Lisa Foley

Ms. Merkle Foley has been a registered nurse since 1991. Her clinical practice began in a hospital setting in the surgical specialty of orthopedics. Ms. Merkle Foley has also worked as a staff nurse in a Level 1 Trauma Center Emergency Department, and home care visiting nursing. Licensed since 1997 as Advance Practice Nurse Adult/Gero primary care (AGNP), Ms. Foley provided primary care to older adults in long term care settings. She also provided care management in sub-acute rehabilitation centers and conducted consultative Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment for older adults living in the community.
Ms. Merkle Foley is currently writing her dissertation for her PhD in nursing research. It is a qualitative research study which examines contextual influences of frailty and resilience in older adults aging at home. Other research interests involve pre-licensure student success, undergraduate nursing curriculum design, and best practices for providing effective health services for older adults in the community.
Ms. Merkle Foley has been a member of WPU faculty since 2011, teaching undergraduate pre-licensure nursing students in clinical and didactic courses. She also serves on multiple committees to ensure academic excellence and curriculum advancement for undergraduate nursing programming.

Professional Interests

-Aging in Place
-Contextual markers of frailty and resilience in older adults
-Trends in community health, health policy, aging research.
-Pre-licensure student success

Other Interests

Ms. Merkle Foley is an avid gardener and creative chef. She enjoys hiking and traveling to beautiful, natural places. Ms. Merkle Foley is also interested in Functional and Integrative Medicine practices and implementing her functional medical knowledge into her personal life and her nursing practice.