Contact Information
Education
Postdoctoral Fellowship in Individualized Care for At Risk Older Adults (T32NR009356) , University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
PhD, University of Miami School of Nursing and Health Studies
Future of Nursing Scholars Predoctoral Fellowship, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
MSN, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing
BSN, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing
Research Areas
Serious Illness Care
Awards and Honors
Emerging Leaders Award, Hospice and Palliative Nurses Foundation, 2022
Selectee for the NCI Research Methods in Supportive Oncology Workshop Intensive (R25CA181000), Center for Palliative Care at Harvard Medical School, 2021
Faculty Excellence in Clinical Teaching Award, University of Miami School of Nursing and Health Studies, 2016
Graduate of the Last Decade (GOLD) Award, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing, 2007
Biography
Dr. Levoy is an Assistant Professor at the Indiana University (IU) School of Nursing with a dual appointment as a Research Scientist at the IU Center for Aging Research at Regenstrief Institute. Dr. Levoy is an Associate Member of the Cancer Prevention and Control Research Program at IU Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center. She is a registered nurse with certifications in oncology nursing and nursing education. Dr. Levoy’s research interest is in improving patient and caregiver preparation for the end-of-life, an interest which arose from over a decade of experience working with patients and families affected by cancer. Her program of research specifically focuses on understanding the mechanisms through which patient and caregiver preparation for the end-of-life can be optimized across the cancer illness trajectory as a means of improving end-of-life decision making outcomes, patient outcomes at the end-of-life, and caregiver outcomes during bereavement. Thus, her program of research addresses issues at the intersection of palliative care, cancer care, and caregiving. Dr. Levoy’s research has been previously supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Future of Nursing Scholars Program, the American Cancer Society’s Doctoral Degree Scholarship in Cancer Nursing, and a National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award program.
External Funding
2018-2019. "Preparation for the End-of-Life: Impact of Advance Care Planning." (PI). American Cancer Society, Doctoral Degree Scholarship in Cancer Nursing (131753-DSCN-18-072-01-SCN), $30,000.
Publications
Description of the video:
I'm Kristen Levoy. I'm an assistant professor here at the Indiana University School of Nursing. I also have a joint appointment as a research scientist at Regenstrief Institute and their Indiana University Center for Aging Research. When I first started my clinical practice at Duke University Medical Center, I end up taking a job in a research clinical trials nurse, and I was just fascinated by being on the cutting edge of science and being there to help patients get the best treatment they could get through research clinical trials. And I think that maybe the combination of those experiences were the seeds that were planted that really made me want to go back and to do a PhD in nursing. I think my research as it's evolved over time is really focused on palliative care research and developing palliative care interventions. We live in a death-avoidance society. It's hard to have those difficult conversations. It's hard to talk about death. Palliative care is a model of clinical service delivery that allows patients to receive supportive care in the areas of spiritual care, psychosocial care, physical care symptom management and just quality of life and well-being. Palliative care delivery really provides an avenue for us to meet patients where they are and provide that sort of wraparound supportive care as they're grappling with chronic serious illness. If I could use one word to describe the research faculty here at IU School of Nursing, I would say vibrant. We have a really strong group of junior faculty members that are really dedicated to growing from within and supporting each other and also attracting new talent. I feel like we're really on the precipice of really growing in that in that area, and I'm excited to be a part of that community.