Dr. Patricia F. Pearce is Assistant Professor, University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing, in the Department of Community Health, Systems, and Outcomes, and with University appointments in the Graduate School, and as Associate Scientist in the University's Minority Health Research Center.  She holds Adjunct Appointment at the University of Alabama at both Tuscaloosa and Huntsville.

She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, and has received awards for her legislative work for NPs, for teaching, and for her research.  She recently was appointed Region 11 Director, to replace Cindy Cooke in her move to Secretary.  Dr. Peace is a long-standing member of AANP, with involvement in legislative and educational endeavors for nurse practitioners across the states of Louisiana, Utah, and North Carolina, and currently Alabama. Currently she is a member of the Steering Committee for the Alabama Alliance of Nurse Practitioners Association, and is the Secretary for the Central Alabama Alliance of Nurse Practitioners Association.  She also serves on research review panels with the Agency for Healthcare Research Quality, National Institutes of Health, Tri-Service Nursing Research Program, and American Nurses Foundation.  She recently completed four years with the ANF's Nursing Research Review Grants committee, and served as Chair of that group.

Dr. Pearce has been an RN since 1976, certified FNP since 1995, and Nurse Researcher since 2004.  She has worked with patients across the lifespan, with NP experience primarily in internal medicine.  She teaches at the Master, DNP, and PhD levels, has led many students through thesis, scholarly project, or dissertation, and serves actively as information and formal mentor for nurses and nurse practitioners.  When she is not working on her own research which blends investigation of physical activity, measurement, and human-computer interaction, under a larger focus on preventive and chronic care, she teaches the use of evidence, and evidence-based practice, to nurses and nurse practitioners.  Dr. Pearce is an experienced writer and presenter with local, regional, national, and international presentations.

Dr. Pearce completed her PhD in Nursing, with Minor in the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.  Preceding her PhD, she completed a Master in Nursing (Mississippi University for Women, Columbus), Master in Public Health (Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, New Orleans) BS (Nursing) and BA (History) from Loyola University (New Orleans) and her initial nursing degree ( AAS, St. Mary's, Minneapolis).

She resides in Birmingham, after 25 years in New Orleans, then in Chapel Hill, NC, followed by five years in Salt Lake City.  Outside of her professional work, she enjoys traveling, friends, and family.