IU School of Nursing

For Jane Cheriyattil von Gaudecker, PhD, RN, improving the lives of people with epilepsy starts with research and reaches into communities. As an associate professor at the Indiana University School of Nursing, her research focuses on finding solutions that improve epilepsy care and the quality of life of people living with epilepsy, especially those with limited resources.

Von Gaudecker joined the School of Nursing as a postdoctoral fellow in 2016 and became a faculty member two years later. Since then, her work has focused on one main goal.

“My research is driven by one overarching question: How can we close the epilepsy treatment gap and reduce health disparities through scalable, nurse-led, community-based models of care?” she said.

From that core question emerges several lines of inquiry that guide her team’s research:

• How can task-sharing and digital innovations, such as medical records-based decision support, strengthen epilepsy diagnosis, treatment, and continuity of care in primary-care settings?
• What training and mentorship frameworks best prepare nurses and clinical officers to deliver high-quality epilepsy care where specialist access is limited?
• How do social determinants, cultural beliefs, stigma, gender, and poverty contribute to disparities in epilepsy care and health outcomes?

Students in the school’s PhD program play a vital role in advancing these research questions. PhD students who think critically about how evidence can reduce disparities and improve real-world outcomes—and not just generate publications—are especially valuable to von Gaudecker.

“Our work not only advances our research goals but also strengthens the broader mission of nursing science that serves diverse and underserved communities,” she explained.

PhD students on her team have opportunities to grow as global nurse scientists and health disparities researchers. They will gain experience in cross-cultural and interdisciplinary collaboration, applied research, and professional development, including writing for publication, presenting at scientific conferences, and grant development.

“Ultimately, my goal is to prepare students to become independent investigators and leaders who conduct rigorous, compassionate research that advances the NIH vision, science that improves health and reduces inequities, both locally and globally,” von Gaudecker added.