Beth NeSmith, PhD
Dean, College of Nursing | Augusta University
Augusta, GA, UNITED STATES
Dr. NeSmith's research program focuses on clinical and translational work
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Biography
Beth NeSmith, PhD, was named dean of Augusta University's College of Nursing in 2024. A faculty member since 2008, NeSmith previously served as chair of the Department of Nursing Science and program director for the Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing program.
NeSmith's research program focuses on clinical and translational work which aims to uncover and eliminate health disparities in acute outcomes of life-threatening injury. This work was inspired by NeSmith's clinical experience with vulnerable populations in emergency, trauma, and critical care settings.
Among NeSmith's publications is research which shows only 2% of injury investigations have focused on this important issue. NeSmith's work is based on the theoretical relationships proposed in the Psychoneuroimmunology and Vulnerable Populations Conceptual Frameworks. Utilizing translational research models in collaboration with a multidisciplinary research team, NeSmith's work has been funded by the National Institute for Drug Abuse and National Institute for Nursing Research. It focuses on the effects of lifetime chronic stress on inflammatory function, and how these effects impact vulnerability to sepsis and multiple organ failure. More recently, NeSmith’s work is focused on the role epigenetics plays in inflammatory processes in injury, illness, and disease.
Her research trajectory includes investigations that will add to increasing evidence supporting her theory that chronic stress creates sub-clinical physiologic changes which, when impacted by multiple life-threatening injuries, predispose clients to differences in vulnerability and response to treatment for sepsis and multiple organ failure. Her research objectives are to contribute to the development of advances in tailoring individual treatments to prevent illness and poor outcomes related to inflammatory processes and the epigenetic changes which may influence these outcomes.
Areas of Expertise (3)
Nursing
Trauma
Emergency Medicine
Education (3)
Medical College of Georgia: PhD, Nursing Scince 2007
Medical College of Georgia: MSN, Public Health/Community Nurse 2000
Medical College of Georgia: BSN, Registered Nursing 1988
Affiliations (1)
- Journal of Trauma Nursing : Editorial Board Member
Links (3)
Media Appearances (1)
AU provides healthcare outreach for farm workers in Trenton
WJBF tv
2024-07-05
Faculty and students from Augusta University provided health care to nursery workers in Trenton, S.C., throughout the morning and early afternoon Friday, July 12. The worksite program, now its 19th year, brings healthcare access to agricultural workers, who are predominately Hispanic and Latino. They often face unique health challenges by nature of their work plus cultural and language barriers. “This is a wonderful initiative,” says Beth Nesmith, AU Dean of College of Nursing. “These individuals work so hard – both the farmworkers and the people helping them to provide care. The individuals work so hard, and they don’t often have access to care because they’re working, right? So, we come to them.” Common conditions for the Hispanic and Latino agricultural workers in this area includes heat and pesticide exposure/injury, animal bites, susceptibility to infectious disease, and mental illness, including depression.
Articles (3)
Mitochondrial N-formyl peptides cause airway contraction and lung neutrophil infiltration via formyl peptide receptor activation
Pulmonary Pharmacology & Therapeutics2016 Respiratory failure is a common characteristic of systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) and sepsis. Trauma and severe blood loss cause the release of endogenous molecules known as damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs).
The Association of Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Insurance on Trauma Mortality
Journal of Trauma Nursing2016 Although race, socioeconomic status, and insurance individually are associated with trauma mortality, their complex interactions remain ill defined.
An analysis of the effectiveness of a state trauma system: Treatment at designated trauma centers is associated with an increased probability of survival
Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery2015 States struggle to continue support for recruitment, funding and development of designated trauma centers (DTCs). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the probability of survival for injured patients treated at DTCs versus nontrauma centers.
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