Research Faculty Spotlight: Nhu Tran, PhD, RN, MSCBTI, CCRN, CCRP
“I really enjoy caring for babies and families in the NICCU,” says Nhu Tran, PhD, RN. “But I also like to ask ‘Why?’ I want to ask and answer questions that can help improve long-term outcomes for these children.”
As a nurse-scientist on the CHLA faculty, Dr. Tran pursues both of these passions. Although she works as a staff nurse in the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation Newborn & Infant Critical Care Unit (NICCU), she is also leading her own research.
Funded by a K23 grant from the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Tran is investigating whether infants and toddlers born with heart defects have dysregulated blood flow in their brains—and if that is linked to a greater risk for developmental delays.
The team uses near infrared spectroscopy—an instrument placed on a baby’s forehead—to measure changes in cerebral blood oxygenation when a baby or toddler goes from a laying down position to sitting up. She then compares readings with those from healthy infants and tracks developmental outcomes as the children grow.
Dr. Tran is also starting a new project that will evaluate whether prenatal psychological support for families improves neurodevelopmental outcomes in babies with heart defects.
Her interest in research began in 2007, when she conducted a small study validating calf blood pressures in the NICCU. A few years later, she joined the Heart Institute as a nurse research coordinator.
“As NICCU nurses, we rarely see patients once they’re discharged,” Dr. Tran notes. “As a research coordinator, I was interacting with kids and families who were experiencing these developmental delays. I wanted to better understand how we can prevent them.”
She went on to earn her PhD and joined the CHLA faculty in 2018. “I am very grateful for CHLA’s support and for my strong mentors and team,” she says. “Research, just like clinical care, is a team effort.”
At home, Dr. Tran cares for “a little zoo”—two cats and two dogs. She enjoys yoga, hiking, snowboarding (“I’m not very good!”) and traveling to different countries.
