Each semester, the College of Nursing Office of Research highlights two ongoing or recently completed research studies. For this semester's studies, please see the information below.

  Dr. Umit Tokac - PI

Deciding A Treatment with Partially Observed Markov Decision Process (POMDP) for Veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: This research is in partnership with Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans' Hospital, Columbia, MO. This project aims to build artificial intelligence (POMDP) method that clinicians at the Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans' Hospital can use to provide personalized PTSD treatment to veteran patients. The implementation of this method aims to improve treatment delivery and effectiveness to reduce PTSD symptoms in a short amount of time (thus costing less) and enable veterans to return to civilian life more quickly than the current practice. 

  Dr. Kimberly Werner - PI

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain injury if women survivors of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV; funded through July 2021): This research is in partnership with the Boston VA and Washington University Department of Radiology. This research (data collection complete) replicates and expands assessment methodology employed in a large scale, longitudinal cohort study examining the long-term physical and psychological effects of mild Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and other comorbidities in a sample of post-9/11 Veterans (Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorder, TRACTS) (McGlinchey et al. 2017) to a sample of women who report head injuries during IPV. Specifically, this study seeks to assess the extent of sub-concussive head injury and TBI in a sample of female survivors of IPV who screened positive for PTSD (N=51) and to evaluate the impact of sub-concussive head injury and TBI on PTSD, psychiatric comorbidity, psychological distress, psychosocial functioning, and neuropsychological functioning. In addition, a small pilot sample (n=12) was included in a treatment outcome study investigating the efficacy of massed cognitive processing therapy delivered in and accelerated timeframe (one week) compared to standard cognitive processing therapy.