Research Staff
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Killian Bowen
Research & Grants Manager | Email Killian
Killian Bowen completed his Bachelor's of Science degree in Psychology with a double major in Philosophy at Morehead State University in 2019 and received a certification in grants management from Management Concepts in December of 2023. Killian has experience managing non-profit grants with United Way, and research grants during his work as a Grant Accountant at Kentucky State University. He is currently pursuing a Master's of Public Administration and a PhD in Urban & Public Affairs at University of Louisville. In 2025, he was commissioned as a Kentucky Colonel by Governor Andy Beshear. He enjoys freelance writing, volunteering, and spending quality time with his wife and 3 cats.
Research interests:
Appalachian and rural healthcare, healthcare policy, healthcare access, sexual and gender minorities
Sanju Kunwar
Graduate Research Assistant | Email Sanju
Sanju Kunwar hails from Nepal and is pursuing her BSN-PhD at the University of Louisville. She obtained her bachelor's degree in nursing from Kantipur Academy of Health Science in Nepal. Her primary research focus centers around the mental health of chronically ill patients. With an extensive background in clinical practice spanning 8 years, she has gained valuable experience in medical, surgical, COVID, and NICU settings. She enjoys collaborating and working within a team, possesses strong critical thinking abilities, excels in problem-solving, and maintains a natural curiosity for acquiring new knowledge. She serves as a graduate research assistant at the University of Louisville, contributing to ongoing research efforts.
Research interests:
Mental health of chronically ill patients
Amani Abdulnabi
Graduate Research Assistant | Email Amani
Amani Abdulnabi, an international student from Jordan, is a PhD student at school of Nursing in University of Louisville. She earned her Bachelor degree in Nursing in 2011 from Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST), and finished her Master degree in Nursing Services Administration in 2019 from the same her university. Amani worked as a Registered Nurse in the NICO Unit at Princess Raya Governmental Hospital from 2013 until 2019. After she earned her Master degree, she became a Head of Quality Department at the same hospital from 2019 until 2023. In 2023, she started work as research and teaching assistant at Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST). In 2024, Amani awarded a scholarship to finish the PhD from Jordan University of Science and Technology. She started her study in Fall 2024 at the University of Louisville School of Nursing. Amani’s research interest is about the quality and patient safety. She is a graduate research assistant at the University of Louisville School of Nursing.
Research interests:
Quality and patient safety, infection control
Roya Hasani
Graduate Research Assistant | Email Roya
Roya Hasani earned her bachelor's degree in midwifery in her home country Iran, followed by four and a half years of experience working as both a midwife and nurse in various hospitals and clinics. Her professional experience spans maternity wards, healthcare centers, medical and surgical wards, a plasma donation center, and operating rooms. In Spring 2024, she began her PhD in Nursing at the University of Louisville. Currently in her third semester, Roya has been honored with a Graduate Research Assistantship (GRA) and a Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA). Additionally, she was awarded an assistantship in the Department of Chemistry, where she worked as a GTA and lab assistant for two semesters.
Research interests:
Psychological disorders and mental health, Mental Health promotion, Women’s health, Maternal mental health
Salsabeel Daraqel
Graduate Research Assistant | Email Salsabeel
Salsabeel Daraqel, MSN, RN, is a PhD nursing student and Graduate Research Assistant at the University of Louisville School of Nursing. She holds a Master of Science in Surgical Nursing from Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa, Turkey and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from An-Najah National University, where she graduated with distinction.
Salsabeel worked as a medical-surgical nursing lecturer and research project supervisor at Modern University College for more than three years. She also served as a research and teaching assistant at An-Najah National University and worked as a Registered Nurse in the Neurosurgery Department at Al-Makassed Hospital in Jerusalem.
She is a Basic Life Support (BLS) instructor certified by the American Heart Association and a member of the Midwest Nursing Research Society (MNRS). Her research interests include patient safety and sexual and reproductive health. She has contributed to a variety of both quantitative and qualitative research studies.
Research interests:
Patient safety, sexual and reproductive health knowledge in adolescents and young adults, emergence of delirium post-op, pain management
Elsa Clenny
Graduate Research Assistant | Email Elsa
Elsa Clenny, a Louisville native, is a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) student at the University of Louisville School of Nursing, where she is pursuing the neonatal track. She graduated summa cum laude from Bellarmine University’s Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program in 2023. Elsa brings five years of clinical experience in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Norton Children’s Hospital, where she has developed a strong foundation in caring for high-risk and critically ill newborns. She has a lifelong passion for research, with a background in virology research during her undergraduate studies at Miami University. She is passionate about teaching and inspiring others, particularly within the nursing profession, and is an active member of the Research and Evidence-Based Practice Council at Norton Children’s Hospital.
Research interests:
Neonatal care, perinatal care, congenital birth defects
Angela Thurman
Graduate Research Assistant | Email Angela
Angela recently graduated from University of Louisville’s BSN program at the Owensboro campus. While in school, she focused primarily on critical care nursing, with a secondary interest in emergency nursing. She has also previously worked closely with memory care patients and geriatric patients. Angela lives with her husband in Hartford, and she loves reading, traveling, and spending time with family.
She is interested in how protecting nurses' cognitive workload and reducing fatigue can improve early recognition and outcomes for conditions commonly seen in critical care and emergency settings, such as sepsis.
Research interests:
Critical care nursing, emergency care nursing, Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, health literacy, sepsis
Aida Alfurjani
Graduate Research Assistant | Email Aida
Aida Alfurjani joins the PhD program at the University of Louisville School of Nursing. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Master's degree in Nursing Services Administration from Jordan University of Science and Technology. She has worked as a Registered Nurse in the Emergency Department at the Jordan Ministry of Health, an RN III in the Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit at King Hussein Cancer Center, and on the Medical and Surgical floor at Istishari Hospital, and has also served as a Research and Teaching Assistant in the Nursing Faculty at Jordan University of Science and Technology. Her research interests center on mental health and wellbeing, and she has contributed to published studies examining mindfulness-based interventions and their effects on stress, depression, and work-family conflict. She brings strong leadership, communication, and decision-making skills, along with proficiency in Microsoft Office, SPSS, and the Hakeem health information system.
Research interests:
Mental health, health promotion, Mindfulness-Meditation, Modified Motivational Interviewing, Nurse and student Wellbeing.