Pictured are (from top left moving clockwise): Jerry John Ouner, Van Park, Michele Pelter, Glenda Baguso, and Elena Flowers are among the NIH grant recipients in 2025.
Fueled by National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding, experts from the UCSF School of Nursing continue to lead the nation in research addressing today’s most devastating and costly health issues, from diabetes and dementia to cardiovascular disease and beyond.
Securing $14.5 million in NIH funding in 2025, school researchers are pioneering scientific discoveries, advancing our understanding of health issues, and identifying new treatments to improve the health and well-being of communities locally, nationally, and globally.
“I am continually inspired by our faculty’s unwavering, sustained excellence in advancing high-impact NIH-funded research that addresses the most important and pressing health challenges across communities of all backgrounds,” said Glenn-Milo Santos, PhD, MPH, professor and associate dean for research.
The School of Nursing ranks No. 1 among public institutions in its field in NIH funding, and No. 4 overall among all private and public nursing organizations in the country, according to rankings released by the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research based on NIH data.
NIH-funding received in 2025 is enabling school researchers to investigate new treatments for patients with dementia and HIV, explore AI’s potential to improve detection of life-threatening heart rhythms, evaluate how cancer treatment options impact patients, and more.
Innovation Through Collaboration
The school’s research enterprise brings together an interdisciplinary team of scientists – including nurse scientists, psychologists, sociologists, epidemiologists, neuroscientists, biostatisticians, and health economists – who collaborate to address complex health challenges from multiple perspectives.
Findings from school-led research advance health equity, improve patient care, enhance our knowledge of health disparities, and inform health policy.
Additionally, predoctoral and postdoctoral scholars within the school engage in faculty-led research and NIH-funded training programs, including a program that trains nurse scientists to lead efforts to end the HIV epidemic.
“Collaboration and a deep commitment to educating the next generation of scientists drives our school’s research enterprise,” said Carol Dawson-Rose, PhD, RN, FAAN, dean of the School of Nursing. “NIH funding enables our research community to lead the future of nursing science and transform the delivery of care.”
Projects Awarded NIH Funding in 2025
| Principal Investigator | Project |
|---|---|
| Abbey Alkon | Best Practices to Return Results About Pesticide Exposures in Family Child Care Homes |
| Glenda Baguso | A Trauma-Informed Approach to Increase HIV Prevention and Care Engagement in a Population with Elevated HIV Burden |
| Karen Barrett | Impact of Improvisation Music Therapy for Persons Living with Dementia and Their Care Partners |
| Stella Bialous | Integrating Tobacco Use Cessation into HIV Care and Treatment in Ministry of Health Facilities in Kisumu County, Kenya |
| Stella Bialous | Addressing Disparities in Tobacco-Related Diseases by Understanding the Tobacco Industry Strategies |
| Carol Dawson-Rose | Next Generation Nurse Scientists Ending the HIV Epidemic |
| Elena Flowers | Empirically Based Career Development Program for Early Career Trainees Supported by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) |
| Elene Flowers | Mentorship of Individuals from Historically Under-Represented Groups in Health Sciences Research |
| Elena Flowers | Investigation of the Role of MicroRNAs in Adipose Tissue from People Infected with HIV Who Develop Type 2 Diabetes |
| Sarah Gutin | Couples Advancing Together for Safer Conception (CAT-SC): A Couples’-Based Intervention to Improve Engagement in Sexual and Reproductive Health Services for Mobile Fisherfolk in Kenya |
| Carolyn Harris | Characterization of the Symptom Experience of Patients with Cutaneous Melanoma Receiving Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy |
| Orlando Harris | Jamaica CARES Project: Enhancing HIV Care Continuity Among Priority Populations in Jamaica |
| OiSaeng Hong | Intervention for Hearing Health Among Native Americans |
| Jennifer Jain | Women, Intersectionality, Substance Use and HIV (WISH) |
| Julene Johnson | Impact of Music Improvisation Training on Brain Function and Cognition among Older Adults |
| Julene Johnson | Research Network to Accelerate Mechanistic Studies of Music for Dementia (RN-MusD) |
| Kord Kober | An Investigation of the Molecular Mechanisms for and Prediction of the Severity of A Chemotherapy-Related Fatigue Using a Multi-Staged Integrated Omics Approach |
| Cherry Leung | Probiotic Administration for Adolescent Depression |
| Jenny Liu | AmbassADDOrs for Health: Supporting Young Women's Health Through Girl-Friendly Drug Vendors |
| Jenny Liu | AmbassADDOrs for Health: Maintaining Youth-Friendly HIV Prevention Services to Young Women Through Drug Vendors |
| Jerry John Ouner | We Are Together (WAT): Development and Testing of an Intervention to Reduce HIV-Related Stigma Among Pregnant and Postpartum Women |
| Linda Park | Supportive Training After Cardiac Rehabilitation Including Virtual Engagement: The STRIVE Study |
| Van Park | Collaborative Approach for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders Research and Education (CARE) 2.0 |
| Michele Pelter | Evaluation of a Novel ECG Algorithm to Identify and Predict Ventricular Tachycardia in ICU and Non-ICU Patients with In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest |
| Glenn-Milo Santos | ASTERISK: Alcohol and Substance use Treatment and Engagement Research on Intervention Studies among Key populations |
| Shannon Smith-Bernardin | Evaluation of Paramedic Decision Making in Triage and Transport of Adults with Acute Uncomplicated Alcohol Intoxication to the Emergency Department Versus Sobering Center |
| Lauren Suchman | Strengthening Clinical Support for Providers Working with Women Living with HIV to Manage Menopause |
| Lisa Thompson | Estimating Cumulative Exposure to Household Plastic Waste Burning Using Silicone Wristbands in Rural Guatemala |
| Laura Wagner | Relationships of Dementia Care Workforce Experiences, Training, & Work Environment to Resident Outcomes in Skilled Nursing Facilities |