Samantha Bernstein

Samantha Bernstein, PhD, RN, serves as Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing at the MGH Institute for Health Professions (MGH IHP), where she teaches nursing of the childbearing family in accelerated BSN and direct-entry master's programs. Her research program centers on maternal morbidity and mortality through human factors engineering and patient safety frameworks, specifically examining systems-level factors affecting nurses during obstetric clinical deterioration events.

Her educational background spans multiple disciplines:

• BA in Anthropology, University of Colorado, Boulder
• BSN, Simmons College, Boston
• MA in American Studies, Fairfield University
• MSN, University of New Hampshire
• PhD in Nursing Science, Medical University of South Carolina

Dr. Bernstein's research integrates obstetric patient safety with workforce dynamics, focusing on how organizational structures impact nurse decision-making during maternal crises. As an Internationally Board Certified Lactation Consultant, she brings clinical expertise to her investigations of respectful maternity care practices and hypertension management in pregnancy. Her work bridges clinical nursing with systems engineering principles to develop safer care environments.

Her scholarly output reveals a cohesive trajectory addressing preventable maternal harm through systems redesign. Publications consistently target critical gaps in obstetric safety protocols, including early warning systems for laboring patients and failure-to-rescue prevention mechanisms. This body of work demonstrates methodological diversity through realist reviews, scoping reviews, and sociotechnical systems analyses.

Key recognitions include:

• Faculty Seed Grant Recipient (2022)
• DAISY Faculty Award for inspirational teaching impact (2022)
• Nursing Research Association Ambassador appointment (2024)
• Fellowship in the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (2025)

Dr. Bernstein actively shapes nursing education and practice through editorial leadership as board member of MCN: The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing and peer reviewer for major obstetric journals. Her Faculty Seed Grant supports ongoing research into nurse workflow optimization during clinical deterioration events, while her conference presentations disseminate findings on moral courage in nursing education and sociotechnical work system evaluations.

She contributes to professional infrastructure as board member of Sigma Theta Tau's Upsilon Lambda chapter and through media engagements analyzing urban/rural hospital nursing environments. Her current projects apply coal mining safety models to obstetric settings, demonstrating innovative cross-industry adaptation of safety science principles.