Assistant Professor
Department of Clinical and Health Informatics
Contact
[email protected] | 713-500-3900
Dr. Debora Simmons, Ph.D., R.N., FAAN, has an extensive background in technology and complex patient care systems. Her career has focused on healthcare quality and safety as a clinician, educator, leader, researcher, and advocate.
Dr. Simmons has held leadership positions throughout her career. She was the Senior Vice President and Chief Quality Officer of Catholic Health Initiatives St. Luke's Health System. She was recognized by The U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources with a management award for The National Center for Cognitive Informatics and Decision Making in Healthcare, Strategic Healthcare, I.T. "SHARPC" grant, P.I. Dr. Jiajie Zhang as Executive Director of the Center. Dr. Simmons contributed significantly as an Associate Director for the Institute of Healthcare Excellence at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and was a distinguished member of the University Of Texas Center Of Excellence for Patient Safety Research and Practice, supported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Earlier in her career at Northwestern University, she was a founding member and Associate Director of the Patient Safety Education Project at The Buehler Center on Aging, Health & Society.
Simmons's foundational patient safety research in inadvertent tubing misconnections between physiologically incompatible systems led to the change in luer connectors standards across the United States. Through work with the International Standards Organization and the American Association of Medical Instrumentation, she contributed to the connectors' awareness, advocacy, and design changes. Her work has been highlighted by publications in The World Health Organization, ECRI, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, ISMP, the FDA, and CMS, a New York Times article, two sentinel event alerts from the Joint Commission, and numerous professional and peer-reviewed publications. Conversion to these newly designed connectors is in progress across the United States and has been completed in Europe and Japan.
Her work in Health Information Technology spans her career. Early in her career, she established the first program for managing left ventricular assist patients at home through telemonitoring in Texas. She later developed telehealth programs for free-standing emergency departments and stroke assessment. She has authored HIT industry advisories across infection control, usability, safety, and workflow with the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The author of numerous lectures, peer-reviewed publications, and standards, Simmons most recently completed work on the American Nurses Association Nursing Informatics Scope and Standards 3rd Edition and a new chapter of Hamric & Hanson's Advanced Practice Nursing 7th Edition, chapter 22, Future Technologies Influencing Advanced Practice Nursing.
Dr. Simmons' impact extends to regulatory and legislative arenas, where she has provided expert testimony on behalf of healthcare providers at the Texas State Legislature, Department of State Health Services, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, and the National Institute of Health. She is a subject matter expert for the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the American Association of Medical Instrumentation, and the International Organization for Standardization AAMI/QM. Dr. Simmons is a past trustee of the Institute for Safe Medication Practices and continues to advise ISMP activities and publications. Her effect on industry standards is further underscored by a decade-long service on the Nomenclature and Safety Committee of the United States Pharmacopeia, where she contributed significantly to patient safety and labeling standards. She led the first nonpunitive error reporting program for nursing in the United States and the first close-call reporting system across 21 hospitals in Texas. She serves as Chair of the Eligibility and Disciplinary Advisory Committee for the Texas Board of Nursing. She is an advisor to the U.S. Army Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center and a reviewer for National Science Foundation Reviewer SBIR/STTR (Small Business Innovation Research, Small Business Technology Transfer).
Dr. Simmons has an associate nursing degree from San Jacinto College and a bachelor of science in nursing from Texas Woman's University. Simmons attended UTHealth's Jane and Robert Cizik School of Nursing and earned her M.S. in nursing; she was awarded her doctoral degree in nursing science from Texas Woman's University. Simmons is an advanced practice nurse certified as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Acute and Critical care. She is a Billy Brown Fellow and Virginia Henderson Fellow of Sigma Theta Tau, and a Virginia Chandler Dykes Scholar. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. She teaches with a focus on Clinical and Health Informatics, including Evidence-based practice, foundational informatics, pharmacy informatics, patient safety, and quality.