the University of Washington School of Nursing, and Director of the AWARETM (Assumption Watch to Actively Reduce Errors; formerly IBIAS™) National Collaborative. Dr. O’Connor works to combat the impact of assumptions made by health care professionals that contribute to clinical errors, disparities, and harm in nursing and beyond. As an inaugural Betty Irene Moore Nurse Leaders and Innovators Fellow, she developed AWARETM, an innovative patient safety program that equips nursing students with evidence-based skills to interrupt assumptions during patient encounters. This nationally recognized program has been implemented across multiple institutions, training over 800 students, faculty, and nurses, with demonstrated success in improving how students provide nursing care. Dr. O’Connor’s research also led to the development of the Inclusive Research Model and Best Practices for Equitable Research guide, used by interdisciplinary research teams across five Western states, and has trained over 250 health sciences students and researchers in equitable research practices. Her work was recently featured in the award-winning documentary "Everybody's Work: Healing What Hurts Us All," reaching more than 6,000 healthcare professionals nationally. Her excellence in teaching has been recognized through multiple local student-nominated awards and nationally through the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action’s 2024 Equity-Minded Nurse Educator Award and she was named a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing in 2025. Dr. O'Connor earned her BA in Philosophy and PhD in Nursing Science from the University of Washington and her BSN from New York University.
- Ph.D. in Nursing, University of Washington, 2013
- B.S.N., New York University, 2004
- B.A., University of Washington, 1999
- 2023. "Research recruitment through the patient portal: perspectives of community focus groups in Seattle and Atlanta." JAMIA open 6. ooad004.
https://doi.org/10.1093/jamiaopen/ooad004 - 2023. "School Nurses' Diabetes-Related Attitudes and Self-efficacy in Diabetes Education and Management." The Journal of school nursing : the official publication of the National Association of School Nurses 39. 487-495.
https://doi.org/10.1177/10598405211043126 - 2023. "School nurses' diabetes-related attitudes and self-efficacy in diabetes education and management." Journal of School Nursing 39. 487-495.
https://doi.org/10.1177/10598405211043126 - 2019. "Disparities in Insulin Pump Therapy Persist in Youth With Type 1 Diabetes Despite Rising Overall Pump Use Rates." Journal of Pediatric Nursing 44. W.B. Saunders.
https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2018.10.005
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2018.10.005 - 2019. "Short-term outcomes of a diversity, equity, and inclusion institute for nursing faculty." Journal of Nursing Education 58. Slack Incorporated.
https://dx.doi.org/10.3928/01484834-20191021-04
https://doi.org/10.3928/01484834-20191021-04 - 2014. "Clinical Update on Genetic and Autoimmune Biomarkers in Pediatric Diabetes." Biological Research for Nursing 16.
https://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1099800412473820
https://doi.org/10.1177/1099800412473820 - 2014. "Timing of complementary food introduction and age at diagnosis of type 1 diabetes: The SEARCH nutrition ancillary study (SNAS)." European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 68. Nature Publishing Group.
https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.159
https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.159 - 2012. "Migration status in relation to clinical characteristics and barriers to care among youth with diabetes in the US." Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health 14.
https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10903-012-9617-3
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-012-9617-3 - "Using equityXdesign to Develop Nursing Curricula : The Implicit Bias Clinical Teaching Program Case Study." Nurse educator 49. 57-59.
https://doi.org/10.1097/NNE.0000000000001491
- NSG 552: Social Drivers of Health and Health Equity
- NURS 587: Leadership and Team Science Seminar
- NURS 610: Teaching Practicum
- CFPHN SCRI Staff Assignment 2023-2024, Seattle Children's Hospital
- Recordable Cards for Optimizing Outcomes and Reducing Disparities after ED Discharge: The RECORD-ED Pilot Study, Seattle Children's Hospital
- Implicit Bias Teaching Protocol, The Regents of the University of California
- RWJF Scholar_Nwafor, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation