Sherily Pereira-Morales is an Associate Professor and the Acting Dean of the University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus, School of Nursing. Dr. Pereira-Morales’ clinical and scholarly expertise includes critical care nursing, anesthesia, and research. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in nursing, advanced health assessment in anesthesia, theories, and critical care. Direct early career care experiences exposed Dr. Pereira to the myriad impacts pain management has on post-surgery outcomes, disease progression, and quality of life.

Her commitment to nursing excellence and patient-centered care led her to pursue research training and scholarship focused on generating knowledge to improve clinical practice and outcomes related to pain management. Her scholarship now focuses specifically on pain and symptom management among persons diagnosed with cancer. Dr. Pereira’s long-term goal is to develop an independent and externally funded program of research addressing effective pain assessment and management interventions that will improve cancer patients’ quality of life while decreasing unintended consequences and adverse outcomes of pain management, such as opioid-related substance use disorder. Her passion to service and nursing anesthesia provide a model and inspiration to her students, colleagues and family. She completed her PhD in nursing at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.