Secondary Appointments

Dr. Colin Armstrong is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, with a secondary appointment in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.  He is an adjunct faculty member at Meharry Medical College and teaches in the Vanderbilt Health Coach Training Program.  He is Health Psychologist in his 25th year serving in that role at the Vanderbilt Dayani Center for Health and Wellness.  His work focuses on mind-body wellness (e.g., treatment adherence, stress / anxiety management), with a particular focus on treating individuals suffering from cardiac and voice disorders (e.g., dysphonia). 

Dr. Armstrong received his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with specialization in Health Psychology / Behavioral Medicine from the SDSU / UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, a program offered jointly by a Department of Psychology (SDSU) and a School of Medicine (UCSD).  He completed his internship and postdoctoral training in Health Psychology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. He is published in such journals as The American Journal of Health Promotion, The Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation, Perception and Motor Skills, The Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, Annals of Behavioral Medicine, Psychology and Health, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, and Global Advances in Health and Medicine. He has also co-authored a book chapter on motivation and treatment adherence.

In addition to clinical work, Dr. Armstrong has provided workshops and seminars for such corporate clients as General Motors, The Tennessean, Alive Hospice, Baker Donelson, Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI), AT&T, Teledyne, Marriott Corporation, Nashville Electric Service (NES), Logan's Roadhouse, Central Parking, Louisiana Pacific (LP), Whirlpool, Caterpillar, Genesco, Gaylord Entertainment, Ingram Entertainment, The GAP, Hertz, Deloitte & Touche, Blue Cross / Blue Shield, and the CMT & MTV Networks.  He has also provided seminars for a good number of community organizations (e.g., Leadership Nashville, AARP, YMCA, YWCA, Rotary International, American Cancer Society, The Girl Scouts, American Heart Association, ALS Association, American Lung Association) and government agencies (e.g., Metro Nashville Police Training Academy, Metro Nashville Public Schools, Metro Nashville Airport Authority, the Federal Reserve Bank, the IRS, and the National Security Agency). 

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Dr. Bachmann is a cardiologist and Assistant Professor of Medicine, Assistant Professor of Biomedical Informatics, Assistant Professor of Health Policy with a secondary appointment in the Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC). He obtained his MD at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, followed by a Medicine residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Cardiovascular Disease fellowship at University of Texas-Southwestern Medical Center.

Dr. Bachmann was subsequently a Research Associate with Professor Michael Porter at the Institute of Strategy and Competitiveness at Harvard Business School (HBS). A specialist in cardiac rehabilitation, Dr. Bachmann is the Medical Director of the Vanderbilt Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation Program where he uses data science methods to study national cardiac rehabilitation utilization patterns. He has also studied operational interventions to increase cardiac rehabilitation enrollment, including a group enrollment and open gym system.

Dr. Bachmann has a longstanding interest in implementing patient-reported outcomes measures in routine clinical practice. His work has been funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute and has been published in Circulation and Journal of the American College of Cardiology. He received the American College of Cardiology Presidential Career Development Award in 2019.

Dr. Rogelio Coronado is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery with a secondary appointment in Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. He is an active member of the Vanderbilt Center for Musculoskeletal Research and Center for Health Services Research. His primary research interests are on 1.) the role of psychological factors on prognosis and treatment response, 2.) integration of behavioral strategies within clinical care for musculoskeletal pain conditions, and 3.) mechanisms and treatment effect modifiers of pain interventions.

Dr. Coronado is a collaborating investigator on several large comparative effectiveness trials funded by the NIH and PCORI. He has published 46 peer-reviewed papers and received funding as PI from the Academy of Orthopedic Physical Therapy, Cervical Spine Research Society, and Foundation for Physical Therapy. He is currently supported by a Vanderbilt Faculty Research Scholars award. Dr. Coronado received his doctoral degree from the University of Florida and his master’s in physical therapy from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center.

Mallory Hacker is Assistant Professor of Neurology and with a secondary appointment of Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Hacker earned her PhD in Cell & Developmental Biology and Master of Science in Clinical   Investigation (MSCI) at Vanderbilt. She served as visiting assistant professor at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University in 2016 and completed the American Neurological Association’s Translational  and Clinical Research Course for Clinician Scientists (2014) and the NINDS Clinical Trials Methodology Course (2016). She has received funding from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), the     Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, the American Parkinson Disease Association, and the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation. Dr. Hacker’s research investigates the prevalence of spasticity in long-term care settings and ways to improve screening, diagnosis and treatment and her work is published in the Journal of the American Medical Directors Association and Neurology.

Dr. McKernan is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences with a secondary appointment in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.  Clinically, Dr. McKernan specializes in treating the intersection between co-occurring chronic health conditions and mental health.  She has particular interests in working with trauma and chronic illness, and has additional expertise in clinical hypnosis.  

Currently, Dr. McKernan works as a clinician at the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine (OCIM) and Department of Urologic Surgery. Dr. McKernan is currently funded by the National Institute of Health to develop innovative psychosocial treatments for specific pain populations served at VUMC. Recognizing that pain is a highly unique experience to the individual, the lab and its collaborators are working to administer psychosocial interventions for urologic populations, specifically interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome. 

The lab's focus is to inform treatment and intervention delivery through applying patient-informed approaches to care, understanding unique patient-level factors that influence pain, expanding treatments to a wider audience, and using data science to inform intervention efforts. 

Dr. McKernan has a highly collaborative research lab, and you can follow her work by visiting mckernanlab.com or following updates on twitter through @LCMPhD or @themckernanlab

Web Article:

Machine Learning Helps Identify Suicide Risks and Protective Factors for Fibromyalgia Patients