Amanda Hessels, PhD, MSN, MPH, BSN, CPHQ, CIC, FAAN, FAPIC

  • Assistant Professor of Nursing
Profile Headshot

Overview

Academic Appointments

  • Assistant Professor of Nursing

Administrative Titles

  • Nurse Scientist, Hackensack Meridian Health (dual appointment)

Credentials & Experience

Education & Training

  • BSN, 1995 Nursing, University of Rochester
  • MPH, 2001 Community Health Education, Hunter College, City University of New York
  • MSN, 2001 Nursing, Hunter College, City University of New York
  • PhD, 2014 Nursing, Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey
  • Fellowship: 2016 NIH, Columbia University School of Nursing

Committees, Societies, Councils

Select:

2020- Association for Professionals in Infection Control (APIC), Research Committee, Vice-Chair

2019- American Nurses Association (ANA) sponsored Sharps Injury Prevention Stakeholders Workgroup, invited member

2017- National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) for the Healthcare and Social Assistance (HCSA) industry sector (NIOSH/CDC/DHHS), invited council member

2017- 19 Association for Professionals in Infection Control (APIC), Research Committee, member

2016- Association of Occupational Health Professionals (AOHP), Research Committee, member

2016 Eastern Nursing Research Society, member

2015- American Nurses Association, member

2011- National Association for Healthcare Quality (NAHQ), member

2003- Association for Professionals in Infection Control, member APIC EMS and Public Safety Section

1994- Sigma Theta Tau, International Nursing Honor Society, member

Select Editorial:

2020- present Editorial Board, International Journal of Infection Control

2018- present Section Editor, “Research Committee Take-aways: Implementation Science”, American Journal of Infection Control

2018- present Review Board, Journal of Nursing Care Quality

2017- present Editorial Board, American Journal of Infection Control

Select Other:

2019- present American Nurses Association (ANA) Sharps Injury Prevention Stakeholders Workgroup Member and Author, “Moving The Sharps Safety Agenda Forward in the United States: 2020 Consensus Statement And Call To Action”.

2019- present Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA), invited Member and Section Lead Author “Safety Culture Curriculum for Health Care Workers”.

2018- present Association for Professionals in Infection Control (APIC), Research Committee, Co-Author and Lead Editor “APIC Research Toolkit” (12 Chapters).

2019- present SHEA/IDSA Panel member and Co-Author “Compendium of Strategies to Prevent HAIs in Acute Care Hospitals: 2020 Update”.

2018- present Invited participant: Strengthening transparent reporting of research on unfinished nursing care - RANCARE reporting guideline Delphi-Study, University of Basel, Switzerland; Cyprus University of Technology, Cyprus.

Honors & Awards

Select:

2017 Fellow of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (FAPIC)

2015 APIC Chapter Leadership Award at the Annual Conference

2014 The New Jersey State Nurses Association, Institute for Nursing’s 2014 Diva and Don Award

2014 Stanley S. Bergen, Jr., MD Medal of Excellence, Rutgers University, School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, College of Nursing

2013 Rising Stars of Scholarship and Research Awardee, Sigma Theta Tau 42nd Bi-Annual

Convention

2012 Dr. Dorothy J. DeMaio Research Fellowship Award, Rutgers University

2012 New Jersey Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (NJHIMSS) Graduate Award

2012 Golden Key International Honour Society inductee

2011 NJSNA Region 6 Beulah Miller Award for Nursing Education

2011 Lloyd Family Nursing Scholarship Award, Hackensack-Meridian Health

2010 F.M. Kirby Academic Fellow, Rutgers University

2010 Mary V. Black Memorial Scholarship Award, Hackensack-Meridian Health

Research

Research Interests

  • Infection prevention and control
  • missed nursing care
  • occupational health and safety
  • organizational culture and climate
  • Patient Safety
  • Quality Improvement
  • Simulation

Grants

2019- 2024 Title: Simulation to Improve Infection Prevention and Patient Safety: The SIPPS Trial. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) (R18HS026418).

2018- 2020 Title: Impact of Patient Safety Climate on Infection Prevention Practices and Healthcare Worker and Patient Outcomes. Columbia University, School of Nursing Intramural Pilot Grant.

2016- 2020 Title: Impact of Patient Safety Climate on Infection Prevention Practices and Healthcare Worker and Patient Outcomes. DHHS/CDC/NIOSH (K01OH011186).

