Education

DNP, Indiana University
MSN, Indiana University
BSN, Indiana University

Specialties and Expertise

Awards and Honors

Trustees Teaching Award, Bloomington, 2019, 2022
Karen Cobb Scholarship of Teaching Award, Indiana University School of Nursing, 2021
Excellence in Teaching Award, Indiana League for Nursing, 2020
Excellence in Education Award, Alpha Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau, 2020

Biography

Dr. Opsahl is currently the Director for the Indiana University RN to BSN Statewide Degree Completion Option and teaches undergraduate courses at IU Bloomington. The director position is responsible for providing statewide leadership in program planning, coordination, implementation, and evaluation across the nine campuses of IUSON. Teaching experience for Dr. Opsahl includes undergraduate and graduate education, and she serves as an Honors Coordinator for undergraduate nursing honors research on the Bloomington campus. With 32 years of nursing experience, Dr. Opsahl is currently the President-Elect of the Alpha Chapter for the Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Honors Society and the Board of Directors for the Indiana Association for Healthcare Quality. In 2021, Dr. Opsahl was appointed to the National League for Nursing Commission as a Nursing Education Accreditation (CNEA) On-Site Program Evaluator, supporting continuous quality improvement and promoting excellence in national and international nursing education. Dr. Opsahl has published over 20 articles for peer-reviewed journals and provided 39 peer-reviewed conference presentations, including the international locations of Edinburgh, Scotland; Calgary, Canada; Melbourne, Australia; and Rome, Italy). The scholarship of Dr. Opsahl is focused on ways to utilize active learning in both academic and clinical settings to engage the student, the faculty, the staff, and the patient with the overall goal of quality outcomes.

External Funding

2021-2022. “Implementing Scripted Case Studies Post-Clinical to Support Clinical Reasoning and Judgment Through an Academic–Practice Partnership.” (Co-PI). MICI-Area Health Education Center Grant.

Educational Grant 2020. “Utilizing Standardized Patients with Simulation to Support Concept-Based Curriculum for Diverse Patient Population Impact.” (PI). Hoosier Uplands Economic Development Corporation.

Faculty Education Grant 2019-2020. “Undergraduate Nursing Student Perceptions of Facilitators and Inhibitors of Clinical Learning: A Multi-Site Study Utilizing Q Methodology.” (PI). Billings Foundation, administered by Indiana University.

Faculty Learning Community Scholar (2017). “Role of Reflection in SoTL FLC. Enhancing the Effectiveness of Just in Time Teaching: Implementing Top Hat Technology with a Collaborative Approach.” (Co-PI). Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL).

Faculty Teaching Grant 2016-2017. “High Fidelity Simulation for ACLS Certification in Undergraduate Nursing Students.” (Co-PI). East Indiana Area Health Education Center (EI-AHEC).

Publications

Roush, K., Opsahl, A., Parker, K., & Davis, J. (in press). Business continuity planning: An effective strategy during an electronic health record downtime. Nurse Leader.   https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2021.01.003

Davis, S., Davis, E., Kintz, K., & Opsahl, A. (2022). Nurse educator perceptions of workplace collegiality. Nurse Educator. Advance online publication. doi:10.1097/NNE.0000000000001194

McCrea, K. A., Leathers, B. N., Heitman, L. C., Hawkins, E. K., Abbott, T. M., & Opsahl, A. (2021). Transitioning professional development classes to virtual instruction. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 52(9), 404–406. https://doi.org/10.3928/00220124-20210804-04

Opsahl, A. G., Embree, J. L., Howard, M. S., Davis-Ajami, M. L., Herrington, C., Wellman, D. S., & Hodges, K. T. (2021). Adapting civility education in an academic–practice partnership. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 52(12), 575–580. https://doi.org/10.3928/00220124-20211108-09

Roush, K., Opsahl, A., & Ferren, M. (2021). Developing an internship program to support nursing student transition to clinical setting. Journal of Professional Nursing, 37(4), 696-701. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2021.04.001

Opsahl, A., Embree, J., & Howard, M. (2021). Innovative opportunities for civility: Professional development in a time of COVID-19. Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 52(1), 11–12. https://doi.org/10.3928/00220124-20201215-05

Roush, K., & Opsahl, A. (2021). Developing an internship program to support nursing student transition to clinical setting. Journal of Professional Nursing. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2021.04.001

Hughes-Gay, M., Opsahl, A., Kirby, K., & DeGraff, J. (2020). An educational collaboration for student nurse engagement on the essential skill of delegation. Teaching and Learning in Nursing, 16(1), 63–67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.teln.2020.06.005

Opsahl, A., Nelson, T., Madeira, J., & Wonder, A. H. (2020). Evidence‐based, ethical decision‐making: Using simulation to teach the application of evidence and ethics in practice. Worldviews on Evidence‐Based Nursing, 17(6), 412-417. https://doi.org/10.1111/wvn.12465

Opsahl, A. G., & Townsend, C. (2020). Mentoring to engage diverse undergraduate nursing students in honors research. Nursing Forum, 56(1), 19-23. https://doi.org/10.1111/nuf.12503

Opsahl, A., Judge, D., & Hensel, D. (2020). Teaching Q methodology to prelicensure nursing students. Nursing Education Perspectives, 41(1), 39–41. doi:10.1097/01.NEP.0000000000000447

Judge, J., Murray, B., Morris, T., & Opsahl, A. (2019). Interprofessional education: A disaster response simulation activity for military medics, nursing, & paramedic science students. Nurse Education in Practice, 39, 67–72. doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2019.08.004

Opsahl, A., & Horton-Deutsch, S. (2019). A nursing dashboard to communicate the evaluation of program outcomes. Nurse Educator, 44(6), 326-329. doi:10.1097/NNE.0000000000000632

Opsahl, A., Judge, D., Morris, T., Robinson, D., Werskey, K., & Edwards, B. (2019). Promoting a mock disaster simulation with leadership from a nurse residency program. Teaching and Learning in Nursing, 14(3), 153-156. doi:10.1016/j.teln.2019.01.004

Judge, D., Opsahl, A., & Hensel, D. (2018). Q methodology: Teaching strategy to promote student engagement. Nurse Educator, 43(6), 285-286. doi:10.1097/NNE.0000000000000503

Judge, D. S., Opsahl, A., & Robinson, D. (2018). Collaboration between two schools of nursing: Emotional intelligence education for prelicensure students. Teaching and Learning in Nursing, 13(4), 244-246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.teln.2018.06.007

Opsahl, A., Auberry, K., Sharer, B., & Shaver, C. (2018). A comprehensive educational approach to improving NCLEX-RN pass rates. Nursing Forum, 53(4), 549–553. doi:10.1111/nuf.12285

Opsahl, A. G., Ebright, P., Cangany, M., Lowder, M., Scott, D., & Shaner, T. (2017). Outcomes of adding patient and family engagement education to fall prevention bundled interventions. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 32(3), 252–258.
https://doi.org/10.1097/NCQ.0000000000000232