This piece is a part of IU Global’s Fulbright U.S. Scholar series, profiling the Fulbright faculty and researchers who make IU a top producer of Fulbright awardees.
Dr. Olena Mazurenko, an associate professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Indiana University Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health, has always been driven by a passion for improving health care. With years of experience as a physician and health service researcher, her focus has been on exploring policies and health information technology interventions that can improve care for patients with chronic pain, particularly in primary-care settings.
The Fulbright Program offered Mazurenko a unique opportunity to compare different approaches to managing chronic pain outside the U.S. She was particularly interested in examining how treatment of patients with chronic pain in Ireland balances the risks and benefits of pain medications. Her research focused on developing a quick reference guide for general practitioners in Ireland to use for treating patients with chronic pain.
“The guide was based on a systematic review of current clinical guidelines, synthesizing the evidence into a practical and accessible tool for busy clinicians,” Mazurenko said “The Irish board of general practitioners approved the guide in October 2024, which is getting substantial attention in the clinical general practitioner community.”
To accompany the guide, Mazurenko and her colleagues published a peer-reviewed manuscript to share their findings with the international research and practice communities. These findings can help improve care for patients with chronic pain in the U.S., too.
“The treatment philosophy for managing patients with chronic pain has evolved over the last decade, with current clinical guidelines emphasizing individualized patient-centered pain care management,” Mazurenko said. “The guide and our peer-reviewed publication allow busy primary-care clinicians to know what current clinical guidelines recommend and caution against using when managing patients with chronic pain.”
Her host institution, Trinity College Dublin, provided the ideal environment to not only conduct this research but also expand her teaching repertoire by working in an academic environment outside the U.S.
“With my teaching activities, I wanted to see how teaching pedagogy differs between a U.S. and a non-U.S. environment, and Trinity College Dublin is one of the best European universities to explore the differences, as it has centuries of educational traditions and world-renowned teachers”, she said. “I also wanted to explore the possibility of developing a proposal for a weeklong study abroad program for IU students in Ireland.”
A key to her success was maneuvering through the cultural differences between Ireland and the U.S. Before arriving, she proactively sought information about Irish culture and communication styles from her colleagues at Trinity College. This preparation allowed her to better navigate the differences in approaching tasks and problem-solving that she encountered in academic and research settings. Patience and accommodation were essential as she adjusted to a slower-paced, consensus-driven approach to decision-making that is typical in Irish culture.
Mazurenko also made it a priority to engage with local communities. As a Ukrainian, she connected with Ireland’s rapidly growing population of Ukrainian refugees, helping individuals navigate the health care and educational systems and providing emotional support as they processed the trauma of displacement.
She also achieved one of her personal goals: broadening her collaborations to an international level. The opportunity to work closely with Irish colleagues and teach abroad gave her invaluable insight into how health care and education function in different cultural contexts. These experiences deepened her understanding of both global health care challenges and the diverse teaching approaches used around the world.
Her time at Trinity College also reinforced the importance of international collaboration, something she plans to continue in her future research and teaching at IU.
“Fulbright is all about win-win for both sides,” she said. “It’s not only you coming over and then pursuing your research or teaching agendas. It’s how you can help others address their questions or teaching needs.”