Wendi K. Born, PhD, MA

Professional Background

Wendi Born, PhD, is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Kansas School of Medicine and an Assistant Director of the Family Medicine Clerkship. She has been a member of the faculty since 2010. She earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Northwestern University. Her postdoctoral training in was in clinical health psychology, which included palliative care. Her teaching seeks to raise awareness of social determinants of health, recognize and counteract bias, and encourage the practice of patient-centered care. Her current career goal is to provide and teach integrated primary care in inter-professional teams involving learners at all levels. Her clinical approach is primarily Cognitive Behavioral, supplemented with interventions that facilitate adaptive change by honoring the whole person. In both her teaching and her clinical work, she endorses an approach of self-acceptance and values-based decision-making. "The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change." - Carl Rogers

• BA, Washburn Univ. of Topeka
• Residency, Clinical Psychology / Health Psychology, Hines VA Medical Center, Hines, IL
• Clinical Fellowship, Geropsychology & Palliative Care, Milwaukee VA Medical Center, Milwaukee, WI
• Post Doctoral Fellowship, Preventive Medicine & Public Health, University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City, KS

• Licensed Psychologist (LP), State of Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board

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Research

Overview

Dr. Born's research has focused broadly on reducing disparities in achievement and health. Her research in disparities began at Northwestern University, where she studied the ways that salient negative stereotypes affect academic performance. Her dissertation was a longitudinal intervention to close performance gaps for women and minorities in the sciences. This work grew into a project funded by the Mellon Foundation that helped more than 10,000 students in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. After completing her training as a clinical psychologist, she completed a two-year research fellowship in Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the University of Kansas School of Medicine. Her subsequent research addressed disparities in care for underserved populations in the areas of cancer screening, smoking cessation, and hospice utilization. Currently, she is applying her research skills to the area of medical student education and outcomes.