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Kirsten A. Dickins, PhD, AM, APRN, FNP-C

Kirsten A. Dickins, PhD, AM, APRN, FNP-C
Assistant Professor
Department of Community, Systems and Mental Health Nursing, College of Nursing
Education

Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, Massachusetts General Hospital 
PhD, RUSH College of Nursing  
MSN, Saint Xavier University 
RN, Yale University 
AM, The University of Chicago 
BA, DePaul University  

Research Areas

Health equity, community engaged research, psychological trauma, women’s health, homelessness, correctional settings 

Contact Info:

600 S. Paulina, Suite 1080 Chicago, Il 60612

Office: (312) 942-0782 
Links:
Biography

Kirsten A. Dickins, PhD, AM, APRN, FNP-C, completed her PhD in Nursing Science at the Rush University College of Nursing and Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital, Yvonne L. Munn Center for Nursing Research. Her program of research utilizes community engaged approaches to trauma-focused intervention development with and for populations experiencing homelessness and in correctional settings. She utilizes varied analytic approaches to her work in intervention adaptation and implementation, with a focus on centralizing the voices and perspectives of key stakeholders.

Recently, Dickins was the recipient of a DAISY Health Equity Research Grant to advance her trauma-focused work in the community. In 2020, Dickins was named a STAT Wunderkind award, recognizing early career researchers “blazing new trails as they attempt to answer some of the biggest questions in science and medicine”. She has published her research in peer-reviewed outlets including the Journal of Women’s Health, Journal of Healthcare for the Poor and Underserved, Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, Social Work in Public Health, and Geriatric Nursing. She is the co-author of a textbook, Literature Review and Synthesis: A Guide for Nurses and Other Healthcare Professionals, published by Springer in 2022.  

Honors and Activities

  • 1st Place Emerging Clinical Nurse Researcher/Scholar Poster Award, Eastern Nursing Research Society (2022) 

  • STAT Wunderkind, STAT News (2020) 

  • Luther Christman Unification Model Award, Rush University (2019)       

  • Jonas Nurse Leaders Scholars Program, Jonas Philanthropies (2016)                                  

  • NurseCorps Scholar, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, HRSA (2013) 

Publications

  • Dickins KA, Fine DR, Adams LD, et al. Mortality Trends Among Adults Experiencing Homelessness in Boston, Massachusetts From 2003 to 2018. JAMA Intern Med. Published online March 13, 2023. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2022.7011

  • Dickins Aryee, K., Malley, A., Bartels, S.J., Baggett, T.P., & Looby, S.E. (2022). Exploring Opportunities to Optimize Stress and Trauma-Focused Primary Care with Low-Income Midlife and Older Women. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved. In-Press. 

  • Kileel, E., Dickins, K.A., Blossom, J., Looby, S., & Fitch, K. (2022). Regional differences in added sweetener knowledge, consumption and body mass index in people living with HIV in the United States. AIDS and Behavior. In press.  

  • Moss, A., Rousseau, J., Swartwout, K., Kalensky, M., Gallagher, T., Gorenz, A., & Dickins, K. (2022). Leveraging a Successful Faculty Practice Model to Recruit and Retain Early-Career Nurse Faculty. Nurse Educator. https://doi.org/10.1097/NNE.0000000000001177 

  • Fine, D. R., Dickins, K. A., Adams, L. D., De Las Nueces, D., Weinstock, K., Wright, J., Gaeta, J. M., & Baggett, T. P. (2022). Drug Overdose Mortality Among People Experiencing Homelessness, 2003 to 2018. JAMA Network Open, 5(1), e2142676. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.42676 

  • Banister, G., Carroll, D., Dickins, K., Flanagan, J., Jones, D., Looby, S., Cahill, J. (2022). A pilot study exploring documentation of nurse sensitive indicators during COVID-19. International Journal of Nursing Knowledge. DOI: 10.1111/2047-3095.12372 

