The Phyllis F. Cantor Center for Research in Nursing & Patient Care Services
Staff Profiles
- Donna L. Berry, PhD, RN, AOCN, FAAN
Director - Marsha Fonteyn, PhD, RN
Nurse Scientist - Mary Cooley, PhD, APRN, BC
Nurse Scientist - Jennifer Allen, RN, MS, MPH, ScD
Nurse Scientist - Ulrika Kreicbergs, RN, PhD
Nurse Scientist - Barbara Halpenny, MA
Project Director - Tiffiny-Jen Cohen, BS
Clinical Research Coordinator - Daniel Litrownik, BS
Clinical Research Coordinator - Roger Mohamed, MS
Business Manager - Renata Cavalier, MA
Administrative Specialist
Donna L. Berry, PhD, RN, AOCN®, FAAN
Director
E-mail: donna_berry@dfci.harvard.edu
Donna L. Berry, PhD, RN, AOCN®, FAAN, Director
Dr. Berry completed her undergraduate education at Baylor University and holds graduate degrees from the University of Texas at Houston and the University of Washington. Her commitment to improving care of the person with cancer has spanned over two decades, beginning with her work as an oncology staff nurse and continuing with her mentorship activities and current leadership in designing, implementing, evaluating, and teaching patient-centered oncology practices.
Her scholarship has been presented locally, nationally, and internationally and published in nursing, medical, and interdisciplinary journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine. Dr. Berry is often asked to speak and contribute in international venues, notably Switzerland, Korea, Hong Kong, and Japan. Recently at the University of Washington, she mentored clinicians and students from several disciplines and of all levels. She held a clinical appointment as the first Nurse Researcher at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.
Dr. Berry's career holds many "firsts." At the University of Washington, she was the first nurse to hold adjunct faculty appointments in the Department of Urology and the Department of Medical Education and Bioinformatics. She has the longest affiliation with a national cancer cooperative group (Southwest Oncology Group) of any nurse scientist in the United States. Extending this role, she was the first nurse scientist to serve as committee co-chair on a National Cancer Institute Progress Review Group. Additionally, she led the first national research agenda for the Oncology Nursing Society from 2002-2008.
Dr. Berry has pioneered in two important areas: patient-centered oncology care and nursing leadership within oncology research. To implement her patient-centered care paradigm, Dr. Berry formulated an interdisciplinary team and then led that team to successfully design and implement accessible, computerized tools to assess symptom experiences and quality of life variables. She led another large, multi-disciplinary team to develop, produce, and test the first and only Internet intervention based on personal factors to support treatment decision-making by men with prostate cancer. Recognized by nomination and election to Fellowship in the American Academy of Nursing, she has assumed increasing leadership and responsibility for transforming health care. As Director of Dana-Farber's Cantor Center, she will achieve these responsibilities in oncology nursing.
Marsha Fonteyn, PhD, RN
Nurse Scientist
E-mail: marsha_fonteyn@dfci.harvard.edu
Marsha Fonteyn, PhD, RN, Nurse Scientist
Marsha Fonteyn, PhD, RN has had over 30 years of clinical practice experience in a variety of areas, including oncology, emergency and critical care, AIDS care, and home health. She completed her doctorate in nursing at the University of Texas, and also has a master's degree in health administration, and a bachelor's degree in cultural anthropology. She began her nursing career as an officer in the Army Nurse Corps, serving at a MASH unit in Chu Lai during the Vietnam conflict and at Walter Reed Army Hospital. Dr. Fonteyn has served on the graduate and undergraduate faculty at the University of San Francisco and the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas. Her research interests include nurses' clinical decision-making, information management, and evidence-based practice. Dr. Fonteyn has authored numerous publications including a book titled, Thinking Strategies for Nursing Practice (Lippincott, 1998).
Dr. Fonteyn is the co-chair of the Nursing Research and Evidence-based Practice committee, which is an interdisciplinary committee that focuses on strategies to facilitate the use of research to guide clinical practice and on mechanisms to facilitate and support scholarly activities among NPCS staff. Using the software program NVivo©, Dr. Fonteyn is assisting with the analysis of the qualitative data from Cantor Center studies.
