Doctoral Students

Katie Balistreri, MS

she/her

6th Year Clinical Psychology Student (On Internship)

Research Interests: Psychosocial and emotional adjustment in children with chronic illnesses and their families; individual and dyadic factors that influence adjustment (e.g., parent-child interactions, coping styles, communication patterns); emotional outcomes of children admitted to the PICU and their families

Katie’s research area primarily focuses on research that aims to improve the well-being of children who have been hospitalized in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and their families. Examples of projects include: 1) describing current models of psychology practice in the PICU, 2) conducting qualitative interviews with PICU medical providers about how they identify and respond to distressed parents in the PICU and 3) using a text-message based data collection system to evaluate parent experiences (e.g., traumatic stress, anxiety) during and after hospitalization of their child in the PICU.

Email: balist78@uwm.edu


 

Julia Tager, MS

she/her

5th Year Clinical Psychology Student

Research Interests: Coping with pediatric serious illness, pediatric psycho-oncology, palliative care and end of life, bereavement, family relationships in the context of pediatric illnesses.

Julia’s primary research involves investigating experiences of stress, coping, and meaning-making among families of children with medical complexity. Her dissertation focuses on “good parent” beliefs among parents of children with medical complexity.

Office: Pearse 374

Email: jbtager@uwm.edu

ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8791-3819


Ansley Kenney, MS

she/her

4th Year Clinical Psychology Doctoral Student

Research Interests: Risk and protective factors involved with family coping and adjustment to pediatric chronic illness across the illness timeline; pediatric palliative care; communication and medical decision-making in the context of pediatric chronic health conditions

Current Projects: Understanding BMT provider perceptions of the role and use of pediatric palliative care, knowledge and perceptions of pediatric palliative care, and the role of palliative care in the BMT population; Examining palliative care interventions among adolescents and young adults with serious illness; Examining psychosocial outcomes among caregivers of children who died from a medical condition or illness; Exploring the experience of adolescents that have a sibling with a chronic illness at the individual and interpersonal level including family communication and identification of stressors and social support

Office: Pearse 374

Email: aekenney@uwm.edu

ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0189-7740 

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Mady Johnson, BA

she/her

3rd Year Clinical Psychology Doctoral Student

Research Interests: Integrated healthcare systems, psychosocial and emotional outcomes of children experiencing chronic illness; medical communication within complex care settings; eliminating multicultural barriers to medical communication; family dynamics in the context of stress and management of pediatric chronic illness; factors influencing community membership for families navigating chronic illness, and the associated effects on coping/adjustment

Office: Pearse 374

Email: mljohns@uwm.edu

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Lubna Barakat, BS

she/her

2nd Year Clinical Psychology Doctoral Student

Research interests: Adaptable interventions for children from minority backgrounds (religious, ethnic, racial, etc.); childhood trauma and abuse; cultural sensitivity in the mental health field; community and familial factors that influence mental health outcomes for pediatric patients with chronic illnesses

Office: Pearse 374

Email: barakatl@uwm.edu

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