Michelle Williams
Michelle Y. Williams, PhD, RN, FAAN is an Associate Clinical Professor in the School of Health Sciences at the University of the Pacific and Lead Faculty for Nursing Leadership and Management in the ELMSN program. She also serves as HRSA faculty, supporting workforce development initiatives designed to prepare nurses to care for medically underserved and historically marginalized populations across California’s Central Valley and surrounding communities. Dr. Williams brings more than 35 years of leadership experience as a registered nurse, nurse executive, educator, researcher, and health equity strategist. Her career spans major healthcare systems, including Kaiser Permanente, the Veterans Health Administration, and Alameda Health System, where she led initiatives in nursing leadership, workforce development, innovation, and healthcare delivery transformation.
Prior to joining Pacific, Dr. Williams held senior leadership roles at Stanford University School of Medicine and Stanford Health Care, including Assistant Dean in the Clinical Trials Research Unit, Section Chief of the Nursing Research Section, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine, and Associate Chief Nursing Officer for Research and Health Equity. She led the redesign of clinical research infrastructure and clinical trials operations and the scope and role of the PhD-prepared nurse scientist to improve efficiency, workforce sustainability, and equitable access to research, supporting large-scale health system responses during COVID-19 and other emerging public health initiatives. Dr. Williams earned her PhD in Nursing Science from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, a Master of Science in Nursing Leadership and Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Holy Names University, and earlier training as a Registered Nurse and Licensed Psychiatric Technician.
- PhD, Nursing Science, University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee, WI
- MSN, Nursing Leadership, Holy Names University—Oakland, CA
- BSN, Holy Names University—Oakland, CA
- ADN/RN, City College of San Francisco—San Francisco, CA
- Licensed Psychiatric Technician, Mission College—Santa Clara, CA
Teaching Philosophy: Dr. Williams is committed to preparing undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral nursing students to lead within complex healthcare systems through evidence-based practice, leadership, and health equity–focused care. As faculty for HRSA-funded students, she supports engagement in quality improvement, leadership development, and practice-based learning, emphasizing systems thinking and the translation of research into practice to improve healthcare delivery.
Dr. Williams’ scholarship focuses on health equity, healthcare disparities, nursing leadership, clinical research infrastructure, and healthcare systems redesign. She has authored and co-authored peer-reviewed publications in leading journals, including Nursing Outlook, JAMA, JAMA Network Open, Health Equity, and the Journal of Nursing Scholarship.
Her research and funded work include:
- Stanford Impact Labs Health Care Fairness Initiative (Co‑Investigator)
- Health Equity and Research Infrastructure Seed Grant Programs (Principal Investigator)
- FDA-funded multi-center pulse oximeter accuracy study (Co‑Investigator)
- Clinical workforce and healthcare delivery studies within Stanford Health Care (Principal Investigator)
- Kaiser Permanente National Innovation Fund initiatives focused on patient care innovation and medication adherence (Principal Investigator)
Her scholarship addresses social determinants of health, bias in clinical algorithms, workforce development, and the advancement of equitable clinical research and care delivery systems.
Publications
Published Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles (Selected)
Lewis, C. L., Yan, A., Williams, M. Y., et al. (2023). Health equity: A concept analysis. Nursing Outlook, 71(5), 102032. (2025 Article of the Year; Awarded by the Nursing Outlook Journal at the 2025 American Academy of Nursing Annual Conference, Washington, DC).
Yan, A. F., Chen, Z., Wang, Y., Campbell, J. A., Xue, Q., Williams, M. Y., Weinhardt, L. S., & Egede, L. E. (2022). Effectiveness of social needs screening and interventions in clinical settings on utilization, cost, and clinical outcomes: A systematic review. Health Equity, 6(1), 454–475.
Garza, R. H., Williams, M. Y., et al. (2022). Intersectionality impacts survivorship. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(19).
Vilendrer, S., Lough, M. E., Garvert, D., Lambert, M. H., Lu, J. H., Patel, B., Shah, N. H., Williams, M. Y., & Kling, S. M. R. (2022). Nursing workflow change in a COVID-19 inpatient unit following the deployment of inpatient telehealth: An observational study using a real-time locating system. Journal of Medical Internet Research.
Woo, B. F. Y., Goh, Y. S., Williams, M. Y., et al. (2022). Characteristics, methodological and reporting quality of scoping reviews published in nursing journals: A systematic review. Journal of Nursing Scholarship.
Kim, K. M., Muench, U., Maki, J. E., Yefimova, M., Oh, A., Jopling, J. K., Rinaldo, F., Shah, N. R., Giannitrapani, K. F., Williams, M. Y., & Lorenz, K. A. (2023). Racial disparities in inpatient palliative care consultation among frail older patients undergoing high-risk elective surgical procedures. Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Yan, A. F., Williams, M. Y., et al. (2024). Bias and accuracy of glomerular filtration rate estimating equations in the US: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Network Open, 7(3), e241127.
DeCoux-Hampton, M., & Williams, M. Y. (2023). Maximizing nurse scientist role potential in healthcare organizations. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 47(4), 338–349.