2018-2019.Title: Impact of Patient Safety Climate on Infection Prevention Practices and Healthcare Worker and Patient Outcomes. Columbia University, School of Nursing Intramural Pilot Grant.

2016-2017.Title: Impact of patient safety culture on missed nursing care and adverse patient safety events. American Nurses Foundation Nursing Research Grant funded by Stryker Medical.

2015-2016.Title: Proposal for Development, Psychometric and Pilot Testing of Standard Precautions Climate and Observation Tools. APIC Heroes Implementation Research Scholar Award Program.

2012-2013. Impact of Heath Information Technology on Delivery and Quality of Patient Care, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) R36: 1R36HS021988-01.

Selected Publications

Recent:

Hessels, A.J. Murray, M., Cohen, B., Larson, E.L. Patient Safety Climate Survey in Pediatric Complex Care Settings: A Factor Analysis. J Patient Saf, 2020; 16(3), 223-231.PMCID: PMC5648643 doi: 10.1097/PTS.0000000000000279.

Weaver, S.H., Dowd, S., Hessels, A., & Wurmser, T. Administrative (House) Supervisor and Nursing Unit-based Manager Collaboration. Nurse Lead. 2020. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2020.07.012

Hessels, A.J., Kuo, Y., Ahmed, N. Epidemiology and Impact of Healthcare Associated Infections in Trauma Patients: A National Data Analysis. Surg Infect. 2020. 21(10):871-876. http://doi.org/10.1089/sur.2019.294

Carter, E., Hessels, A., Cato, K., Cohen, B., Rivera, R., Larson, E. Evaluation of the Joint Nurse Scientist Role across Academia and Practice. Nur Outlook. 2020; 68(3):261-269.

Hessels AJ, Wurmser T. Relationship among safety culture, nursing care, and Standard Precautions adherence. Am J Infect Control. 2020;48(3):340-341. DOI: 10.1016/j.ajic.2019.11.008.

Weaver, S.H., Hessels, A.J., Paliwal, M., Marx, J., Hoffman,K., Wurmser, T.A. Nurse Leaders at Night: Preparing Administrative Supervisors and Understanding the Role. Nurse Leader. 2019; 17(5), 420-426. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2019.03.017.

Carter, E., Hessels, A., Cato, K., Cohen, B., Rivera, R., Larson, E. Evaluation of the Joint Nurse Scientist Role across Academia and Practice. Nur Outlook. 2019. In Press.

Hessels, A.J., Kelly, A.M., Chen, L., Cohen, B., Zachariah, P., Larson, E.L. Impact of infectious exposures and outbreaks on nurse and infection preventionist workload. Am J Infect Control. 2019; 47(6), 623-627. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30979563 PMID: 30979563

Gilmartin, H.M., Hessels, A.J. Dissemination and implementation science for infection prevention: A primer. Am J Infect Control. 2019; 47(6): 688-692. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30850251 PMID: 30850251

Liu, J., Larson, E., Hessels, A., Cohen, B., Zachariah, P., Caplan, D., Shang, J. Comparison of Measures to Predict Mortality and Length of Stay in Hospitalized Patients. Nurs Res. 2019; 68(3): 200-209. doi: 10.1097/NNR.0000000000000350. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30882561 PMCID: PMC6488393

Hessels, A.J., Weaver, S.H. Missed Opportunities: The Development and Testing of Standard Precaution Case Vignettes. J Infus Nurs. 2019; 42(2):70-74. doi: 10.1097/NAN.0000000000000314.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30817422 PMID: 30817422

Hessels AJ, Paliwal M, Weaver SH, Siddiqui D, Wurmser TA. Impact of Patient Safety Culture on Missed Nursing Care and Adverse Patient Events. J Nurs Care Qual. 2019; 34(4), 287-294. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30550496

Hessels, A.J., Kelly, A.M., Chen, L., Cohen, B., Zachariah, P., Larson, E.L. Impact of infectious exposures and outbreaks on nurse and infection preventionist workload. Am J Infect Control. 2019;47(6), 623-627. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30979563PMID: 30979563

Weaver, S. H., Hessels, A.J.,Paliwal, M., & Wurmser, T. A. Administrative supervisors and nursing unit-based managers: Collaboration and job satisfaction. Nurs Econ. 2019; 37(2), 67-76.

