Eileen R. O'Shea

Dr. Eileen O'Shea graduated with her BSN from Boston College, and subsequently earned a MSN in pediatric critical care from the University of Pennsylvania. She received her Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) from Case Western Reserve University, with a dual focus in Practice and Educational Leadership.
Dr. O'Shea has more than 25 years of pediatric nursing experience, and has worked in several of the leading U.S. Children’s Hospitals, including Boston Children’s, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. She is the Pediatric Course Coordinator in the School of Nursing, and also acts as a Clinical Instructor at Yale New Haven Children's Hospital. Most recently Dr. O’Shea was the recipient of the 2012 Excellence in Education Award from the Society of Pediatric Nurses. As a pediatric nurse, her expertise has been caring for children with chronic and life limiting conditions and their families. Dr. O'Shea holds certification as a hospice and palliative pediatric nurse and is a pediatric ELNEC (End of Life Nursing Education Consortium) trainer. Furthermore, she serves as a board member for the Connecticut Coalition to Improve End-of-Life Care. Her research focuses on enhancing pediatric palliative and end of life care for which she has received more than $100,000 in grant awards. Presently, she is the primary investigator for both a curriculum enhancement project entitled: Program Evaluation of ELNEC content in Pediatric and Obstetric Nursing Curricula, and Pediatric Palliative Care: Assessing Holistic Comfort in Children. Dr. O’Shea also serves as a consultant to health care institutions to establish best practices in the area of pediatric palliative and end of life care. She has published in leading pediatric journals including the Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing and Journal of Pediatric Nursing. Additionally, she is the Co-Advisor to the Student Nurses’ Association.

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