Lisa Blair PhD, RN PhD, RN (hn2844)

• Kristin Ashford, PhD, WHNP-BC, FAAN
• Ilhem Messaoudi Powers, PhD
• Marvin Solberg, PhD, RN

• Pregnant persons
• Infants
• Children
• Marginalized populations, including racial and ethnic minority persons, sexual and gender minority persons, and those dwelling in rural and urban communities who face geography-based disparities in health.

364 Cohn, 5557 Cass Ave., Detroit, MI 48202

Dr. Blair’s clinical background as a neonatal intensive care nurse specialist and her keen research interests in improving the development of health across the lifespan have informed the two overarching themes of her program of research: 1) elucidating and intervening in maternal-child health disparities in preterm birth, low birthweight, and prenatal substance use, and 2) uncovering the scope and impact of health disparities across marginalized populations.

Adversity in the prenatal and early childhood period set children up for lifelong disparities in health, development, and wellbeing by altering:

• Biological foundations for childhood development and adult health (e.g., metabolic processes, epigenetic modification)
• Behavioral determinants (e.g., substance use, exercise)
• Social determinants of health (e.g., education attainment, income potential, experience of discrimination)

Dr. Blair’s research into maternal-child health examines the combined contributions of genetic, behavioral, and social determinants of health to pregnancy outcomes and child development in the context of preterm birth, low birthweight, and prenatal exposures to substances of abuse potential including tobacco, cannabis, and opioids. Prior research included contribution to studies on the relationship between smoke-free tobacco policy and preterm birth, tobacco cessation among women in residential treatment for substance use disorder, and the contribution of tobacco use to immune dysregulation in pregnancy. Ongoing research examines outcomes and drivers of cannabis and tobacco use by pregnant persons.

In addition, Dr. Blair uses her advanced quantitative research methods training and population-representative datasets such as the National Survey on Children’s Health (NSCH), Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH), National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), and Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study to examine health disparities in marginalized populations across the lifespan, particularly as they relate to substance use. Past and ongoing studies have examined neighborhood factors that contribute to geographic disparities in developmental delay, treatment gaps in college students experiencing substance use disorder, the contribution of age of initiation of tobacco and cannabis use to regional disparities in addiction, and disparate health outcomes and substance use disorders among sexual and gender minority adults.

Tuesdays, 3-5 p.m., and by appointment

Dr. Blair's clinical background is as a neonatal intensive care nurse specialist, primarily working with critically and chronically ill infants and those experiencing neonatal abstinence syndromes. Her research centers on infant and child cognitive, socioemotional and behavioral development after perinatal complications, including preterm birth, low birth weight, and prenatal exposure to substances with abuse potential (e.g., tobacco, opioids, and cannabis). She is an affiliate of the Perinatal Research and Wellness Center at the University of Kentucky.

• Postdoctoral training in perinatal substance use and research training in drug abuse behaviors, University of Kentucky, 2022
• Postdoctoral training in data science and pediatrics research, University of Virginia, 2019
• PhD in nursing with interdisciplinary specialization in quantitative research methods, Ohio State University, 2018
• BSN, 2013, Ohio University
• ADN, 2006, Sinclair College

• Child developmental outcomes after perinatal complications
• Child development after prenatal exposure to substances of abuse potential
• Perinatal substance use and substance use disorders among childbearing persons
• Health disparities in birth and child outcomes among vulnerable and marginalized populations
• Genetic and epigenetic mechanisms supporting (or impairing) child development
• Adverse childhood events and environments

• Neonatal intensive care
• Neonatal abstinence syndromes
• Substance use disorder in pregnant persons
• Child development

