Kimberly D. Acquaviva, PhD, MSW, CSE, FNAP

Kimberly D. Acquaviva, PhD, MSW, CSE is the Betty Norman Norris Endowed Professor at the University of Virginia School of Nursing. Prior to joining the faculty of UVA, she served on the faculty of the George Washington University for 15 years, most recently as a tenured professor in the George Washington University School of Nursing. As a social worker teaching within a school of nursing, her scholarship is interdisciplinary and collaborative. Her scholarly work focuses on LGBTQIA+ aging and end-of-life issues, and her clinical work has been with patients and families facing life-limiting illnesses in both hospital and hospice settings.  Her book, LGBTQ-Inclusive Hospice & Palliative Care: A Practical Guide to Transforming Professional Practice, was published by Harrington Park Press and distributed by Columbia University Press. The book was awarded first place in the AJN Book of the Year Awards in the Palliative Care and Hospice Category. She's the host of em dash podcast, a show that explores the lived experiences of patients and healthcare professionals in the healthcare arena.  

In addition to her work in the field of LGBTQIA+ aging, Dr. Acquaviva is a leader and innovator in the development of technology-facilitated educational innovations for health care providers, serving as both lead author and co-investigator of The National Emergency Medical Services Preparedness Initiative, a $4.7 million federally-funded training and policy initiative, as well as project manager for The National Nurse Emergency Preparedness Initiative (NNEPI), a $2 million federally funded web-based training initiative designed to increase nurses’ awareness of strategies for preparing for, responding to and recovering from emergencies and disasters. More than 50,000 nurses have completed the NNEPI online course to date.
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Dr. Acquaviva's policy and advocacy work at the Federal level had made tangible advances in funding for aging research. Dr. Acquaviva completed a term as Special Government Employee (SGE) on the National Advisory Council on Aging (NACA), advising the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Director of the National Institutes of Health, and the Director of the National Institute on Aging on its mission. Prior to her appointment to the NACA, Dr. Acquaviva completed a two-year term as Chair of the Friends of the National Institute on Aging, a broad-based coalition of almost 50 aging, disease, research, and patient groups supporting the mission of the National Institute on Aging. In her capacity as Chair, Dr. Acquaviva led the coalition in efforts to advocate on behalf of the NIA through the annual congressional budget and appropriations process and promote NIA research activities by sponsoring briefings for congressional staff. Regarding this work, President and CEO of the Alliance for Aging Research Sue Peschin writes that Dr. Acquaviva "is a politically astute advocate for aging research, and led the way to an increase in funding in the President's budget for Alzheimer's research at the NIH by $130 million, by systematically enlisting support from the White House, NIH, and Congress." The founder of the Alliance for Aging Research, Dan Perry, writes that Dr. Acquaviva "performed superbly... advocating for the science-based agency before Members of Congress and staff, media, and other key stakeholders" and "is recognized by her peers as a leader in the science and public policy realms of medical and social gerontology."

 

Dr. Acquaviva has a Ph.D. in Human Sexuality Education from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, an M.S.W. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy and Practice, and a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Pennsylvania College of Arts and Sciences. She is an AASECT-Certified Sexuality Educator.

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