Susan A. Wintermeyer-Pingel, RN, MS, ACNS-BC
University of Michigan School of Nursing
400 North Ingalls Building
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5482
Interests
- Hematology/Oncology Nursing
- Grief, Loss and Bereavement
- Professional Grief and Loss
Ms. Wintermeyer-Pingel's nursing career has been focused on the care of patients and families who are coping with life- threatening hematologic/oncologic illnesses. She has worked as a Gynecology Oncology Nurse Practitioner providing care for patients receiving chemotherapy and for those requiring symptom management. She is certified as an Adult Health Clinical Nurse Specialist . She has worked in various inpatient and ambulatory care units at Michigan Medicine including adult bone marrow transplant, adult surgery, gynecology /oncology, hematology/oncology, and in areas providing patient and family support services to cancer patients and their loved ones. Ms. Wintermeyer-Pingel has developed and implemented bereavement support programs including the Coping Through Tronsisions Grief and Loss Program at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center that provides grief support and resources to those facing loss secondary to cancer including patients, their families, and professional staff. Ms. Wintermeyer -Pingel has worked with quality Initiatives and has applied LEAN thinking to bone marrow transplant patient discharge education. She also has experience tracking Nursing Quality lndictors following fall rates, pressure injuries, pain reassessment and infect ion rates such as central line associated bloodstream infections (CLABSls).
Teaching
Ms. Wintermeyer-Pingel has been a clinical instructor for junior nursing students, senior leadership students, and graduate nurse practitioner students at the University of Michigan. She has led educational initiatives for inpatient nursing staff providing patient population specific education and ongoing CEU based education. She has coordinated and lectured in the institution's Hematology/Oncology Nursing Core Class and participated in providing nursing education in the institution's Nursing Chemotherapy Class, providing lectures and hands on skills lab content. She has presented many institutional and national presentations and papers related to caring for hematology oncology patients and their families. Her particular area of interest is caring for patients and their loved ones who are experiencing grief, loss and bereavement secondary to cancer; and in supporting nurses who are dealing with professional loss and compassion fatigue.
Affiliations / Service
- Member, Association of Death Education and Counseling, (2001 - 2014)
- Member, National Oncology Nursing Society, (1986 to 2000, 2013 - present)
- Member, Local Chapter Oncology Nursing Society, (1989–1990, 2013 - present)
- Member, American Nurses' Association, (1985–2000, 2013-Present)
- Member, Sigma Theta Tau International, Honor Society of Nursing, (1990)
Notable Awards / Honors
- Michigan Medicine Quality Program recognition – Top five poster, Bone Marrow Transplant Patient Discharge Education, Michigan Medicine, 2016.
- Michigan Medicine FRIENDS Grant. Awarded a FRIENDS Grant to develop the Life Images of Today & Tomorrow photography program for adult cancer patients and their families, The University of Michigan Health System, 2012.
- The ACE Project. Accepted to participate in the Advocating for Clinical Excellence: Transdisciplinary Palliative Care Education program, supported by an NCI grant from the NIH, 2008 and 2010.
- FIGS Grant, awarded to develop the Staff Replenishment Kit: Renew. Restore. Replenish. UMCCC PsychOncology Program and Cancer Center Grief and Loss Program. The University of Michigan Health System, 2007.
- Partners in Health, award for UM Grief and Loss Program – Ford Motor Company, 2003.
- Scholarships received - Oncology Nurse Foundation Graduate Scholarship, 1989; American Cancer Society Masters in Cancer Nursing Scholarship, 1989; Oncology Nursing Foundation Graduate Scholarship, 1989.
Education
- Postgraduate Program for Acute Care Nurse Practitioner, University of Michigan, Rackham Graduate School – School of Nursing, Ann Arbor, MI 1996.
- MS, Master of Science Degree in Medical – Surgical Nursing, University of Michigan, Rackham Graduate School, Ann Arbor, MI 1990.
- BSN, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor MI 1984.
Publication Highlights
Wintermeyer-Pingel, S.A., Murphy, D., Hammelef, K.J. (2013). Improving a Grief and Loss Program: Caring for Patients, Families, and Staff. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying. 67(1-2), 233-239. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2190/OM.67.1-2.z3.
Wintermeyer-Pingel, S.A., and Colturi, D.L. Coping through transitions: Guide for the bereaved family, (1993, 1998, 2008) and A Bereavement assistance program guide for healthcare professionals, (1993). The University of Michigan Health System.
Wintermeyer-Pingel, S.A., Reynolds, R.K., Dyer, S., Therrian, T., Ballard, A. (1999). Gynecology Oncology Patient Handbook. The University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Coffee R.J., Richards, J.S., Wintermeyer-Pingel, S.A., and LeRoy, S.S. (1996). Critical Paths – Linking outcomes for patients, clinicians, and payers. In P.R. Koingstvedt (ed): The Managed Health Care Handbook, 3rd ed. Gaithersburg: Aspen Publishers, 301-317.
Richards S.J., Kocan, M.J., Monaghan, H., Wintermeyer-Pingel, S.A., and Goldman, E.B. (1994). Clinical paths and patient care documentation. In Spath, P.L. (ed): Clinical Paths –Tools for Outcomes Management. AHA Publishing, Inc. USA, 33-44.
Werkema, C.M. and Wintermeyer-Pingel, S.A. (1990). Social support and the quality of life of significant others of cancer patients: A Qualitative study. University of Michigan School of Nursing Master’s Thesis.
