Teresa Ward RN, PhD

I am the Co-Director of the Center for Innovation in Sleep Self-Management (CISSM). My program of research is focused on obstructive sleep apnea and the design and implementation of interventions to promote sleep health in children with and without chronic conditions (arthritis, asthma, chronic pain) and their families. I study the effect of sleep deficiency (inadequate amount of sleep, poor quality) on caregiver-child dyad interactions, symptoms (pain, fatigue, anxiety, depression), and health outcomes (quality of life, cognition, healthcare utilization). I also examine noninvasive urine biomarkers that may predispose children with chronic conditions to develop sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea.

 

Education

• BSN, DeSales University
• MSN, FNP, Drexel University
• PhD, University of California, San Francisco

What classes do you teach?

• NURS 201 Growth and Development Through the Lifespan (undergraduates)
• NMETH 591 The Science of Therapeutics: Design and Outcomes (PhD)
• NMETH 801 Practice Doctorate Project/Capstone (DNP)

What do you love about the UW School of Nursing?

I really enjoy mentoring interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate students. Currently I train and work with several undergraduate and graduate students from a variety of disciplines (psychology, biology, global health, pre-nursing) in the use of physiologic and behavioral sleep measures in children and their families. I also love working with families who participate in our research. They are fantastic and just as passionate as I am about translation research. Collaborating with children, families, and students is quite satisfying and rewarding.

Department

Psychosocial and Community Health

Research Areas

• Symptom Science
• Lifespan Health

Research Centers

• Center for Innovation in Sleep Self-Management