Paula L. Stamps, Ph.D.

Professor

Telephone: 413-545-6880
Email: stamps@schoolph.umass.edu
Campus Address: 311 Arnold House

Paula L. Stamps is Professor of Public Health.  She received an MS in Heath Administration and a PhD in Human Ecology, both from the University of Oklahoma School of Public Health.  Her area of research is development of statistically valid measurement instruments that may be used in the health field.   She is best known for her research in the field of measuring level of job satisfaction of nurses.  Her Index of Work Satisfaction is accepted as a quality indicator by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations, and also by the American Nurses Credentialing Program for magnet hospitals.  Both of her books in this area have received Book of the Year awards from the American Nursing Association.  She has also conducted extensive research in the area of measuring level of satisfaction of physicians, publishing both a book and several articles in this field.  Her recent activities include development of a course in bioterrorism, emphasizing the challenge emergency preparedness poses to the field of public health.  She was awarded one of the University's prestigious Distinguished Teaching awards.  In addition to bioterrorism, she also offers courses in program evaluation, ethics, research methods, and medical care organization.

Research interests:

My long-time major research interests have been in the area of determining how to measure perceptions, including occupational satisfaction of physicians and nurses and I remain active in this area. I am also working in extending this to developing measurement possibilities in assessing what people perceive about various issues related to emergency preparedness. This includes both the perceived knowledge base, as well as reaction to potential emergency situations.  I am working with state, regional and local public health groups in an effort to understand this both in terms of the general public, as well as public health professionals themselves.  This involves workforce development in terms of competencies for emergency preparedness.

Current projects:

I am currently working on a research project designed to determine what college students know about various aspects of emergency preparedness, with a specific interest in bioterrorism.  I am also working on a book which focuses on interdiscliplinary analysis of the scientific, political and international challenges in the field of bioterrorism.

Research and publications in areas of occupational satisfaction of direct care providers, primary care practice, patient satisfaction, and program evaluation.