Michele Crespo-Fierro

Faculty

Michele Crespo Fierro headshot

Michele Crespo-Fierro

PhD RN

Clinical Associate Professor
Director, LEAD Honors Program

1 212 992 7114

Michele Crespo-Fierro's additional information

Michele Crespo-Fierro (she/ella), PhD, MPH, RN, AACRN, CNE, FAAN, fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine, is a clinical associate professor and the director of the LEAD Honors Program at NYU Meyers College of Nursing. She is an expert educator focused on diversifying nursing to deliver culturally congruent, linguistically appropriate care to patients through the life cycle. Her work and publications emphasize the need for nurses to engage in leadership practices and build trust with individuals and communities to achieve health equity. 

Crespo-Fierro serves on NLN committees for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and is a Fellow of the AACN Diversity Leadership Institute. She is an Advanced AIDS Certified Registered Nurse, a Certified Nurse Educator, and a Fellow in the New York Academy of Medicine and the American Academy of Nurses. She serves on the boards of the Catskill Hudson Area Health Education Center, Nursing Education Funds, the Greater New York chapter of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care and the New York chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses. 

Crespo-Fierro earned her BS in nursing at NYU Meyers and her MS in community health nursing and MPH in community health education, with a subspecialty in HIV/AIDS nursing, at the Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing, at Hunter College, City University of New York. She completed a PhD at the Graduate Center, City University of New York.  Her dissertation explored the culture care needs of Puerto Rican women receiving HIV care from nurse practitioners in New York City, with the intention of bridging culturally congruent caring and patient engagement practices. 

PhD - Graduate Center, City University of New York (2018)
MS/MPH - Hunter College, City University of New York (1996)
BS - NYU College of Nursing (1990)

Community/population health
HIV/AIDS
Transcultural care

American Academy of Nursing
American Nurses Association-NY
Association of Nurses in AIDS Care
American Public Health Association
National Association of Hispanic Nurses
Sigma Theta Tau - Upsilon chapter
Transcultural Nursing Society

Faculty Honors Awards

Fellow, American Academy of Nursing (2023)
Fellow, AACN Diversity Leadership Institute (2022)
LEAD Institute, National League of Nursing (2020)
Nurse of the Year, National Association of Hispanic Nurses (2019)
Nurse Fellow, New York Academy of Medicine (2019)
Nurse of the Year, National Association of Hispanic Nurses-New York (2018)
Doctoral Students Research Grant Program Competition #7, City University of New York, Graduate Center (2012)
Summer Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College, City University of New York (2012)
National Hispanic Health Student Scholarship, National Hispanic Health Foundation (2011)
Second Place Education Poster Presentation, 35th Annual National Association of Hispanic Nurses Conference (2010)
Dean's Award, NYU College of Nursing (2009)
JANAC Outstanding Clinical Article of the Year, JANAC and Sage Publications, Inc. (1998)
The Dorothy White Leadership Award, Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing (1996)
Nurse Excellence Award, Visiting Nurse Service of New York (1995)
Founders Day Award, NYU (1990)
National Hispanic Merit Scholar (1986)
University Scholar, NYU (1986)

Publications

Ending the HIV Epidemic: Disrupting Inequities Through HIV Research Centered on Women and Girls

Bond, K. T., Chen, W. T., Crespo-Fierro, M., Randolph, S., & Ramos, S. R. (2024). Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, 35(3), 173-174. 10.1097/JNC.0000000000000475

The Benefits of a Diverse Nursing Workforce

Crespo-Fierro, M. (2023). American Journal of Nursing, 123(3), 17-18. 10.1097/01.NAJ.0000921780.57195.8a

Pandemic Adaptations to an Honors Program Inaugural Capstone Projects

Crespo-Fierro, M. (2022). Nursing Education Perspectives, 43(5), 323-324. 10.1097/01.NEP.0000000000001008
Abstract
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic and public health response of the US health care system and government provided unique opportunities for nursing education as it disrupted the usual mode of operation. An honors program at a private university at the epicenter of the pandemic pivoted multiple times to avoid failing to support the capstone projects of its inaugural cohort. Collaborative outreach with mentors and instructional technologists created opportunities for virtual delivery of patient and nursing student education and program evaluation. The lessons learned became part of the roster of resources for future cohorts to sustainably design and deliver their capstone projects.

Cafecitos Supporting Nurses in the Time of COVID-19: A Commentary From the NAHN-Westchester and NAHN–New York Chapters

Zavala, M., Crespo-Fierro, M., Ortiz, C., Montoya, M., Rojas, P., Gonzalez, S. C., & Gruber, D. I. (2021). Hispanic Health Care International, 19(4), 214-217. 10.1177/1540415321990622
Abstract
Abstract
Nurses have been called superheroes during this pandemic because of our compassion for our patients, but we need compassion, too. Through this state of emergency, quarantine, and isolation, the Cafecitos in the virtual world let us navigate this shared experience together.

Community alliance and empowerment: An interprofessional project in Puerto Rico

Rodriguez-Howell, D., & Crespo-Fierro, M. (2021). International Journal of Nursing & Health Care Science, 1(10).

