Sean Clarke

Faculty

Sean Clarke Headshot

Sean Clarke

PhD RN FAAN

Ursula Springer Professor in Nursing Leadership

1 212 998 5264

433 First Ave
New York, NY 10010
United States

Sean Clarke, PhD, RN, FAAN is the Ursula Springer Professor in Nursing Leadership at the NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing. He is a nursing health services researcher with interests in quality and safety of nursing care, nurse workforce issues, management of nursing services, as well as questions related to health systems changes and their impacts on the nursing profession. He has taught nursing leadership and professional issues, health policy, research, and clinical science courses in universities in the United States, Canada, and beyond. He currently the Editor-in-Chief of Nursing Outlook, the official journal of the American Academy of Nursing and serves on a number of editorial boards and grant review panels.

Prof. Clarke is currently co-principal investigator of Towards Magnet 3.0, a multimethod evaluation study of the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Magnet Recognition Program, and principal investigator of the evaluation of the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation’s $51 million 5- year Nursing Initiative that is supporting workforce strategies in 13 hospitals caring for vulnerable populations in New York State.

Prior to joining the faculty at NYU Meyers, Clarke was a tenured faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Toronto, and McGill University and held endowed chairs and codirected and directed research centers and other initiatives at those institutions before serving as Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs at Boston College’s Connell School of Nursing from 2014 to 2018. He served as Executive Vice Dean at NYU Meyers from 2019 to 2024.

Among his many honors, Clarke was named a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing in 2006. He has held visiting and honorary appointments at universities around the world, and in 2025 received the Academy’s Civitas Award, which recognizes extraordinary dedication to excellence in promoting quality care.

Post-MS certificate, Adult Critical Care Nurse Practitioner, University of Pennsylvania
PhD, Nursing, McGill University
MSc(A), Nursing, McGill University
BA, Psychology, Carleton University
BSc, Biochemistry-Nutrition, University of Ottawa

Acute Care
Adult Health
Health Services Research
Health Outcomes
Health Policy
Nursing Leadership
Nursing Professional Issues
Nurse Occupational Health
Nursing workforce

American Nurses Association
American Academy of Nursing
Sigma Theta Tau International

Civitas Award, American Academy of Nursing (2025)
Creative Teaching Award, Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing, University of Toronto (2011)
Dean’s Award for Undergraduate Teaching, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (2007)
Class of 1965 25th Reunion Term Chair, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing [for enduring contributions to undergraduate education] (2006)
Fellow, American Academy of Nursing (2006)
Junior Faculty Research Award, Biobehavioral and Health Sciences Division School of Nursing, University of Pennsylvania (2006)
Article of the Year, Academy Health [Academy for Health Services Research and Health Policy] for Aiken, Clarke et al., JAMA, October 23/30, 2002 (2003)
American Academy of Nursing Media Award for coverage of Aiken, Clarke et al., JAMA, October 23/30, 2002 (2003)
American Academy of Nursing Media Award for coverage of Aiken, Clarke, et al. Health Affairs, 2001 (2002)
Induction into Sigma Theta Tau, Xi Chapter (1999)

Interview mit Sean Clarke. "In erster Linie eine Frage des Respekts".

Clarke, S. (2003). In Krankenpflege. Soins infirmiers (Vols. 96, Issues 8).
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Nursing Burnout and Patient Safety [3] (multiple letters)

Davis, D., Hand, E. E., Kovner, C. T., Needleman, J., Aiken, L. H., Clarke, S., Sloane, D. M., Sochalski, J., & Silber, J. H. (2003). In Journal of the American Medical Association (Vols. 289, Issues 5, pp. 549-551). 10.1001/jama.289.5.549-a
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Registered Nurse Staffing and Patient and Nurse Outcomes in Hospitals : A Commentary

Clarke, S., & Aiken, L. H. (2003). In Policy, Politics, & Nursing Practice (Vols. 4, Issues 2, pp. 104-111). 10.1177/1527154403004002002
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The authors’ research group published a major article in October 2002 showing a strong effect of nurse staffing on both patient outcomes and factors related to nurse turnover in 168 Pennsylvania hospitals. This article reviews major design elements and findings of the study and discusses policy implications of this research. Even though evidence is mounting that hospital staffing is a public health issue, regulation of staffing levels remains controversial. Higher quality staffing data that incorporate information about patients’ needs for nursing care are required for better administrative decision-making and research purposes. That the current nurse shortage is occurring in an era of renewed concerns about safety in hospitals offers unique opportunities for developing public policy to remedy problems with staffing and other long-standing workplace environment issues in hospital nursing.