  • Kileel, E. M., Dickins, K. A., Zheng, H., Fitch, K. V., & Looby, S. E. (2021). The Association of Distinct Social Determinants of Health with Added Sweetener Knowledge and Consumption in a U.S. Sample of People Living with HIV. AIDS and Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-021-03508-1 

  • Dickins, K. A., Malley, A., Bartels, S. J., Baggett, T. P., & Looby, S. E. (2021). Barriers, facilitators, and opportunities to optimize care engagement in a diverse sample of older low-income women: A qualitative study. Geriatric Nursing, 42(5), 965–976. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gerinurse.2021.06.015 

  • Dickins, K. A., Philpotts, L. L., Flanagan, J., Bartels, S. J., Baggett, T. P., & Looby, S. E. (2021). Physical and Behavioral Health Characteristics of Aging Homeless Women in the United States: An Integrative Review. Journal of Women’s Health, 30(10), 1493–1507. https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2020.8557 

  • Dickins, K. A., & Looby, S. E. (2020). Behavioral and psychological health inequities in income disparate perimenopausal women: a brief report. Menopause, 28(1), 86–92. https://doi.org/10.1097/GME.0000000000001650 

  • Dickins, K. A., Buchholz, S. W., Ingram, D., Braun, L. T., Hamilton, R. J., Earle, M., & Karnik, N. S. (2020). Supporting Primary Care Access and Use among Homeless Persons. Social Work in Public Health, 35(6), 335–357. https://doi.org/10.1080/19371918.2020.1809589 

  • Dickins, K., Buchholz, S. W., Ingram, D., Hamilton, R. J., Braun, L. T., Karnik, N. S., & Earle, M. (2019). “Now that you’ve got that coverage”: Promoting use of a regular source of primary care among homeless persons. Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 33(2), 158–166. https://doi.org/10.1097/JXX.0000000000000319 

  • Dickins, K. A., Buchholz, S. W., Rivero, T., & Miller, C. (2018). A review of reviews: Sedentary behaviour and cardiovascular disease specific to older people. International Journal of Older People Nursing, 13(4), e12211. https://doi.org/10.1111/opn.12211 

  • Kostas-Polston, E. A., Rawlett, K., Miedema, J., & Dickins, K. (2018). An integrative review of nurse practitioner education models: Part three of a four-part series on critical topics identified by the 2015 Nurse Practitioner Research Agenda. Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 30(12), 696–709. https://doi.org/10.1097/JXX.0000000000000150 

  • Buchholz, S. W., Klein, T., Cooke, C., Cook, M. L., Knestrick, J., & Dickins, K. (2018). Introduction to four reviews addressing critical topics identified by the 2015 Nurse Practitioner Research Agenda Roundtable: Priorities for policy, workforce, education, and practice. Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 30(12), 667–672. https://doi.org/10.1097/JXX.0000000000000035 

  • Wolfson, R. K., Alberson, K., McGinty, M., Schwanz, K., Dickins, K., & Arora, V. M. (2017). The Impact of a Scholarly Concentration Program on Student Interest in Career-Long Research: A Longitudinal Study. Academic Medicine, 92(8), 1196–1203. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000001486 

  • Fitzpatrick, S. L., Dickins, K., Avery, E., Ventrelle, J., Shultz, A., Kishen, E., & Rothschild, S. (2017). Effect of an obesity best practice alert on physician documentation and referral practices. Translational Behavioral Medicine, 7(4), 881–890. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-017-0514-0 

  • Siomos MZ, Andreoni M, Buchholz SW, Dickins K. (2017). A guide to physical activity recommendations for individuals with diabetes. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 13(1), 82-88. doi: dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nurpra.2016.10.025 

  • Dickins K.A., Braun L. (2017). Promotion of physical activity and cardiac rehabilitation for the management of cardiovascular disease. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 13(1), 47-53. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nurpra.2016.10.02682-88. 

Grants

  • DAISY Foundation Health Equity Research Grant (2022) 

  • Golden Lamp Society Dissertation Award (2018) 

  • Golden Lamp Society Kellogg Award (2017)