• Ashford, K. B., Blair, L. M., McCubbin, A. K., Wiggins, A., T., Rayens, M. K., Hahn, E. J. (In Press). Municipal smoke-free laws and preterm birth. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
• Blair, L. M., Ickes, M., McCubbin, A., & Ashford, K. (In Press 2022). The PATH to initiation of nicotine and cannabis use and co-use in emerging adults. Public Health Nursing.
• Blair, L. M., Peregoy, L., Koshansky, L., Seegal, H., Vergales, J., & Keim-Malpass, J. (2022). Acceptability of an interstage home monitoring mobile application for families of children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome: Towards technology-integrated family management. Journal of Specialists in Pediatric Nursing.
• Blair, L. M., Ashford, K., Gentry, L., Bell, S., & Fallin-Bennett, A. (2021). Care experiences of perinatal women with opioid use disorder. Journal of Perinatal and Neonatal Nursing, 35(4):320-329. doi: 10.1097/JPN.0000000000000597.
• Ashford, K., McCubbin, A., Barnett, J., Blair, L. M., Lei, F., Bush, H., & Breland, A., (2021). Examination of prenatal tobacco switching behaviors and birth outcomes, including electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) and dual use. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 25(8):1175-1181. doi: 10.1007/s10995-021-03161-z.
• Fallin-Bennett, A., Lofwall, M. R., Waters, T., Nuzzo, P., Barnett, J., McCubbin, A., Chavan, N., Blair, L. M., & Ashford, K. (2020). Behavioral and Enhanced Perinatal Intervention (B-EPIC): A randomized trial targeting tobacco use among opioid dependent pregnant women. Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications.
• Blair, L. M., Ford, J. L., Gugiu, P. C., Pickler, R. H., Munro, C. L., & Anderson, C. M. (2020). Prediction of cognitive ability with social determinants in children of low birthweight. Nursing Research.
• Blair, L. M., Pickler, R. H., Gugiu, P. C., Ford, J. L., Munro, C., & Anderson, C. M. (2020). Genetic risk factors for poor cognitive development in children with low birthweight. Biological Research for Nursing. doi: 10.1177/1099800419869507
• Blair, L. M., & Ford, J. L. (2020). Neighborhood context and the risk for developmental disorder in early childhood. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 1-7. doi: 10.1007/s10995-019-02757-w
• Bates, R. L., Blair, L. M., McGovern, C. M., Schlegel, E. C., Nist, M. D., Sealschott, S., & Arcoleo, K. (2018). Nursing Across the Lifespan: Implications of Lifecourse Theory for Nursing Research. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 32(1), 92-97. doi: 10.1016/j.pedhc.2017.07.006
• Christian, L. M., Blair, L. M, Porter, K., Lower, M., Cole, R. & Belury, M. (2016). Polyunsaturated fatty acid status in pregnant women: Associations with inflammation, sleep quality, and length of gestation. PLoS One, 11(2). doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0148752
• Blair, L. M., Pickler, R. H., & Anderson, C. M. (2016). Integrative review of genetic factors influencing neurodevelopmental outcomes in preterm infants. Biological Research for Nursing, 18(2):127-37. doi: 10.1177/1099800415605379
• Blair, L. M. (2016). Publicly-available data and pediatric mental health: Leveraging big data to answer big questions for children. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 30(1): 84-87. doi: 10.1016/j.pedhc.2015.08.001
• Blair, L. M., Porter, K., Leblebicioglu, B., & Christian, L. (2015). Poor sleep quality and associated inflammation predict preterm birth: Heightened risk among African Americans. Sleep, 38(8), 1259-1267. doi: 10.5665/sleep.4904

• National Institutes of Minority Health and Health Disparities 2019 Health Disparities Research Institute Scholar and Intramural Research Training Award
• National Institutes of Nursing Research 2016 Summer Genetics Institute Scholar and Intramural Research Training Award
• Inducted as a Nurse Leader at the Sigma Theta Tau International 43rd Biennial Convention, 2015
• National Institute of Nursing Research 30th Anniversary Symposium Poster Award Winner in the Pre/Post-Doctoral Investigator Category, 2015

• Blair, L. M. (Co-PI) – Perinatal Cannabis: Policy Implications, Use Patterns, and Perceptions. Kristin Ashford (Co-PI). University of Kentucky Cannabis Center. $100,000 (June 2023 – May 2024)
• Blair, L. M. (Co-PI) – Perinatal Cannabis Extension: Epigenetics. Kristin Ashford (Co-PI). Kristin Ashford (Co-PI) & Ilhem Messaoudi Powers (Co-I). University of Kentucky Cannabis Center. $45,000 (March 2024 – Nov 2024)
• Blair, L. M. (PI) – Perinatal Cannabis Perceptions in the General Population. Startup funding.

 Collaborator

 Collaborator