Effects of hospital staffing and organizational climate on needlestick injuries to nurses

Clarke, S., Sloane, D. M., & Aiken, L. H. (2002). In American journal of public health (Vols. 92, Issues 7, pp. 1115-1119). 10.2105/AJPH.92.7.1115
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Objectives. This study determined the effects of nurse staffing and nursing organization on the likelihood of needlestick injuries in hospital nurses, Methods. We analyzed retrospective data from 732 and prospective data from 960 nurses on needlestick exposures and near misses over different 1-month periods in 1990 and 1991. Staffing levels and survey data about working climate and risk factors for needlestick injuries were collected on 40 units in 20 hospitals. Results. Nurses from units with low staffing and poor organizational climates were generally twice as likely as nurses on well-staffed and better-organized units to report risk factors, needlestick injuries, and near misses. Conclusions. Staffing and organizational climate influence hospital nurses' likelihood of sustaining needlestick injuries. Remedying problems with understaffing, inadequate administrative support, and poor morale could reduce needlestick injuries.

Hospital nurse staffing and patient mortality, nurse burnout, and job dissatisfaction

Aiken, L. H., Clarke, S., Sloane, D. M., Sochalski, J., & Silber, J. H. (2002). In Journal of the American Medical Association (Vols. 288, Issues 16, pp. 1987-1993). 10.1001/jama.288.16.1987
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Context The worsening hospital nurse shortage and recent California legislation mandating minimum hospital patient-to-nurse ratios demand an understanding of how nurse staffing levels affect patient outcomes and nurse retention in hospital practice. Objective To determine the association between the patient-to-nurse ratio and patient mortality, failure-to-rescue (deaths following complications) among surgical patients, and factors related to nurse retention. Design, Setting, and Participants Cross-sectional analyses of linked data from 10184 staff nurses surveyed, 232342 general, orthopedic, and vascular surgery patients discharged from the hospital between April 1, 1998, and November 30, 1999, and administrative data from 168 nonfederal adult general hospitals in Pennsylvania. Main Outcome Measures Risk-adjusted patient mortality and failure-to-rescue within 30 days of admission, and nurse-reported job dissatisfaction and job-related burnout. Results After adjusting for patient and hospital characteristics (size, teaching status, and technology), each additional patient per nurse was associated with a 7% (odds ratio [OR], 1.07; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03-1.12) increase in the likelihood of dying within 30 days of admission and a 7% (OR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.02-1.11) increase in the odds of failure-to-rescue. After adjusting for nurse and hospital characteristics, each additional patient per nurse was associated with a 23% (OR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.13-1.34) increase in the odds of burnout and a 15% (OR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.07-1.25) increase in the odds of job dissatisfaction. Conclusions In hospitals with high patient-to-nurse ratios, surgical patients experience higher risk-adjusted 30-day mortality and failure-to-rescue rates, and nurses are more likely to experience burnout and job dissatisfaction.

Hospital staffing, organization, and quality of care : Cross-national findings

Aiken, L. H., Clarke, S., & Sloane, D. M. (2002). In International Journal for Quality in Health Care (Vols. 14, Issue 1, pp. 5-13). 10.1093/intqhc/14.1.5
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Objective. To examine the effects of nurse staffing and organizational support for nursing care on nurses' dissatisfaction with their jobs, nurse burnout, and nurse reports of quality of patient care in an international sample of hospitals. Design. Multisite cross-sectional survey. Setting. Adult acute-care hospitals in the United States (Pennsylvania), Canada (Ontario and British Columbia), England, and Scotland. Study participants. 10 319 nurses working on medical and surgical units in 303 hospitals across the five jurisdictions. Interventions. None. Main outcome measures. Nurse job dissatisfaction, burnout, and nurse-rated quality of care. Results. Dissatisfaction, burnout, and concerns about quality of care were common among hospital nurses in all five sites. Organizational/managerial support for nursing had a pronounced effect on nurse dissatisfaction and burnout, and both organizational support for nursing and nurse staffing were directly, and independently, related to nurse-assessed quality of care. Multivariate results imply that nurse reports of low quality care were three times as likely in hospitals with low staffing and support for nurses as in hospitals with high staffing and support. Conclusion. Adequate nurse staffing and organizational/managerial support for nursing are key to improving the quality of patient care, to diminishing nurse job dissatisfaction and burnout and, ultimately, to improving the nurse retention problem in hospital settings.

