Sheila

Fitzgerald

,

PhD

The underlying focus of my research is the influence of bio-psychosocial factors on employment and work, including stress, chronic disease, and vulnerable worker populations. Together with Dr. Craig Ewart of Syracuse University, I was coinvestigator on an RO1 from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute entitled Project Heart, a study of cardiovascular risk factors in working adolescents. This study has shed light on changing behavior and promoting wellbeing after heart attack, anger in young workers and the effects of job control, dissatisfaction, and support, as well as the effects of stress, neighborhood disorder, social competence, and the development of hypertension and metabolic syndrome. I have participated on several research grants related to worker health, including an interdisciplinary study to identify the factors that predict workplace violence among healthcare professionals and the associated physical, mental health, and work-related outcomes such as retention of nursing personnel. A paper on the SAFE Program at Mercy Hospital in Baltimore has been submitted. My ongoing research involves working with an interdisciplinary team to conduct outcome evaluations of the program at Marian House, a Baltimore nonprofit organization that provides a structured living environment, education, employment readiness, and job placement for homeless and formerly incarcerated women.