Maria C. Katapodi
Maria C. Katapodi, PhD, MSc
University of Michigan School of Nursing
400 North Ingalls Building
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5482
Scholarly Expertise / Activity
Interests:
- Genetic testing for hereditary cancer
- Decision making
- Family communication
- Perceived risk
- Meta-analysis methodology
Dr. Katapodi’s current research goal is to develop a family communication and decision-support intervention for women and their at-risk relatives that facilitates 1) family communication about hereditary breast/ovarian cancer risk and genetic test results; and 2) informed decision-making about the uptake of genetic testing for BRCA1/2 genes among members of families that harbor a deleterious mutation. More long-term, her career goal is to establish a program of research that 1) integrates genomics, decision-making, and family research; 2) facilitates the integration of genomic knowledge into clinical nursing practice; and 3) contributes to the amelioration of healthcare disparities created by unequal access to and use of genomic information.
Ultimately, Dr. Katapodi aspires to use her program of research to transform academic nursing education and to increase the visibility and impact of the nursing profession.
Current Research Grants and Programs:
- “Development of a Family Communication and Decision-support Intervention for Women that Carry a BRCA1 or a BRCA2 Mutation and Their At-Risk Family Members,” Role: PI, Funding Agent: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation – Nurse Faculty Scholars Program
Teaching
Building on her own areas of expertise, Dr. Katapodi is committed to advancing nurses' academic preparation in the field of genetics and decision-making. Since her appointment as an assistant professor at the UM School of Nursing, Dr. Katapodi has taught courses across all levels. Within each course she teaches, she brings students’ attention to the latest advances in genomics and how these advances might inform their future nursing practice. Dr. Katapodi has designed and taught courses that focus specifically on the incorporation of genomics research in nursing, healthcare decision-making, and meta-analysis.
Overall, Dr. Katapodi believes in setting high academic standards and providing a challenging, yet nurturing, academic environment in which students learn and eventually thrive. In her courses, she seeks to help students strengthen their critical thinking skills and learn how to monitor their own educational experience.
Affiliations / Service
- Member, Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Michigan 2007-present
- Member, Oncology Nursing Society, 1999-present
- Member, Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, 2000-present
- Member, Oncology Nursing Forum, Review Board, 2008-present
- Member, Society for Medical Decision Making, 2006-present
Notable Awards / Honors
- Award, Fulbright Foundation, 1998
- Fellow, University of California Regents, 2001
- Elizabeth Crosby Research Award, ADVANCE Program, University of Michigan, 2008
- Excellence in Writing Award for Quantitative Nursing Research, Oncology Nursing Society, 2010
- Fellow, National Institute of Nursing Research - Summer Genetics Institute, 2010
Education
- PhD - Oncology Genetics minor, University of California San Francisco (UCSF), San Francisco, CA, 2004
- MSc - Adult Education minor, University of California San Francisco (UCSF) , San Francisco, CA, 2000
- BSN, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece, 1998
Publication Highlights
- Northouse LL, Katapodi MC, Song L, Zhang L, Mood DW. (In Press). Interventions with family caregivers of cancer patients: A meta-analysis of randomized trials. CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.
- Katapodi MC, Pierce PF, Facione NC. (2010). "Distrust, predisposition to use health services and breast cancer screening: results from a multicultural community-based survey." International Journal of Nursing Studies, 47(8):975-83.
- Katapodi, MC, Dodd, MJ, Facione, NC, Lee, KA, Humphreys, JC. (2010). Why some women have an optimistic or a pessimistic bias about their breast cancer risk? Experiences, heuristics, and knowledge of risk factors. Cancer Nursing, 33(1), 64 -73.
- Katapodi, MC, Dodd, MJ, Lee, KA, Facione, NC. (2009). Underestimation of breast cancer risk: Influence on screening behavior. Oncology Nursing Forum, 36(3), 306 - 314.
- Belkora, JK, Katapodi, MC, Moore, D, Franklin, L, Hopper, K, Esserman, L. (2006). Field evaluation of a visit preparation intervention implemented in two rural underserved counties of Northern California. Patient Education and Counseling 64(1-3), 350 - 359.
- Lavdaniti, M, Patiraki, E, Dafni, U, Katapodi, MC, Papathanasoglou, E, Sotiropoulou, A. (2006). Prospective assessment of fatigue and health status in Greek breast cancer patients undergoing adjuvant radiotherapy. Oncology Nursing Forum, 33(3), 603 – 610.
- Oka, RK, Katapodi, MC, Lim, JW, Bacchetti, P, Sivarajan Froelicher, E. (2006). Quantifying smoking cessation outcomes for the Women’s Initiative for Nonsmoking: Methodological implications. Nursing Research, 55(4), 292 – 297.
- Katapodi, MC, & Aouizerat, BA. (2005). Do women in the community recognize hereditary and sporadic breast cancer risk factors? Oncology Nursing Forum, 32(3), 617 - 623.
- Katapodi, MC, Facione, NC, Humphreys, JC & Dodd, MJ. (2005). Perceived breast cancer risk: Heuristic reasoning and search for a dominance structure. Social Science and Medicine, 60(2), 421 - 432.
- Katapodi, MC, Lee, KA, Facione, NC, & Dodd, MJ. (2004). Predictors of perceived breast cancer risk and the relation between perceived risk and breast cancer screening: A meta-analytic review. Preventive Medicine, 38(4), 388 – 402.
- Katapodi, MC, Facione, NC, Miaskowski, C, Dodd, M, & Waters, C. (2002). The influence of social support on breast cancer screening in a multicultural community sample. Oncology Nursing Forum, 29(5), 847-852.
- Facione, NC, & Katapodi, MC. (2000). Culture as an influence on breast cancer screening and early detection. Seminars in Oncology Nursing, 16(3), 238-247.