Mary Cooley, PhD, APRN, BC
Nurse Scientist
E-mail: mary_cooley@dfci.harvard.edu
Mary Cooley, PhD, APRN, BC, Nurse Scientist
The focus of Dr. Cooley's work has been symptom management and quality of life in adults with cancer. She began doctoral study at University of Pennsylvania and was awarded an institutional pre-doctoral fellowship through the National Institutes for Health (NIH) and doctoral scholarships from the American Cancer Society and the Oncology Nursing Foundation. In her dissertation, Dr. Cooley described the changes in patterns of symptom distress in adults receiving treatment for lung cancer and examined the relationship of selected demographic and clinical characteristics to symptom distress over time. Results from this study found that symptom distress scores were moderate to high on entry into the study and that the change in pattern of symptom distress was not the same among treatment groups. Adults who received surgical treatment had less symptom distress at three months as compared with those who received combined treatment. Various demographic and clinical variables were weak and inconsistent predictors of symptom distress.
She then completed a post-doctoral fellowship in psychosocial oncology at University of Pennsylvania sponsored by the NIH. She conducted a secondary analysis to examine symptom prevalence, distress, and change over time in adults receiving treatment for lung cancer. Results from this study found that fatigue and pain were the most distressing symptoms for each group and at each time. Significant differences in distressing symptoms among the treatment groups were noted. Many of the individual symptoms were associated with demographic and treatment group values but no consistent pattern emerged over time except for baseline symptom distress. Symptom distress at entry to the study was a strong predictor of nine distressing symptoms at three months and seven distressing symptoms at six months. Subsequently, she received funding through the American Cancer Society for a study examining the use of health status questionnaires as predictors of unscheduled health care visits in ambulatory oncology. Data analyses for this study are in the final stages. During this time, she also participated in the development of a state cancer control plan for Connecticut and as a result became interested in smoking cessation interventions.
After completing the post-doctoral fellowship, Dr. Cooley joined a multidisciplinary research team in the Smoking Cessation Research Program. While at the Smoking Cessation Research Program, Dr. Cooley was selected to attend the 2002 Summer Institute for Randomized Clinical Trials Involving Behavioral Interventions sponsored by the NIH. Most recently, Dr. Cooley was chosen as the recipient of the Oncology Nursing Society New Investigator Award. This award is presented to an investigator who is within five years of finishing his or her doctoral program and has contributed to building a scientific basis for oncology nursing. Dr. Cooley started working as a research scientist in The Phyllis F. Cantor Center for Research in Nursing and Patient Care Services in December 2002 and continues to move forward her program of research in symptom management and quality of life in adults with cancer and is beginning a program of research in smoking cessation interventions.
Jennifer Allen, RN, MS, MPH, ScD
Nurse Scientist
Jennifer Allen, RN, MS, MPH, ScD, Nurse Scientist
Dr. Allen received her Bachelor's degree in nursing and Master's degree in Community Health Nursing from Boston College. In addition, she has a Master's and Doctoral Degree in Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health. She began her nursing career in community health in international and domestic settings. This work sparked her interest in the roles of social, economic and environmental forces on health.
For the past 15 years, she has been an investigator in the Center for Community-Based Research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Her research has focused on the development and evaluation of community-based approaches to cancer prevention and control among medically underserved populations. She has conducted randomized trials of interventions designed to promote screening for breast and cervical cancers. In addition, she has developed computer-tailored interventions to promote informed decision-making for prostate cancer screening. Currently, she is studying interventions to promote uptake of the HPV vaccine among young women and parents of young girls.
Dr. Allen has received funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Cancer Institute, the Susan G. Komen Foundation and other foundations to conduct this work in churches, worksites, neighborhoods and other community settings. Dr. Allen is a member of the American Public Health Association, the Massachusetts Public Health Association, the American Nurses Association, and the Massachusetts Nurses' Association.
Research Interests
Design and evaluation of community-based interventions; cancer prevention and control in underserved communities; health disparities.
