Melissa O'Connor, PhD
The M. Louise Fitzpatrick Endowed Professor in Community and Home Health Nursing | M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing | Villanova University
Villanova, PA, UNITED STATES
Melissa O'Connor, PhD, MBA, RN, FGSA, FAAN, is an expert in home health care, geriatric nursing and transitions in care.
Spotlight
Areas of Expertise (6)
Applied Health Informatics
Geriatric Home Health
Geriatric Nursing
Geriatrics and Gerontology
Telehealth
Transitions in Care
Biography
Dr. Melissa O’Connor is the The M. Louise Fitzpatrick Endowed Professor in Community and Home Health Nursing and Director of the Gerontology Interest Group (The GiG), a campus-wide collaboration of students, faculty, and staff who engage in research, advocacy and workforce development to support the needs of the aging population. Her work aims to aid geriatric health care providers in clinical decision-making and care management and, in parallel, helps the elderly age in place in the community, thus avoiding hospitalization. She frequently uses large data sets in her studies. She is an excellent source on geriatric nursing and home health care, including the need to create a systemic, evidence-based mechanism to identify patients who are ready for discharge from hospital care and home health services.
Education (3)
University of Pennsylvania: PhD
Eastern University: MBA
Thomas Jefferson University: BSN
Select Accomplishments (4)
Distinguished Educator in Gerontological Nursing (professional)
National Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence (NHCGNE) 2018
Rising Star Research Award (professional)
Eastern Nursing Research Society 2017
Excellence in Research Award
Alpha Nu Chapter, Villanova University College of Nursing Sigma Theta Tau International 2016
Geriatric/Gerontological Nursing Award (professional)
Springer Publishing Company 2015
Links (1)
Affiliations (4)
- Board of Trustees, Visiting Nurse Association of Greater Philadelphia
- Eugenie and Joseph Doyle Research Fellow, Center for Home Care Policy & Research, Visiting Nurse Service of New York
- Associate Faculty, Center for Business Analytics, Villanova School of Business
- Associate Faculty, NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
Select Media Appearances (8)
The Tragedy Of 'St. Joe's
National Public Radio radio
2020-12-24
A Department of Health official said later that they just assumed everyone at St. Joe's had been exposed to the virus. "Well, that's kind of crazy," said Melissa O'Connor, an expert in nursing care for older adults at Villanova University's M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing in Pennsylvania. "Buses don't have filtration systems like airplanes; they were all breathing the same air" and probably contracting the virus in the process. O'Connor and others said that given what we now know about the community spread of the coronavirus, those residents who didn't have COVID-19 when they left St. Joe's on March 25, may well have caught it during their transfer. Even if they were masked, the danger was there as they waited in the buses for the other residents to load and then drove, all together, the 45 minutes to the new facility.
Adult Children Care for Seniors Half a World Away
The Dallas Morning News online
2020-08-24
For faraway parents, consider telehealth options, says Melissa O’Connor, associate professor of nursing at Villanova University’s M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing. That might include an app or a device that tracks the senior’s weight, vital signs or blood sugar and allows you to keep track remotely. “That can help you spot trends,” she says. “For example, with heart failure patients, we monitor weight every day. A sudden unexplained weight gain — two pounds in one day or five pounds in a week — can mean you need to take action.”
Nursing is a Hot Degree. Philly-area Undergrads Can Earn More Than $70,000 Out of College. | Does That Degree Pay?
The Philadelphia Inquirer online
2020-04-01
“Villanova and Penn have opportunities for student scholarships, but you don’t know until you get in the door,” said Melissa O’Connor, associate professor of nursing at Villanova, and chair of the board of trustees of Visiting Nurse Association of Greater Philadelphia. Pay attention to the school’s state board/licensing exam pass rate, O’Connor said. “Don’t go to a four-year college for nursing that doesn’t have a high pass rate” for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) test. Villanova’s is 96.7%, she said. “It should be in the 90s,” at least. “If you don’t pass, what’s the sense of getting the degree?”
Swamped ERs Mean Opportunity and Danger for Home-Care Industry
Bloomberg online
2020-03-24
Home-health agencies are telling workers to screen new patients by telephone for Covid-19 symptoms when they call for service and prior to each visit, said Melissa O’Connor, who chairs the board of trustees at the Visiting Nurse Association of Greater Philadelphia. “We’re also telling nurses, if you are not well do not go to work.”
How to Help Loved Ones Who Have Regular Doctor's Visits During the Coronavirus Outbreak
Parade online
2020-03-19
For new or urgent issues, Melissa O’Connor, PhD, a registered nurse and an associate professor at Villanova University’s College of Nursing, recommends “calling a Medicare-certified home health agency to request an evaluation by a visiting nurse and/or a physician office that offers home visits.” You can also, she says, consider a telehealth visit, which many home health agencies and some retail pharmacies offer.”
