Associate Professor, Undergraduate Simulation Coordinator
University of Central Florida
Dr.Diaz is an Associate Professor at the University of Central Florida College of Nursing and has been a nurse educator for the past 18 years. She is an ANCC Board Certified Medical-Surgical Nurse, Certified Nurse Educator, and a Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator - Advanced. She completed her PhD in Nursing with a focus on simulation and Limited English Proficient Patients and subsequently completed a post-doctoral degree under Pamela Jeffries at Johns Hopkins. She is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing and American Nursing Education. Her interest is in and investigating simulation best practices as a mode of education to decrease healthcare disparities with vulnerable populations. Current research activities include creating different types of simulation-based education such as virtual and augmented reality, improving missed care via simulation, and improvement of healthcare access via simulated modalities. Dr.Diaz remains active in advanced nursing practice in the primary care setting to assure clinical relevance in her work. Cultural awareness and linguistically competent care are hallmarks of my teaching, scholarship, and practice.