Elaine J. Amella, PhD, GNP-BC, FAAN
Professor

Medical University of South Carolina
College of Nursing
99 Jonathan Lucas Street
MSC 160
Charleston, SC 29425-1600

Telephone: (843) 792-4627
Fax: (843) 792-2104
amellaej@musc.edu

Dr. Elaine J. Amella is a tenured Professor in the College of Nursing and a member of the faculty of the Graduate College at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Amella received her Associates and Bachelors degrees in Nursing from Pace University, Pleasantville NY and both her Masters of Arts in Nursing and Doctorate in Research and Theory Development in Nursing from New York University. She also received a Post-Masters Certificate in Care of the Older Adult from New York University. Dr. Amella is certified by the American Nurses Credentialing Center as both a Geriatric Nurse Practitioner and Gerontological Clinical Nurse Specialist. She is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, and the Gerontological Society of America. Masters students at MUSC College of Nursing awarded her the Outstanding MSN Faculty for 2000, 2003, and 2004, and she received the 2009 Outstanding PhD Faculty Member Award.  Dr. Amella is the Assistant Editor for North America for the Journal of Clinical Nursing and serves on the Editorial Boards of the Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging, the Journal of Gerontological Nursing and Geriatric Nursing.

Dr. Amella has been at the Medical University since 1999. Prior to coming to MUSC, she was on faculty at the University of Arizona and New York University. Focusing on the nursing care of the older adult, Dr. Amella’s research and practice are dedicated to the care of persons with moderate to severe cognitive impairments and facilitating the quality of their care, especially through mealtime and feeding interventions for formal and informal caregivers. She has been funded in the area of end-of-life care and nutrition by intramural, state and national (NINR, NIA and USDA) agencies. She is an advocate of team science and works with colleagues in nutrition, speech and language pathology, and gastroenterology. Additionally, Dr. Amella has been reviewer, consultant, project manager, and recipient of HRSA/BrPH training grants to prepare undergraduate, masters and doctoral nursing students. Presently, she teaches across all three levels at the College of Nursing with a focus on geriatric nursing, theory-based practice and issues related to vulnerable populations.

For more information, visit http://myprofile.cos.com/amellaej.