Ira Kantrowitz-Gordon PhD, CNM, ARNP, FACNM, FAAN

As a nurse-midwife, I provide reproductive health care to women at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, Washington. Serving women from minority and immigrant populations with language barriers and other disadvantages sparked my interest in the connection between stress and preterm birth. In my PhD dissertation I used a combination of interviews and photo-elicitation to explore parents’ distress after preterm birth. Since then I have become interested in finding ways to reduce stress during pregnancy using mindfulness techniques. Using data from a large internet survey of stress in pregnancy, I am examining the relationship between mindfulness and depression, anxiety, and stress. I am also testing an internet mindfulness program for high-risk pregnant women with the goal of making stress-reduction simple and accessible. The ultimate goal of my program of research is to improve outcomes for high-risk families.

Education

• BS, Brown University, 1990
• BSN, University of Washington, 1995
• MN, University of Washington, 1998
• PhD, Washington State University, 2013

Awards and accolades

• Fellow of the American College of Nurse Midwives
• Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing

What classes do you teach?

NCLIN 501

NMETH 801

NURS 542

What do you love about the UW School of Nursing?

The center of my experience and joy of being at the School of Nursing is working with students. When I transitioned from full-time clinical practice to the leadership position in the nurse-midwifery and perinatal CNS tracks of the Doctor of Nursing Practice program I saw myself as a midwife for the students, whether they are students becoming nurses, nurse-midwives, or nursing scientists. Teaching at the University of Washington provides me unparalleled opportunities to develop programs and teach interprofessionally with other health science disciplines. I am a group facilitator in the Foundations for Interprofessional Practice series for undergraduates and the Intra-professional Shared Clinical Seminar series for DNP students. I am also developing a collaborative program with School of Dentistry faculty to incorporate interprofessional oral health education into group prenatal care.

Department

Child, Family, and Population Health Nursing

Research Areas

• Innovative Interventions
• Symptom Science
• Health Equity
• Lifespan Health