Kitty Montgomery, PhD, RN, PCNS-BC, CPHON

PhD, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee; Nursing
MS, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee; Nursing
BA, University of Iowa; Health education

Dr. Kitty Montgomery is an experienced pediatric nurse and clinical nurse specialist. Her research focuses on the symptom experience among children and adolescents with cancer. She leads a research program focused on improving the care and quality of life of children with advanced cancer; and to advancing the field of symptom science in identifying symptom burden and offering personalized health strategies in young populations. Her research focuses on leveraging technology to elicit patient-reported outcomes from children with advanced cancer and to describe the symptom experience and related outcomes. Dr. Montgomery is particularly interested in identifying children and adolescents at risk for experiencing high symptom burden, allowing delivery of targeted symptom interventions.

Research focus areas

Symptom Science & Palliative Care

• Characterize the phenotypic characteristics of children who experience high symptom burden and suffering
• Identify mechanisms underlying cancer-related symptoms in children
• Develop and test screening tools to identify children at risk for high symptom burden
• Understand the impact of the symptom experience on patient-reported outcomes

Children, Families & Reproductive Health

• Use the child’s voice whenever possible to understand their symptom experiences
• Understand how children recognize and communicate symptom experiences with their caregivers and healthcare team

Children, Families & Reproductive Health Symptom Science & Palliative Care