The University of Rhode Island College of Nursing welcomed Assistant Professor Thaís São-João to the college in the spring of 2022. Learn about one of the College’s newest professors:

Education: PhD, Nursing, University of Campinas (Brazil); Post-Doc, Health Sciences, University of Campinas (Brazil); MSN, Nursing, University of Campinas (Brazil); BSN, Nursing, University of Campinas (Brazil).

Recent Experience: Assistant Professor, University of Campinas (Brazil); Professor, Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Campinas (Brazil).

Research focus: Dr. Thaís São-João focuses on health-related behavior change, especially risk factors for diseases including diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease. In Brazil, she received grants from the National Council of Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) and from the São Paulo Research Foundation (Fapesp) as a tenured professor. Dr. São-João is experienced in studies aimed at designing, implementing and assessing nurse-driven interventions; as well as randomized, controlled intervention studies in clinical settings. She has expertise in research design and methods, and in cultural adaptation and validation studies, with a focus on people with noncommunicable diseases such as cardiovascular conditions, hypertension, diabetes and obesity. She plans to initiate a COVID-19 study examining behaviors and attitudes regarding vaccination and mask-wearing.

Teaching focus: Dr. São-João’s area of focus is on the fundamentals of medical/surgical nursing.

Why URI?: “What really touched my heart was the concern the university has for diversity and equity,” said Dr. São-João. “I felt like I would be really challenged here, and it would be a good place to learn and to teach.” She noted that there are greater opportunities for research funding at URI than she found in Brazil, allowing her to expand her field of study.