Hospital staffing, organization, and quality of care : Cross-national findings

Aiken, L. H., Clarke, S., & Sloane, D. M. (2002). In Nursing outlook (Vols. 50, Issues 5, pp. 187-194). 10.1067/mno.2002.126696
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OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of nurse staffing and organizational support for nursing care on nurses' dissatisfaction with their jobs, nurse burnout, and nurse reports of quality of patient care in an international sample of hospitals. DESIGN: Multisite cross-sectional survey SETTING: Adult acute-care hospitals in the U.S. (Pennsylvania), Canada (Ontario and British Columbia), England and Scotland. Study Participants: 10319 nurses working on medical and surgical units in 303 hospitals across the five jurisdictions. INTERVENTIONS: None Main outcome measures: Nurse job dissatisfaction, burnout, and nurse-rated quality of care. RESULTS: Dissatisfaction, burnout and concerns about quality of care were common among hospital nurses in all five sites. Organizational/managerial support for nursing had a pronounced effect on nurse dissatisfaction and burnout, and both organizational support for nursing and nurse staffing were directly, and independently, related to nurse-assessed quality of care. Multivariate results imply that nurse reports of low quality care were three times as likely in hospitals with low staffing and support for nurses as in hospitals with high staffing and support. CONCLUSION: Adequate nurse staffing and organizational/managerial support for nursing are key to improving the quality of patient care, to diminishing nurse job dissatisfaction and burnout and, ultimately, to improving the nurse retention problem in hospital settings.

Needlestick injuries to nurses, in context.

Clarke, S., Sloane, D. M., & Aiken, L. H. (2002). In LDI issue brief (Vols. 8, Issue 1, pp. 1-4).
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Injuries with used needles and other "sharps" put health care workers at risk for serious bloodborne infections, such as HIV and hepatitis B and C. To some extent, this risk can be lessened through safer techniques (such as not recapping needles) and safer devices (such as needleless and self-sheathing equipment). But these injuries occur within a context (often a hospital unit) with organizational features that may themselves contribute to an increased or decreased risk. This Issue Brief summarizes a series of studies that investigate whether workplace aspects of the hospital (such as staffing levels, and organizational structure and climate) affect the risk of needlestick injuries to nurses.

Organizational climate, staffing, and safety equipment as predictors of needlestick injuries and near-misses in hospital nurses

Clarke, S., Rockett, J. L., Sloane, D. M., & Aiken, L. H. (2002). In American Journal of Infection Control (Vols. 30, Issues 4, pp. 207-216). 10.1067/mic.2002.123392
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Background: Recently passed federal legislation requires institutions to adopt safety equipment to prevent needlesticks, but there is little empirical evidence of the effectiveness of specific types of safety devices or the contribution of safety devices to reducing needlesticks relative to the contributions of staffing, organizational climate, and clinicians’ experience. Method: In 1998, 2287 medical-surgical unit nurses in 22 US hospitals were surveyed in regard to staffing and organizational climate in their hospitals and about patient and nurse outcomes, including needlestick injuries. Hospitals provided information about available protective devices at the time of the survey. Relationships between nurse and hospital characteristics and protective equipment and the likelihood of needlestick injuries and near-miss incidents were examined. Results: Poor organizational climate and high workloads were associated with 50% to 2-fold increases in the likelihood of needlestick injuries and near-misses to hospital nurses. Capless-valve secondary intravenous set systems and use of any type of protective equipment for IV starts or blood draws were associated with 20% to 30% lowered risks of both event types. Conclusions: Nurse staffing and organizational climate are key determinants of needlestick risk and must be considered with the adoption of safety equipment to effectively reduce sharps injuries.

Cause for concern : nurses' reports of hospital care in five countries.

Clarke, S., Aiken, L. H., Clarke, S. P., Sloane, D. M., & Sochalski, J. (2001). In LDI issue brief (Vols. 6, Issues 8, pp. 1-4).
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According to most experts, the U.S. faces a growing shortage of registered nurses, threatening the quality of care hospitals can provide. In the setting of nurse shortages and simultaneous concern about patient safety, nurses' job satisfaction and their assessment of quality of care become critical. This Issue Brief highlights a cross-national survey that describes nurses' perceptions of their hospital work environment, and identifies core problems in work design and workforce management in five countries.