The URI College of Nursing welcomed one of its newest educators and researchers, Dr. Susan Desanto-Madeya, who fills the College’s Miriam Weyker Chair.

“I am thrilled to join the URI College of Nursing as the Miriam Weyker Chair. Dr. Desanto-Madeya said. “This position provides me with an opportunity to build an interdisciplinary palliative care program and expand my research to improve the quality of life for persons, families, and communities living with serious illness.”

Get to know a little about Dr. Desanto-Madeya:

Education: Ph.D. and M.S. in Nursing, Widener University, Chester, Penn.; B.S. in Nursing, East Stroudsburg University.

Recent Experience: Clinical Associate Professor, Boston College Connell School of Nursing; Nurse Scientist, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; Sojourn Leader Scholar, Cambia Health Foundation.

Research focus: Dr. Desanto-Madeya’s research focuses on palliative and end-of-life care, with the goal of improving quality of life and quality of care. She studies inequities in health care, especially toward the end of life, and improving a patient’s final days by eliminating unnecessary medications. “Unnecessary medications to treat a condition may not be necessary anymore, and can impact quality of life. The idea is for the patient to concentrate on what’s important instead of managing medications,” she said.

Teaching focus: Desanto-Madeya teaches courses in thanatology and palliative care.

Future plans: Desanto-Madeya hopes to develop a palliative care minor curriculum that is inclusive of living with a serious illness and improving quality of life, along with the study of end of life.