Morse, L., Apen, L. V., Williams, M. Y., & Crawford, C. L. (2024). Supporting time-critical decision making: The creation of a nurse-led rapid literature review service. Journal of Nursing Administration, 54(7–8), 440–445.
Cusick, M., Chertow, G., Owens, D., Williams, M. Y., & Rose, S. (2024). Algorithmic Changes Are Not Enough: Evaluating the Removal of Race Adjustment From the eGFR Equation. Proceedings of the Fifth Conference on Health, Inference, and Learning (PMLR 248), 619–643.
Abdelhadi, O., Williams, M. Y., & Yan, A. (2025). Structural racism as a leading cause of racial disparities in breast cancer quality of care outcomes: A systematic review. Frontiers in Oncology, 15, 1562672.
Policy Briefs and Scholarly Reports
Cusick, M., Chertow, G., Owens, D., Williams, M. Y., & Rose, S. (2024). The Complexities of Race Adjustment in Health Algorithms. Stanford Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI) Policy & Society Brief.
Conference Presentations (Selected)
Williams, M. Y. (2025). Cook County Health Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice Conference. Keynote Speaker, Chicago, IL.
Williams, M. Y., Hampton, S. B. (2024). Beyond Weathering: Black Nurses’ Journey to Joyful Leadership and Transcendence in Healthcare and Theory. Plenary Speaker presentation at the 52nd Annual National Black Nurses Association Conference, San Francisco, CA.
Williams, M. Y. (2024). The Critical Role of Hospitals in Identifying and Addressing Health Inequities. Panel Speaker at the NCQA Health Equity Forum, Los Angeles, CA.
Williams, M. Y. (2024). Weathering-to-Joy Among Nursing and Healthcare Professionals from Diverse Communities. Endnote Panel Speaker at the Nursology Theory Annual Conference, Waldoboro, ME.
Williams, M. Y. (2023). Expanding the Footprint of Nursing Research and the Academic Presence of Nursing at Stanford University and Stanford School of Medicine. Keynote presentation at the Stanford Nurse Alumnae Annual Luncheon, Menlo Park, CA.
Williams, M. Y., Beatty, D. (2023). Clinical Research Infrastructure and Health Equity Enterprise Strategy. Podium presentation at the Annual National Black Nurses Association Conference, Atlanta, GA.
Williams, M. Y. (2023). Stanford Health Care Health Equity and Research Infrastructure and Launch of the Inaugural Stanford Medicine Black Nurses Association Chapter. Presentation at NBNA Day on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC.
Williams, M. Y. (2015). Using Technology to Improve Nursing Practice and Patient Care Outcomes. Nursing Symposium Presentation, Holy Names University, Oakland, CA.
Williams, M. Y. (2012). The Future of Nursing. Presentation at the University of California Davis Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Conference, Sacramento, CA.
Williams, M. Y. (2010). Nursing Innovation and Advanced Technology. Presentation at the Summer Institute on Nursing Informatics, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD.
Editorial and Professional Leadership
Editor-in-Chief, Nursing Scientific Discovery Newsletter, Stanford Health Care (2020–2024)
Reviewer, Health Affairs Scholar, Oxford University Press, Oxford, GB (2025)
Reviewer, Stanford Nurse Alumnae Legacy Grants/Endowments (2020–2023)
Reviewer, Annual Policy Conference Abstracts, American Academy of Nursing (2024–Present)
Chair, Annual Conference Planning Committee, National Black Nurses Association (2023–2024)
Research, Grants and Awards
Stanford Impact Labs — Health Care Fairness Impact Lab (2022–2025)
Role: Co-Investigator
Interdisciplinary Stanford Impact Labs initiative focused on improving fairness in healthcare decision-making and reducing bias in clinical algorithms impacting underserved populations, including emergency department admissions and chronic kidney disease treatment decisions.
Stanford Health Care — Health Equity and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Justice Research Seed Grants (2022–2024)
Role: Principal Investigator and Research Funding Lead
Awarded and oversaw interprofessional seed grant funding supporting health equity, workforce development, healthcare disparities, inclusive clinical research infrastructure, nurse scientist development, and dissemination of institutional research funding to interdisciplinary investigators and clinical teams.
FDA-Funded Multi-Center Pulse Oximeter Study (2023–Present)
Role: Co-Investigator and Funding Contributor
Multi-center study evaluating pulse oximeter accuracy in children with darker skin pigmentation to improve equitable diagnostic accuracy, patient safety, and healthcare delivery for historically underserved populations.
Kaiser Permanente National Innovation Fund — Patient Room of the Future (2010–2012)
Role: Principal Investigator
Led an innovative initiative focused on advanced patient care environments, healthcare technology integration, workflow redesign, patient safety innovation, and nursing workflow optimization.
Kaiser Permanente National Innovation Fund — Mind Your Meds: Medication Adherence Study (2007–2009)
Role: Principal Investigator
Led a healthcare innovation initiative focused on medication adherence, chronic disease self-management, patient engagement technologies, and remote patient monitoring.
Kaiser Permanente National Risk Management Department — Creating Highly Reliable Medical Safety Teams (2017)
Role: Principal Investigator
Led a patient safety and reliability initiative focused on improving interdisciplinary teamwork, communication, and healthcare safety culture.
