Nancy M. H. Pontes

Dr. Nancy Pontes’ academic interests focus upon the improvement of population health trans-nationally. As a family nurse practitioner (FNP) and Distinguished Fellow and Practitioner of the National Academy of Practice (FNAP), Dr. Pontes has worked in a variety of roles and leadership positions.  Initially, she worked with inter-professional teams providing care to children with complex health needs. 

She later set up a nurse-managed center in a New York alternative court, which served a variety of vulnerable populations including refugees, female and transgendered survivors of human trafficking. After completing her PhD at Columbia University, Dr. Pontes directed university health care services at Rowan University, which expanded into Assistant Vice President for Health and Wellness. In this role, her duties included oversight of centers for counseling and psychological services, addiction prevention, and health promotion.  More recently, she set up a school-based health center as part of a faculty practice of the Rutgers School of Nursing–Camden.  In 2015, she accepted a tenure-track faculty position at the School of Nursing–Camden, and assisted in the set up and first year practice of Project H.O.P.E.’s satellite health center in Cathedral Kitchen, which serves persons with food and housing insecurity.

In 2016, Dr. Pontes was the recipient of a three-year, $600,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Education International Foreign Language Education (IFLE) office to increase international studies and Spanish language education for nursing students. This grant expanded existing programs and scholarships for learning abroad in Latin America, and initiated a population health course in Cuba.  Through this grant, Dr. Pontes has collaborated with Spanish language professors to infuse more Spanish language instruction into the learning abroad programs and to expand their Spanish language courses for health professionals. A result of this collaboration is an engaged civic learning .

The overarching focus of Dr. Pontes’ research is to explore social determinants of health and well-being among vulnerable youth and families. Two primary research streams are 1) Secondary analysis of the nationally representative Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) to explore victimization, psychological distress and related variables among high school students, and 2) Qualitative phenomenological inquiry of mothers’ experiences with time famine, the chronic perceived shortage of time and its impact upon health and wellbeing.

Global Population Health 

Social Determinants of health in women, children, and families

The influence of “Time Fatigue” on health and wellbeing

School-based health centers

Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS)

PhD (Nursing): Columbia University, 2003

MSN (Family Nursing Practitioner): University of Florida, 1994

BSN (Nursing): Pensacola Christian College, 1985

Articles in Refereed Journals

• Pontes, N. M., Ayres, C. G., & Pontes, M. C. F. (2018). Additive interactions between gender and bullying victimization on depressive symptoms and suicidality: Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2011–2015. Nursing Research, 67(6), 430–438. https://doi.org/10.1097/NNR.0000000000000310

• Pontes, N. M., Ayres, C. G., Lewandowski, C., & Pontes, M. C. F. (2018). Trends in bullying victimization among US high school students. Journal of Research in Nursing and Health, Early View, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1002/nur.21868

• Ayres, C. G., & Pontes, N. M. (2018). Use of theory to examine health responsibility in urban adolescents. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 38, 40–45.

• Ayres, C. G., & Pontes, N. M. (2017). Factors related to substance use among U.S. high school adolescents. Journal of Nursing Practice Applications and Reviews of Research, 7(1), 40–49.

• Ayres, C. G., & Pontes, N. M. (2016). Understanding the non-medical use and abuse of prescription medications in U.S. high school adolescents. Journal of School Nursing, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059840516677322

• 2016 – Ongoing
  Grant Amount: $566,832 over three years
  Title: Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Languages
  Agency: Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language (UISFL) Program
  Purpose: Supports the advancement of Spanish language study within study abroad courses focused on global population health for health care professionals
  Principal Investigator: Pontes, Nancy M. H.
  Role: Principal Investigator
  Award #: P016A160081

Fellowships

• 2018–present - Faculty Fellow, Engaged Civic Learning, Rutgers University - Camden

• 2017–present - Faculty Fellow, Community Leadership Center, Rutgers University

• 2016–present - Fellow, National Academies of Practice

• 2016–2017 - Faculty Fellow, Digital Teaching Fellowship, Rutgers University

Professional Awards and Honors

• 2019 - Nursing Research Authorship Award, Eastern Nursing Research Society

• 2018 - Innovations in the Continuum of Care Award, Organization of Nurse Leaders of New Jersey

• 2017 - Distinguished Fellow and Practitioner, National Academies of Practice, Nursing Division

• 2013 - Honorary Nursing Excellence Award in College Health, New Jersey College Health Association (NJCHA)

Assistantships

• 2017–present - Scholarly Writing Retreat Participant, National League for Nursing (NLN)

• Registered Professional Nurse – License #26NR08369100, State of New Jersey

• Certified Family Nurse Practitioner – License #26NN08369100, State of New Jersey

• Family Nurse Practitioner, National Certification – American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC)

• Disaster Response Crisis Counselor (DRCC) – State of New Jersey

• American Nurses Association

• Eastern Nursing Research Society (ENRS)

• National Academies of Practice

• National League for Nursing

• New Jersey College Health Association

• New Jersey Disaster Mental Health Services

• New Jersey State Nurses Association

• New Jersey Traumatic Loss Coalition / International Trauma Center & Genesis Training Institute

• Sigma Theta Tau International, Alpha Theta Tau and Eta Mu Chapters