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Michelle Patch

Michelle Patch


PhD, MSN, BSN, RN

DF-AFN, FAAN

ACNS-BC, AFN-C, APRN-CNS

Michelle Patch is board certified as an adult health clinical nurse specialist and an advanced forensic nurse. She has held progressive clinical, operational, and safety leadership positions in various acute care, ambulatory, emergency, and austere settings. Her internationally recognized scholarship and clinical practice address patient, staff, and public health safety, specifically during times of crisis, violence, disaster, and trauma. Dr. Patch’s research focuses on health care responses to intimate partner violence and assault-related mechanisms including strangulation and head trauma. Her work has significantly contributed globally to the limited but growing science base informing post-strangulation injury and care. Dr. Patch’s extensive experience in emergency management and disaster response has included former service as a U.S. Navy Nurse Corps officer, operations chief for JHM’s COVID-19 Unified Command Center, and director of JHSON’s COVID Vaccine Volunteer Program. She is also a Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program (CUSP) instructor, a TeamSTEPPS Master Trainer, a Just Culture Champion, faculty for the JHM Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality’s Leadership Academy, and lectures internationally on patient/staff safety and emergency response topics. Dr. Patch is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, Secretary for the Forensic Nursing Certification Board, past-Chair of the Academy of Forensic Nursing’s Research Committee, and a Medical Advisory Board member for the Training Institute on Strangulation Prevention.

JHU Center Affiliation:
Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality
Center for Global Women’s Health and Gender Equity
Center for Gun Violence Solutions
Center for Women’s Health, Sex, and Gender Research


Specialties and Expertise
  • Adult Health
  • COVID-19
  • Disaster Preparation
  • Emergency
  • Interprofessional
  • Leadership/Organizational Culture
  • Military/Veteran’s Affairs
  • Quality Improvement
  • Safety
  • Trauma
  • Violence
  • Women’s Health
  • Workplace Health