Nursing Homes Have Unique Challenge in Limiting Exposure to Coronavirus
KYW NewsRadio 1060 AM, Philadelphia radio
2020-03-13
"This is different because of how contagious it is and how scary and quickly it has been spreading," said Melissa O'Connor, director of the Gerontology Interest Group, and associate professor of nursing at Villanova University. She says nursing homes are limiting visits from the outside for the safety of patients. "Each nursing home or each long-term care facility will be different. The CDC is recommending certain things that they need to do, but then other facilities are taking it a step further, so they can really be sure that they are keeping the residents safe," she said.
Being Treated at Home Can Help People Save Money and Heal Faster
Healthline online
2019-12-17
“This study shows better outcomes for a lower cost in addition to a better use of resources. This is promising work and more and more attention is being paid to hospital care at home,” said Melissa O’Connor, PhD, MBA, RN, FGSA, and director, Geriatric Interest Group, Villanova University, M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing. “However, further work is needed to determine the type of patient this best works for related to their severity of illness,” she said. “Do they need a caregiver? Do they need to be cognitively intact? What type of home environment is required?”
Blacks Using Home Health Care Most Likely to be Rehospitalized
St. Louis American online
2018-05-08
The study, “Relationships between race/ethnicity and health care utilization among older post-acute home health care patients,” was published in the Journal of Applied Gerontology. Funding was provided in part by the National Institutes of Health (T32NR009356). Other researchers involved in the study were Liming Huang, Alexandra Hanlon and Kathryn H. Bowles of the University of Pennsylvania; David Russell of Appalachian State University; and Melissa O’Connor of Villanova University.
Research Grants (3)
The Feasibility of Electronic Home Health Record Data Extraction
Villanova University Summer Grant Program
2017
Determining Readiness for Discharge from Skilled Home Health Services: A Mixed Methods Study
National Hartford Centers of Gerontological Nursing Excellence, John A. Hartford Foundation
2014-2016
Identifying Critical Factors in Determining Readiness for Discharge from Skilled Home Health Services
Eugenie and Joseph Doyle Research Partnership Fund
2013-2014
Select Academic Articles (7)
Improving transitions and outcomes of sepsis survivors (I-TRANSFER): a type 1 hybrid protocol
BMC Palliative CareMelissa O’Connor, Erin E. Kennedy, Karen B. Hirschman, Mark E. Mikkelsen, Partha Deb, Miriam Ryvicker, Nancy A. Hodgson, Yolanda Barrón, Michael A. Stawnychy, Patrik A. Garren, and Kathryn H. Bowles
2022
Self-reported symptom causes of mobility difficulty contributing to fear of falling in older adults
Aging Clinical and Experimental ResearchMichelle A McKay, Janell L Mensinger, Melissa O'Connor, Madison Utz, Alexander Costello, Suzanne Leveille
2022
Identifying distinct risk profiles to predict adverse events among community-dwelling older adults
Geriatric NursingO’Connor, M., Hanlon, A. L., Mauer, E., Meghani, S., Masterson-Creber, R., Marcantonio, S., Coburn, K., Van Cleave, J., Davitt, J., Riegel, B., Bowles, K. H., Keim, S., Greenberg, S. A., Sefcik, J. S., Topaz, M., Kong, D., Naylor, M. D.
2017
Identifying Critical Factors in Determining Discharge Readiness from Skilled Home Health: An Interprofessional Perspective
Research in Gerontological NursingO’Connor, M., Moriarty, H., Madden-Baer, R., & Bowles, K. H.
2016
Exposing Baccalaureate Nursing Students to Transitional Care
Home Healthcare NowO’Connor, M., Arcamone, A., Amorim, F., Hoban, M. B., Boyd, R. M., Fowler, L., Marcelli, T., Smith, J., Nassar, K., & Fitzpatrick, L. M.
2016
Patient Characteristics Predicting Readmission Among Individuals Hospitalized for Heart Failure
Medical Care Research and ReviewO’Connor, M., Murtaugh, C. M., Shah, S., Barrón-Vaya, Y., Bowles, K. H., Peng, T. R., Zhu, C. W., Feldman, P. H.
2015
The impact of home health length of stay and number of skilled nursing visits on hospitalization among Medicare-reimbursed skilled home health beneficiaries
Research in Nursing and HealthO’Connor, M., Hanlon, A., Naylor, M. D. & Bowles, K. H.
2015
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