A Day in the Life of an Academic Geriatric Nurse
Lisa Skemp, PhD, RN, MA
Associate Professor
College of Nursing
The University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa
Claire M. Fagin Post-doctoral Fellow 2003-2005
Research: Elder care in a rural area
“My doctoral research training was in classic ethnography where I partnered with community members on a Caribbean island to explore how older adults acquire the things they need to live where they have limited access to formal elder health care resources,” says Lisa Skemp, PhD, RN, MA. At the University of Iowa, Dr. Skemp translated this research to ethnically diverse populations of older adults living in rural Midwestern communities where there is a shortage of culturally appropriate health care resources. In her faculty role, teaching public and global health to nursing students, Dr. Skemp involves students both in community-based programs and in her research.
Dr. Skemp and BAGNC Pre-doctoral Scholar Jimmy Reyes visit with older adults in rural Iowa.
Dr. Skemp’s early U.S. research focused on one of the poorest rural counties in Iowa where many of the older residents were farmers and there was a rapidly growing population of Hispanic residents working at a nearby meatpacking plant. “I systematically looked at how older adults create their own systems of care,” says Dr. Skemp. In general, the Anglo older adults had strong support networks of family, friends, and neighbors, often grounded in several generations of living in the community. For Hispanic older adults, many of whom were recent immigrants, care networks were smaller and more fragile. Immigration policy impacted the sustainability of these networks.
“I systematically looked at how older adults create their own systems of care.”While conducting research with this and other communities, including a Sudanese immigrant/refugee population, Dr. Skemp and her partners identified key health care issues associated with healthy aging. They discovered that these communities lacked culturally relevant health information and programs in the areas of diabetes, obesity, stress, and hypertension. To meet these needs, Dr. Skemp mentored Jimmy Reyes, DNP, MSN, RN, Hartford Pre-doctoral Scholar (see profile) on the culturally informed model of community-based care. He participated in her research and established community education programs to improve the health of these older adults.
Dr. Skemp is currently mentoring two doctoral students as she works with librarians and technology experts at the WiderNet Project (www.widernet.org) to build a digital library of gerontological resources.
Dr. Skemp with an older farmer. Dr. Skemp is conducting research on natural care systems, meaning how older adults are able to get what they need when they do not have access to formal resources.
Dr. Skemp visits an older woman in rural Iowa to assess her needs so that she can remain safely in the community. 
Dr. Skemp at the meal program at Witwer Senior Living, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Two nursing students who are supervised by Dr. Skemp interviewing a participant in a
meal program.
Dr. Skemp visits with members of a Sudanese community in rural Iowa, where she and her students are working to help residents gain better access to health care information and resources. Jimmy Reyes, DNP, MSN, RN ›