Social Determinants of Health and COVID-19 Behaviors and Beliefs Toward Immunizations Among Latinxs

Cuellar, N. G., Cuellar, M. J., McDiarmid, A., Bautista, N., Crespo-Fierro, M., Infante, G., La Torre, D., Mautner, L., Perez, M., Perry, J., Pistolessi, I., Quintana, A., Rangel, P., & Valdez, S. (2021). Hispanic Health Care International, 19(4), 221-229. 10.1177/15404153211020425
Abstract
Abstract
Introduction: Sixty million Latinxs make up 26.4% of all COVID-19 cases in the United States. It is uncertain whether behaviors and beliefs of immunizations among Latinxs is influenced by social determinants of health. The purpose of this study was to examine how social determinants of health predict COVID-19 behaviors and beliefs toward immunization among Latinxs. Methods: In this exploratory study, 11 chapters from the National Association of Hispanic Nurses collaborated to recruit participants. The CDC National 2009 H1N1 Flu Survey was adapted to measure behaviors and beliefs about immunizations of COVID-19. The Health Access Survey was used to measure social determinants of health. Instruments were available in both Spanish and English. Results: Participants (n=228) with higher education and health insurance tended to have less worry about taking the vaccine. Access to resources and practicing COVID-19 protective factors was positively associated. Alternative medicine and use of COVID-19 protective factors were negatively associated. Exposure to drugs and violence was associated with a decrease in likelihood to pursue a vaccine. Conclusions: Latinx need education about COVID-19 and vaccinations. Access to health care services must be available. Results highlight the importance of careful measurement when assessing social determinants of health among Latinx.

Social Determinants of Health and COVID-19 Behaviors and Beliefs Toward Immunizations Among Latinxs.

Graciela-Cuellar, N., Cuellar, M. J., McDiarmid, A., Bautista, N., Crespo-Fierro, M., Infante, G., La Torre, D., Mautner, L., Perez, M., Perry, J., Pistolessi, I., Quintana, A., Rangel, P., & Valdez, S. (2021). Hispanic Health Care International : The Official Journal of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses, 19(4), 221-229. 10.1177/15404153211020425
Abstract
Abstract
Sixty million Latinxs make up 26.4% of all COVID-19 cases in the United States. It is uncertain whether behaviors and beliefs of immunizations among Latinxs is influenced by social determinants of health. The purpose of this study was to examine how social determinants of health predict COVID-19 behaviors and beliefs toward immunization among Latinxs.

Linguistic and cultural adaptation of a computer-based counseling program (CARE+ Spanish) to support HIV treatment adherence and risk reduction for people living with HIV/AIDS: A randomized controlled trial

Kurth, A. E., Chhun, N., Cleland, C. M., Crespo-Fierro, M., Parés-Avila, J. A., Lizcano, J. A., GNorman, R., Shedlin, M. G., Johnston, B. E., & Sharp, V. L. (2016). Journal of Medical Internet Research, 18(7). 10.2196/jmir.5830
Abstract
Abstract
Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease in the United States disproportionately affects minorities, including Latinos. Barriers including language are associated with lower antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence seen among Latinos, yet ART and interventions for clinic visit adherence are rarely developed or delivered in Spanish. Objective: The aim was to adapt a computer-based counseling tool, demonstrated to reduce HIV-1 viral load and sexual risk transmission in a population of English-speaking adults, for use during routine clinical visits for an HIV-positive Spanish-speaking population (CARE+ Spanish); the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was the theoretical framework guiding program development. Methods: A longitudinal randomized controlled trial was conducted from June 4, 2010 to March 29, 2012. Participants were recruited from a comprehensive HIV treatment center comprising three clinics in New York City. Eligibility criteria were (1) adults (age ≥18 years), (2) Latino birth or ancestry, (3) speaks Spanish (mono- or multilingual), and (4) on antiretrovirals. Linear and generalized mixed linear effects models were used to analyze primary outcomes, which included ART adherence, sexual transmission risk behaviors, and HIV-1 viral loads. Exit interviews were offered to purposively selected intervention participants to explore cultural acceptability of the tool among participants, and focus groups explored the acceptability and system efficiency issues among clinic providers, using the TAM framework. Results: A total of 494 Spanish-speaking HIV clinic attendees were enrolled and randomly assigned to the intervention (arm A: n=253) or risk assessment-only control (arm B, n=241) group and followed up at 3-month intervals for one year. Gender distribution was 296 (68.4%) male, 110 (25.4%) female, and 10 (2.3%) transgender. By study end, 433 of 494 (87.7%) participants were retained. Although intervention participants had reduced viral loads, increased ART adherence and decreased sexual transmission risk behaviors over time, these findings were not statistically significant. We also conducted 61 qualitative exit interviews with participants and two focus groups with a total of 16 providers. Conclusions: A computer-based counseling tool grounded in the TAM theoretical model and delivered in Spanish was acceptable and feasible to implement in a high-volume HIV clinic setting. It was able to provide evidence-based, linguistically appropriate ART adherence support without requiring additional staff time, bilingual status, or translation services. We found that language preferences and cultural acceptability of a computer-based counseling tool exist on a continuum in our urban Spanish-speaking population. Theoretical frameworks of technology's usefulness for behavioral modification need further exploration in other languages and cultures.

Supporting breast-feeding when a woman is homelessijnt_1170 103..107

Crespo-Fierro, M. (2011). International Journal of Nursing Terminologies and Classifications, 22(2), 103-107. 10.1111/j.1744-618X.2010.01170.x
Abstract
Abstract
PURPOSE. This case study demonstrates use of standardized nursing languages in he care of new mothers in community settings. DATA SOURCES. The author collected data from clinical practice as an instructor in a baccalaureate nursing program and from the research literature. DATA SYNTHESIS. The appropriate nursing diagnoses, outcomes, and interventions were identified in partnership with the new mother. CONCLUSIONS. This case shows that NANDA International (NANDA-I), the Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC), and the Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC) are useful to direct nursing care in community settings. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING. When teaching nursing students in a baccalaureate program, nurse faculty can use NANDA-I, NOC, and NIC classifications to guide the growing practice of nursing students in community settings.

The value of certification in HIV/AIDS nursing.

Reif, M., Berger, B., Crespo-Fierro, M., Mallinson, R. K., & Miller-Hardwick, C. (2004). The Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care : JANAC, 15(1), 60-64. 10.1177/1055329003261982