Hessels AJ,Murray MT, Cohen B, Larson EL. Perception of Patient Safety Culture in Pediatric Long-Term Care Settings. J Healthc Qual. 2018;40(6), 384-391. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29474313.PMCID: PMC6095833

Hessels AJ, Liu J, Cohen B, Shang J, Larson EL. Severity of Illness Measures for Pediatric Inpatients. J Healthc Qual. 2018; 40(5), e77-e89. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29474314PMCID: PMC6095830

Kern-Goldberger, A. S., Hessels, A. J., Saiman, L., Quittell, L. M. Understanding of safety monitoring in clinical trials by individuals with CF or their parents: A qualitative analysis. J Cyst Fibros, 2018;17(6), 736-41. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29550263

Wilmont, S. Hessels, A.J., Kelly, A.M., Larson, E.L. Family Experiences and Perspectives on Infection Prevention in Pediatric Long-Term Care, Rehabil Nurs. 2018; 43(6), 307-314.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30395556PMCID: PMC6221461

Hessels, A.J.,Darby, S.W., Simpser, E., Saiman, L., Larson, E.L. National Testing of the Nursing-Kids Intensity of Care Survey for Pediatric Long-term Care. J Pediatr Nurs, 2017; 37, 86-90. PMCID: PMC5681364

Hessels AJ,Agarwal M, Saiman L, Larson EL. Measuring patient safety culture in pediatric long-term care. J Pediatr Rehabil Med. 2017;10(2):81-87. doi: 10.3233/PRM-170432. PMCID: PMC5549783

Carter, E., Mancino, D., Hessels, A.J.,Kelly, A.M., Larson, E.L. Reported Hours of Infection Prevention Education Received Positively Associated with Student Nurses' Ability to Comply with Infection Prevention Practices: Results from a Nationwide Survey. Nurse Educ Today.2017;53:19-25. doi: 10.1016/j.nedt.2017.02.021.PMID: 28365555.PMCID: PMC5553115

Estinville MF, Hessels A, Davis J. Journal Club: Developing a user-friendly report for electronically assisted surveillance of catheter-associated urinary tract infections.Am J Infect Control, 2017; 45(8):822-823. doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2017.06.008.

Gilmartin H., Hessels, A.J.Journal Club: Commentary on "Risk factors for MRSA colonization in the neonatal ICU: A systematic review and meta-analysis". Am J Infect Control. 2017;45(12):1405-1406. doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2017.10.002.PMCID: PMC5839134

Hessels, A.J.Murray, M., Cohen, B., Larson, E.L. Patient Safety Climate Survey in Pediatric Complex Care Settings: A Factor Analysis. J Patient Saf,2017; [In press]. (NIHMS785856, Publ.ID: JPS-15-70).PMCID: PMC5648643

Hessels, A.J.,Genovese-Schek, V., Agarwal, M., Wurmser, T., Larson, E.L. Relationship Between Patient Safety Climate and Adherence to Standard Precautions. Am J Infect Control. 2016; 44 (10), 1128-1132. PMCID: PMC5048506

Loyland, B. Wilmont, S., Hessels, A.J., Larson, E.L. Staff Knowledge, Awareness, Perceptions, and Beliefs About Infection Prevention in Pediatric Long-term Care Facilities. Nurs Res, 2016; 65(2), p.132-141.PMCID: PMC4822544

Hessels, A.J., Larson. E.L. Systematic Review of Patient Safety Climate and Standard Precaution Adherence. J Hosp Infect, 2016; 92(4), 349-362. PMCID: PMC4808453

Hessels, A.J.,Agarwal, M., Liu, J., Larson, E.L. Incidence and Risk Factors for Healthcare Associated Infections after Hip Surgery. Surg Infect,2016; 17(6), 761-765.DOI: 10.1089/sur.2016.062.PMCID: PMC5124739

Hessels, A.J.,Robinson B, O'Rourke M, Begg MD, Larson EL. Building interdisciplinary research models through interactive education. J Clin Transl Sci, 2015; 8(6), p. 793-799.PMCID: PMC4703448

Hessels, A.,Flynn, L., Cimiotti, J. Cadmus, E., Gershon, R. The impact of the nursing practice environment on missed nursing care. Clin Nurs Stud, 2015; 3(4), p. 60-66. PMCID: PMC4988676

Hessels, A.J.,Flynn, L., Cimiotti, J.P, Gershon, R.R., Bakken, S. Impact of Health Information Technology on the Delivery and Quality of Patient Care. Online J Nurs Inform, Fall 2015, Volume 19.PMCID: PMC5001503