About
Dr. van Servellen is a Professor Emerita with the School of Nursing at UCLA. She received her BS and MS in Nursing from the University of California, San Francisco and PhD in Education from Stanford University. Prior to working at the SON, Dr. van Servellen was a Clinical Nurse V and the Director of Nursing Research and Program Evaluation at the University of California, Neuropsychiatric Institute, Los Angeles, California. She joined the faculty at the SON in 1980 and retired in 2007. She served as Section Chair during her tenure with the SON. After retiring she worked as Interim Associate Dean for Research and Extramural Affairs at the University of Colorado Health Science Center, College of Nursing, Denver, Colorado and on the faculty at the University of California, Irvine, Department of Nursing Science, Irvine, California. Dr. van Servellen’s clinical expertise is in Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing; her research is both broad and specific and includes treatment adherence, mood disorders, symptom management, quality of life, patient safety and quality care, continuity and coordinated patient care and health promotion. She is passionate about the need to rebuild healthcare to meet the needs of all communities. She continues to be an active educator, consultant and author both domestically and internationally. She is a reviewer for numerous peer-reviewed professional journals and has authored or co-authored numerous journal publications and 7 books, one of which, Communication Skills for the Health Professional: Concepts, Practice and Evidence is entering its third edition.