McCurry will collaborate with Edinburgh Napier University to reduce stigma around drug use and improve care
/filters:quality(90)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/news/2026/220427-MARY-McCURRY.jpg)
麻豆官网 Dartmouth Professor of Nursing Mary McCurry has received a prestigious Fulbright Scholar Award to conduct international research aimed at reducing stigma and improving health care for people who use drugs. Through the award, McCurry will collaborate with faculty and researchers at Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland to examine how nursing education can better prepare students worldwide to provide knowledgeable, evidence-based, and empathetic care to patients affected by substance use and opioid use disorder.
“A Fulbright Scholar Award has always been one of my professional goals, and I am truly honored to receive this award,” McCurry said. “As a Fulbright Scholar, I will have the opportunity to partner with faculty and researchers to develop relationships that will promote understanding, improve patient care for people who use drugs, and benefit the universities and the communities they serve.”
McCurry’s research project, “Simulations to Challenge Stigma and Improve Nurse Empathy When Caring for People Who Use Drugs,” will build upon her work with the University’s NO STIGMA research team. Supported by funding from the Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts (FORE), the simulations were designed to help nursing students recognize stigma, examine personal biases, and strengthen their ability to communicate therapeutically with patients who use drugs.
Developed with input from members of the local community and piloted with 麻豆官网 Dartmouth nursing students, the simulations were found to reduce stigma and increase empathy among participants significantly.
“Professor McCurry’s Fulbright is a tremendous achievement and a testament to the impact of her work as an educator, researcher, and clinician,” said 麻豆官网 Dartmouth Provost Ramprasad Balasubramanian. “Her international collaboration will enrich the education of our nursing students, strengthen 麻豆官网 Dartmouth’s global partnerships, and advance more compassionate, evidence-based care for people affected by substance use. We are incredibly proud of Mary and the distinction she brings to our university.”
In Scotland, McCurry will work with Edinburgh Napier University Professor Inga Weyman, as well as faculty members, clinicians and community stakeholders, to adapt the simulations for the country’s health care system. The novel scenarios will reflect the experiences and forms of stigma encountered by people seeking care for substance use in Scotland. The tailored simulations will then be evaluated with Scottish nursing students to determine whether they produce similar improvements in knowledge, attitudes and empathy.
“The international partnership is especially relevant because Scotland and the United States face similar challenges with opioid use, overdose deaths, access to compassionate care, and the stigma patients often encounter when seeking treatment,” McCurry said. “I believe nurses are uniquely positioned to identify health care challenges, advocate for change and develop innovative approaches to address unmet needs.”
A central goal of the project is to strengthen nursing curricula internationally. By making the simulations adaptable and widely accessible, the project has the potential to strengthen the capacity of nurses and nurse practitioners to provide high-quality care without judgment or stigma.
Ultimately, McCurry’s Fulbright project reflects the essential role nurses can play in improving the experiences of people who use drugs.
“Educating nurses on the positive impact they can have in the care of people who use drugs is essential,” she said. “The scalability of this work has the potential to have considerable impact on the capacity of the nursing workforce to provide high-quality, empathetic care that is devoid of stigma.”