Appointments & Awards
- Assistant Professor, William Connell School of Nursing, Boston College
- Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Society, Human Development and Health, Harvard School of Public Health
- Associate Research Scientist, Phyllis Cantor Cancer Center, DFCI, 2006-present
Ulrika Kreicbergs, RN, PhD
Nurse Scientist
E-mail: ulrika_kreicbergs@dfci.harvard.edu
Ulrika Kreicbergs, RN, PhD, Nurse Scientist
Ulrika Kreicbergs was recently appointed as Pediatric Nurse Scientist, working collaboratively with Children’s Hospital Boston. In 2005, Dr. Kreicbergs was awarded a postdoctoral grant from The Swedish Society of Medicine. In 2006, she was invited to the Cantor Center to conduct her postdoctoral research. Dr. Kreicbergs has a clinical background in orthopedic and pediatric oncology, with a focus on treating seriously ill children and their families.
In 2004 Dr. Kreicbergs completed her doctoral work at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden. Her doctoral work analyzed qualitative and quantitative data from bereaved parents’ experiences after their child’s treatment and death. Specifically, Dr. Kreicbergs examined the relationship between parents who lost a child to cancer 4 to 9 years earlier and their long-term mental health and how those related to potential care-related stressors that are manageable or avoidable. Dr. Kreicbergs’ continuing work includes a study on bereaved siblings’ school achievement and psychosocial state in addition to a secondary analysis from her bereaved parents study.
Tiffiny-Jen Cohen, BS
Clinical Research Coordinator
E-mail: tiffiny-jen_cohen@dfci.harvard.edu
Tiffiny-Jen Cohen received her bachelor's of science degree in Biology from Northeastern University, Boston, in 2006. While pursuing her degree she participated in the faculty/undergraduate research initiative (FURI) and conducted independent research. She has worked as a research assistant in the microbial ecology laboratory and in outreach for Northeastern University's Marine Science Center, Nahant. She joined the Cantor Center as a research assistant on the Mindfulness Meditation in Bone Marrow Transplantation study in January 2007, and continues on as a clinical research coordinator for the Smoking Behaviors in Adults with Cancer study.
Daniel Litrownik, BS
Clinical Research Coordinator
E-mail: daniel_litrownik@dfci.harvard.edu
Dan Litrownik is a recent graduate of Emory University, where he studied psychology and Buddhism. In addition to his studies, Mr. Litrownik worked as a research assistant in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Emory, where he conducted behavioral observation research in nursing homes. Dan joined the Cantor Center in June 2008 as the Clinical Research Coordinator for the Mindfulness Meditation in Bone Marrow Transplantation study.
Roger Mohamed, MS
Business Manager
E-mail: roger_mohamed@dfci.harvard.edu
Roger Mohamed, MS, Business Manager
Roger Mohamed brings a broad range of experience in Business Management and Operations Management to the Cantor Center. Roger worked as an Interim Department Administrator for Nursing and Patient Care Services before assuming the role of the Business Manager.
Prior to joining Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Mr. Mohamed was the Business Operations Manager for the Obstetrics, Gynecology and Pediatrics Department at the Tufts Medical Center. Prior to entering the healthcare industry, Mr. Mohamed worked in the non-profit industry as a Business Manager at the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition and as an Operations Manager at Jane Doe Inc., The Massachusetts Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Coalition. He received a BA from Harvard University and a Masters of Science in Non-Profit Administration from Boston College.
Roger currently serves on the following Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Committees:
- Monthly Mangers
- Dana-Farber Analytic Reporting Tool Committee
- Nursing and Patient Care Services Leadership
- Department Administrators
- Nursing and Patient Care Services Financial Managers Committee
- GLBT Employee Resource Group
- Nursing and Patient Care Services Bonus Nominations Committee
Renata Cavalier, MA
Administrative Specialist
E-mail: renata_cavalier@dfci.harvard.edu
Renata Cavalier, MA, Administrative Specialist
Renata Cavalier received a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from the University of Miami in Florida and Master of Arts degree in Interior Design from the New England School of Art and Design at Suffolk University. Prior to joining the Cantor Center in August 2008, she worked as an Interior Designer for residential and commercial design firms in the Boston area. Ms. Cavalier's professional experience includes working as a National Sales Coordinator for American Radio Systems in Boston where she was primarily responsible for supporting the two major market National Sales Managers and various administrative tasks for the National Sales Department. Ms. Cavalier was also a Traffic Coordinator in the Advertising and Communications Department at Fidelity Investments and worked in Guest Relations for the Walt Disney World Company in Orlando, Florida.
