Services

Featured Examples from Dr. Kurnat-Thoma's Policy Portfolio:

1) US Department of Health and Human Services, Client = Hon. Kathleen Sebelius

Secretary's Advisory Committee for Genetics Health and Society (SACGHS)

Genetic Education and Training Task Force, Healthcare Provider Workgroup Member (2008-2010)

Genetics Education and Training: Report of the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Genetics, Health, and Society (genome.gov)  

2) US Department of Homeland Security, Client = Customs and Border Protection 

• Southwest Injury Border Patrol Study Task Force; Fitness for Duty Regulatory Compliance (2010-2011)

• Medical & Physical Workforce Requirements Policy Analysis Project (~1200 employment positions)

• EEOC Legal Defensibility from Contractor Submitted Research Reports for Industrial Organizational (I/O) Psychology Agency Requirements for Federal Agents

3) URAC (health insurance accreditation), Client = Health Insurance Industry Stakeholders

Trends and Practices in Medical Management, 2010 Industry Profile (63 page report for industry clients, ~$20K budget)

• Medical survey of 197 companies including: health plans, case management, population health, health call centers, pharmacy benefit management, third-party adminstrators, quality improvement, and medical centers

4) Nonprofit Nursing and Clinical Trial Research Pipeline Development, Client = U.S. Commercial Hospital corporation

• 2 university small grants, 8 total IRB-approved nursing research protocols, 5 total peer-reviewed nursing research publications, 14 nursing research posters, 3 podium nursing research presentations

• Doubled clinical trial protocol capacity for Phase 1/2 medical genetics and oncology IND therapeutic drug protocols from NHGRI and NCI trained physician medical scientists (~20-40)

• Routine FDA FWA-IRB audit without any follow-up items

• Conversion of an all paper IRB system to an electronic submission IRB system

5) Genomic Nursing Policy Analysis, Client = NINR/NIH/DHHS, American Academy of Nursing

American Academy of Nursing (AAN) Policy Detail, Genomic Nursing and Health Care Expert Panel

• Precision health and nursing profession leadership, nursing workforce development 

• Genomic nursing health care policy 

• IRB Regulatory Framework for Genetic Testing, Return of Results (RoR) to Patients 

Precision health: A nursing perspective - PubMed (nih.gov) 

Current status and future directions of U.S. genomic nursing health care policy - PubMed (nih.gov) 

6) Symptom Science Model (SSM) 2.0, Clients = NINR/NIH/DHHS and the $1.5B NIH HEAL Opioid Epidemic Policy Initiative

$1.5B NIH Helping to End Addiction Long-term (HEAL) Initiative, 8-month policy detail

• Immediate Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD

A Concept Development for the Symptom Science Model 2.0 - PubMed (nih.gov) 

7) Science Policy Dialogue, Client = NIH Science and Policy Group

• Coordinated speaker invitation and policy dialogue with a Deputy Director for Policy, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy 

8) Social Determinants of Health, Frailty and Aging in Community-Dwelling Older Adults, Client = NINR/NIH/DHHS

• Operationalization of Fried frailty phenotype measurement in older adult participants of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) population database

• Resource limited and rural healthcare measurement policy applications

Frailty and Determinants of Health Among Older Adults in the United States 2011-2016 - PubMed (nih.gov) 

9) Artificial Intelligence (AI) Data Boot Camp, Ethical Legal Social Implications (ELSI) Panel Moderator, Client = NINR/NIH/DHHS

• Coordinated speaker invitations, AI panel discussions, and ethics case studies, including coordination with Chief Privacy Officer, DHHS Office of the National Coordinator as a guest speaker. 

• Designed ELSI Digital Technology Case Study discussion of a sample clinical research trial protocol in a community hospital setting including multisectoral stakeholder perspectives (IRB, sponsor, investigator, local administration, patient and family stakeholders, etc).

NINR Methodologies Boot Camp: Artificial Intelligence | National Institute of Nursing Research (nih.gov) 

10) Redesigned Core Course, NURS-624 Foundations of Health Systems and Health Policy, Client = Georgetown University

• Sponsored University Associate, Georgetown Institute for Women Peace and Security (GIWPS), Walsh School of Foreign Service 

• 1 faculty publication, 2 graduate student publications, 1 graduate student international podium talk 

• No. 10 Clinical Nurse Leader Resilience Education Through Foundations of Health Systems and Policy – Journal of Security, Intelligence, and Resilience Education (jsire.org)

• Use of Shackles on Incarcerated Pregnant Women - PubMed (nih.gov) (human rights, women's rights)

• "Enhancing the Professional Wellbeing of Nurses Through Healthy Nutrition", Creating Healthy Work Environments Conference, Sigma Theta Tau International, March 8-10, 2024

• U.S. food policy to address diet-related chronic disease - PubMed (nih.gov) 

11) Climate Policy Dialogue, Client = American Academy of Nursing, Expert Panel on Environmental and Public Health

• Nursing Leadership in Decarbonizing the US Health Sector

• Keynote: Dr. Don Berwick

• Workgroup Member, Lead Moderator, Professional Organizations

Policy Dialogue - Nursing Leadership in Decarbonizing the US Health Sector (membersuite.com) 

12) Example Pro-Bono Policy Memos, Policy Briefings, Publicity Materials, and Clients:

• Biden-Harris White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council (WHEJAC): Climate Resilient Health Systems and EJ; Performance Measurement Precision in EJ Outcomes Evaluation

• Biden-Harris White House National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health and Farm Bill 2022-2024 (see food policy publication above)

• Biden-Harris White House Rural Partners Network 2023-2024

• U.S. Senate: 

a) Senator Ben Cardin, State of Maryland: Maryland's Healthcare Community; COVID-19 Pandemic Response; Nursing Workforce; Burnout and Fatigue Mitigation; Protection of Family Friendly Policy Conditions in the State of Maryland 

b) Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee: Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act Reauthorization (American Academy of Nursing)

• Maryland Campaign for Environmental Human Rights in service to the State of Maryland

• Archdiocese of Washington, Laudato Si

Cardinal Tagle marks the conclusion of Laudato Si' Week 2021 - Vatican News 

13) Scientific and Professional Journals,

Peer Review Service:

• International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health; Journal of Personalized Medicine (MDPI)

• Preventive Medicine (Elsevier)

• Journal of Aging and Health; 

Biological Research for Nursing (Sage)

• Journal of Nursing Administration 

(Wolters Kluwer Health)

• Pediatric Nursing 

14) Guest Editor, Client = Georgetown University

• Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences; Molecular Diagnostics and Therapeutics

https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/53623/systems-and-network-approaches-to-precision-medicine-and-healthcare

• Publications, Editorial and LDT regulatory science policy recs:

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/molecular-biosciences/articles/10.3389/fmolb.2024.1463962/full 

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/molecular-biosciences/articles/10.3389/fmolb.2024.1407513/full 

• Editorial Board Member, Review Editor (9/2024), Frontiers, Molecular Diagnostics and Therapeutics

15) Women's Liturgical Leadership, Client = Archdiocese of Washington, Catholic Church

• Synod course formation, certificates;                  Boston College of Theology and Ministry 2022-24

a) Common Discernment and Decision Making in a Synodal Church

b) History, Theology and Practice of Synodality 

c) Toward a Constitutively Synodal Church

• Women's Mission in the Synodal Church, World Union of Catholic Women's Organizations (WUCWO), Virtual Inter-Continental Consultations, April-May 2024