Amanda M. Emerson, PhD, RN

Professional Background

Amanda Emerson, PhD, RN, is an assistant professor in the School of Nursing. Dr. Emerson has taught theory for practice in the MS/DNP program and has prior experience teaching qualitative research methods, theory and knowledge development, state of the science, and social justice in research in a PhD program. Dr. Emerson also holds a PhD in English and formerly taught early American literature and women’s studies. Her clinical practice as an RN was in intermediate post-surgical cardiac care.

Research

Overview

As a researcher, Dr. Emerson seeks to understand and address barriers to health equity in populations affected by criminal legal system involvement. She has worked for eight years with the Sexual Health Empowerment ([S]HE) team in the KUMC Department of Population Health on NIH-funded studies to prevent cervical cancer by increasing screening and HPV vaccinations in people who have criminal-legal system involvement. Dr. Emerson’s current research aims are to develop a comprehensive health profile to characterize accelerated aging in and map health services use of older adult women with a history of incarceration. Her next steps will focus on the development of an assets-centered intervention to support cognitive and other health function in middle and older adult women with criminal-legal system involvement as they age. Dr. Emerson is supported by a KL2 mentored research career development award, a CTSA grant from NCATS awarded to Frontiers Clinical and Translational Science Institute (KL2TR002367). Dr. Emerson’s publications appear in Qualitative Health Research, Nursing Inquiry, Vaccine, American Journal of Health Promotion, Journal of Aging and Health, and elsewhere.