For more than 20 years, Dr. Christine Nelson-Tuttle, associate professor of nursing, has prepared nursing students for careers at the bedside and in the research lab. As a board-certified pediatric nurse practitioner and a prolific scholar, she has extensive experience in both aspects of the profession and has seen how they work together to improve patient care.
“So much of what we do in nursing is grounded in evidence, and evidence changes with research,” she said. “Research is the incentive and the instigator of changes in our practice.”
This experience has fueled her desire to mentor nursing students in research, even those who are not considering that area of the profession.
“I just get such satisfaction and joy from students who were resistant to research or scared of statistics, who then get it,” she said. “That’s huge. I love that part of it.”
Dr. Nelson-Tuttle’s career began as a staff RN at the University of Rochester Medical Center. After earning her master’s and pediatric nurse practitioner degrees, she began working as a PNP with healthcare organizations in Georgia and New York, including Oishei Children’s Hospital in Buffalo, where she’s worked since 1998.
Her teaching and research work began just a few years later, when she joined the University at Buffalo in 2001 as a research assistant while pursuing her doctorate. She realized that, while she loved performing research, her real love was teaching it, so after earning her Ph.D. in nursing, she accepted faculty positions at several area universities. Since 2022, Dr. Nelson-Tuttle has taught nursing research and pediatrics at Niagara University.
Dr. Nelson-Tuttle’s own research focuses on pediatric emergencies, adolescent health, and education. She is the co-author/author of 22 book chapters and two journal articles, 16 accepted poster presentations, nine refereed paper presentations, and 13 invited presentations in a variety of formats. She is also the co-editor of the Lippincott Manual of Nursing Practice (12th edition).
One unique aspect of Dr. Nelson-Tuttle’s work has been researching the health behaviors of the Old Order Amish and Mennonite communities. Her first study was on the receptivity to immunizations and vaccinations among the Old Order in the Town of Leon in Cattaraugus County, N.Y.
She also worked with the direct care teams at the Clinic for Special Children in Gordonville, Pa., a healthcare organization that treats and researches disorders identified in those communities. There, she studied whether or not members of the communities would accept information that they received from the clinicians about genetic testing and genetically based diseases.
“It was very interesting looking at what was being published by the researchers and how the clinicians were relaying this to the families themselves, and what they were willing to take and use, and what they were completely comfortable discarding to meet the needs of their lens of viewing care,” she said.
Dr. Nelson-Tuttle found that there were variations in the receptiveness of the Old Order families. While some would not consider genetic testing under any circumstance, others would, but not as a prenatal decision-making tool.
“The ones who use it will do so only to decide who will be present at the birth to increase the likelihood that there will be a positive outcome for mom and the baby,” Dr. Nelson-Tuttle explained. “But it would never be used to terminate a pregnancy. It also would not generally change their decisions on the number of kids that they would have.”
In recognition of her work in nursing, teaching, and research, Dr. Nelson-Tuttle is the recipient of numerous awards, including Nurse Practitioner of the Year 2023 from the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, WNY chapter.
“Dr. Nelson-Tuttle has worked extensively to enhance knowledge of research and its components among her nursing students and its importance in the delivery of safe and effective care of citizens in our communities,” said Dr. Christine Verni, dean of the College of Nursing. “Students understand the impact research has on the nursing profession and convey their gratitude of Chris’ time and knowledge sharing in laying the foundation for their own paths in the discipline.”
