Expert on Exercise and Illness to Deliver Bellos Lecture

Barbara A. Smith, R.N., F.A.A.N., an expert on the effects of exercise on serious illness, will deliver the Sybil Palmer Bellos Lecture at the Yale University School of Nursing on March 23, at 4 p.m.

Smith, the O’Koren Endowed Chair at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, has studied the impact of exercise on HIV/AIDS, cancer and cardiovascular disease and the role of physical activity in health promotion for children. She is also a senior scientist at the Comprehensive Cancer Center of the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Smith has tested exercise regimens to improve symptoms in people with AIDS. She has also done extensive work on exercise-based health promotion programs for African-American children.

Her current research includes a project to characterize body fat redistribution and metabolic disorders associated with HIV-1 infection and/or therapy and an investigation of the effect of an integrated support program on breast cancer patients, particularly on psycho-immune outcomes.

In addition to a fellowship in the American Academy of Nursing, Smith also holds fellowships in the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Association of Cardiovascular Diseases and Pulmonary Rehabilitation. In 1996, the National Institute of Nursing Research awarded her a certificate of merit for contribution to research and the nation’s health.

Smith is also a long distance cyclist. She participates in Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across IOWA (RAGBRAI), the Great Ohio Bike Adventure (GOBA), and other such events.

Following the Bellos lecture, a reception will be held at the school’s 100 Church Street South campus. To attend, please respond to Bridget McManus at 203-737-5678.