# positions[].label
Associate Dean for Undergraduate Nursing Education

# overview
The overall focus of my program of research is reproductive health promotion for women. Specifically, my work explores menopausal hot flashes as a result of estrogen related changes in brain glucose metabolism. Although menopausal hot flashes (HF) have long been assumed to be benign, albeit uncomfortable, emerging evidence links higher rates of HF with both cognitive decline and cardiac disease. Understanding these associations is challenging because the physiology of the HF, is not well described.  It is commonly believed that either endocrine or thermoregulatory events in the hypothalamus are the trigger.  However, emerging evidence indicates that HF are complex and multi-causal reflecting a combination of endocrine, genetic, cultural, dietary, physical and individual factors. Building on studies of the neuroprotective effects of estrogen, we propose impaired glucose deliver hypothesis. Mediated by estradiol, neuronal activation stimulates neurobarrier coupling increasing production of glucose transporter 1 and causing vasodilation. These changes are examined as the basis of the HF ultimately leading to cognitive change at menopause. Next steps in this work are to identify reliable methods to induce HF in symptomatic women and image using PET technology the bioenergetics of glucose transport and metabolism both during the HF and without it.

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
Indiana University of Pennsylvania - (Indiana, Pennsylvania, United States)

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
Virginia Commonwealth University - (Richmond, Virginia, United States)

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor - (Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States)

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of Florida - (Gainesville, Florida, United States)

# publications[].label
Models for moral response in care of seriously ill children.

# publications[].label
Social support and adaptation to the parent role in first-time adolescent mothers.

# publications[].label
An alternative to Unibase/glycol as an effective nonhydrating electrolyte medium for the measurement of electrodermal activity.

# publications[].label
Complementary and alternative medicine use for vasomotor symptoms among women who have discontinued hormone therapy.

# publications[].label
Factors associated with use of hormone therapy among women with mobility impairments.

# publications[].label
Menopausal symptom experience: an online forum study.

# publications[].label
Menopausal symptoms among four major ethnic groups in the United States.

# publications[].label
Menopause healthcare for women with physical disabilities.

# publications[].label
Norepinephrine activity, as measured by MHPG, is associated with menopausal hot flushes.

# publications[].label
The Lived Experience of Pregnancy as a Black Woman in America: A Descriptive Phenomenological Case Study

# publications[].label
A national multiethnic online forum study on menopausal symptom experience.

# publications[].label
Finding My Way: A Phenomenology of Fathering in the NICU.

# publications[].label
Ethnic differences in vasomotor symptoms during experimental blood glucose manipulation

# publications[].label
The Dynamics of Glucose Transport in the Brain during Menopausal Hot Flashes

# publications[].label
What we know about managing menopausal hot flashes: navigating without a compass.

# publications[].label
Menopausal hot flash frequency changes in response to experimental manipulation of blood glucose.

# publications[].label
Ethical models: facilitating clinical practice.

# publications[].label
The potential role of glucose transport changes in hot flash physiology: a hypothesis.

# publications[].label
Life Stress, Race, and Abnormal Glucose Metabolism in Postmenopausal Women.

# publications[].label
Message Heard: Insights for Doctoral Program Design From Community Partners.

# publications[].label
The effect of dietary intake on hot flashes in menopausal women.

# publications[].label
The Lived Experience of Fathering a Premature Infant in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

# publications[].label
Dementia Care Content in Prelicensure Nursing Curricula: A Pilot Mixed-Methods Study.

# publications[].label
Introduction to the Online Nursing Education Best Practices Guide.

# publications[].label
Engaging community-based HIV/AIDS service organizations in the selection of cervical cancer prevention educational materials for women living with HIV

# publications[].label
The effects of hormone therapy decision support for women with mobility impairments.

# publications[].label
Predictors of risk for adolescent childbearing.

# publications[].label
Midlife women's responses to a hospital sleep challenge: aging and menopause effects on sleep architecture.

# publications[].label
Menopause health decision support for women with physical disabilities.

# publications[].label
Menopausal symptom experience of Hispanic midlife women in the United States.

# publications[].label
Insights into fear: A phenomenological study of Black mothers.

# publications[].label
The Impact of Type of Menopause on Glucose Metabolism

# researcherOn[].label
A longitudinal investigation of the cerebellum in adulthood: anatomical and network changes, motor function, and cognition

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
National Institutes of Health - (Bethesda, Maryland, United States)

# streetAddress
Texas A&M University,College Of Nursing; 8447 Riverside Parkway; 

# inTheNews[].label
Federal Funds Awarded To Nurse-Led Project Combatting Opioid Crisis

# inTheNews[].label
What the Texas A&M College of Nursing learned from preparing for COVID-19