Nurse Innovator Awarded Fulbright to Develop International Program with University in Scotland

Professor Karen K. Giuliano, co-director of the Elaine Marieb Center for Nursing and Engineering Innovation, has received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program Award in Nursing and Public Health Care for the 2023-24 academic year.

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Giuliano, who holds a joint appointment in the Elaine Marieb College of Nursing and the Institute for Applied Life Sciences, will spend six months as a visiting research professor at the Edinburgh Napier University (ENU) School of Health and Social Care, the largest school of its kind in Scotland.

“As the nation’s largest group of health-care providers, nurses use more products and are a part of more services than any other health-care professionals, providing them with a uniquely practical and care-sensitive perspective on healthcare innovation,” says Giuliano, a longtime critical care nurse and medical device developer.

The Elaine Marieb Center, co-directed by Frank Sup, associate professor of mechanical and industrial engineering, addresses health-care challenges at the forefront of patient care by untapping the unique expertise and perspectives of nurse-engineer teams.

With her ENU partner, Alison Porter-Armstrong, Giuliano will work on curriculum development to provide frontline clinicians with the skills to become health-care innovation leaders.

The resulting international program, jointly delivered by UMass Amherst and ENU, will include an option for international fieldwork to support students with real-world experiential learning.

This UMass-ENU team will also create a strategy for innovative product development, initiate at least one health-care product development project and begin work on several research initiatives that will provide the foundation for ongoing international collaboration between the two universities.

“The best and most cost-effective outcomes for patients are most likely to be achieved when you combine the technical expertise of engineers with the clinical expertise of nurses to solve real-world problems at the front lines of care,” Giuliano says.

Giuliano is among more than 800 U.S. citizens who will conduct research and/or teach abroad for the 2023-24 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. Fulbrighters engage in cutting-edge research and expand their professional networks, laying the groundwork for ongoing partnerships between international institutions.