Rachel Neff Greenley, PhD

Dr. Rachel Neff Greenley is a Professor of Psychology and serves as the Department Chair. Dr. Greenley obtained her PhD in clinical psychology, with an emphasis in clinical child psychology, from Loyola University Chicago. She completed an internship in Clinical Child and Pediatric Psychology at Lurie Children’s Hospital and an NIH-funded T-32 fellowship in Child Behavioral Health Research and Pediatric Psychology at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

She joined the faculty of RFUMS in 2009. Her research interests focus on youth and family adjustment in the context of pediatric chronic illness, with a particular interest in adherence and self-management skill development among adolescents and emerging adults with chronic illnesses. Dr. Greenley teaches courses in Health Psychology and Child and Adolescent Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. She is licensed in Illinois and Wisconsin.

Dr. Greenley will be accepting a student for the 2023/2024 academic year.

Do you have questions regarding our research or what it is like working with Dr. Greenley?
Email a current graduate student to gain a student's perspective.

• Lindsay Durkin (lindsay.durkin@my.rfums.org)
• Estee Feldman (estee.feldman@my.rfums.org)
• Meghan Howe (meghan.howe@my.rfums.org)
• Sara Lampert-Okin (sara.lampertokin@my.rfums.org)

Want to Know More About Dr. Greenley’s Research Lab?
Like our Facebook page, RFUMS Pediatric Psychology Lab, for the most frequent updates of research projects and news about our lab. Our page will also highlight interesting and important research in the field of health psychology. 

Research

My research interests center on understanding factors that contribute to optimal psychosocial and physical functioning among youth affected by chronic medical conditions and their families. In particular, I am interested in the role of individual, familial, and health professional systems in promoting adherence to treatment and self-management skill development among youth, adolescents, and emerging adults with chronic medical conditions. My research interests include both descriptive studies to better understand factors that promote optimal functioning or serve as barriers to adherence during the adolescent and emerging adult developmental periods, as well as intervention studies to evaluate the efficacy of programs to enhance adherence and promote positive adjustment. I have conducted research with a variety of pediatric populations, with a major focus on pediatric inflammatory bowel diseases.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

• *Lampert, S. L., *Feldman, E. C., *Durkin, L. K., Davies, W. H., Greenley, R. N. (2022). Medication adherence among emerging adults: The influence of provider communication and patient personality. Children's Health Care, 51(1), 101-117. https://doi.org/10.1080/02739615.2021.1971986
• *Howe, M. M., *Feldman, E., *Lampert, S. L., *Kenney, A. E., Davies, W. H., & Greenley, R. N. (2021). Caregiver perceptions of importance of COVID-19 preventative health guidelines and difficulty following guidelines are associated with child adherence rates. Families, Systems & Health, 39(4), 632–637. https://doi.org/10.1037/fsh0000641
• *Feldman, E. C., Balistreri, K. A., Lampert, S., Durkin, L. K., Bugno, L. T., Davies, W. H., & Greenley, R. N. (2021). Emerging Adults’ Adherence to Preventative Health Guidelines in Response to COVID-19. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 46(6), 635-644. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsab047
• *Feldman, E.C.H., *Durkin, L.K, *Bugno, L., Davies, W.H, Miller, S. A., & Greenley, R.N. (2021). Communication about Medication by Providers-Adolescent and Young Adult Version: A confirmatory factor analysis. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 46(5), 599–608. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsab009
• *Feldman, E. C. H., *Durkin L.K , & Greenley, R. N. (2021). Family support is associated with fewer adherence barriers and greater intent to adhere to oral medications in pediatric IBD. Journal of Pediatric Nursing,60, 58-64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2021.01.026
• Tran, S. T. *Grotkowski, K., Miller, S. A., *Reed, B. W., *Koven, M. L. , Buscemi, J., & Greenley, R. N. (2020). Hassles predict physical health complaints in undergraduate students: a dynamic structural equation model analysis of daily diary data. Psychology & Health, 36(7), 828-846. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2020.1800010
• *Durkin, L., *Bugno, L., *Feldman, E. C. H., Davies, W. H., & Greenley, R. N. (2020). Investigating direct and indirect influences of parent personality on child medication adherence. Children’s Health Care, 50(2), 125-141. https://doi.org/10.1080/02739615.2020.1835480
• *Plevinsky, J.M., Maddux, M.H., Fishman, L.N., Kahn, S.A., & Greenley, R.N. (2020). Perceived effect of pediatric inflammatory bowel diseases on academics, college planning, and college adjustment. Journal of American College Health, published online 09 Jul 2020. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2020.1781869
• *Lang, A., Greenley, R. N., & Davies, W. H. (2020). Impact of perceived health competence on the quality of life of emerging adults with chronic health conditions. Emerging Adulthood. Published online 14 Jul 2020. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167696820938647
• *Carreon, S., *Durkin, L., Davies, W. H., & Greenley, R. N. (2020). Influence of provider communication on emerging adults’ medication cognitions and provider satisfaction. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 45(5) 573–582. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsaa022
• *Feldman, E. C. H., *Macaulay, T., Tran, S. T., Miller, S. A., Buscemi, J., & Greenley, R. N. (2020). Relationships between disease factors and social support in college students with chronic physical illnesses. Children’s Health Care, 49(3), 1-20.:  https://doi.org/10.1080/02739615.2020.1723100
• *Igler, E.C., *Sejkora, E., Greenley, R.N., *Plevinsky, J.M., *Bugno, L., Carreon, S., & Davies, W.H. (2019). Development and initial validation of the Communication About Medication by Providers-Parent Scale (CAMP-P). Global Pediatric Health, 6, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1177/2333794X19857980

*Denotes a student author.

Current Projects

Patient-Provider Communication and Medication Adherence. We have two ongoing projects in this area. First, in partnership with NorthShore Health Systems, we are examining how a match between patient preferences and provider behavior may facilitate psychosocial and disease self-management outcomes in emerging adults with Type I Diabetes. Second, in partnership with researchers at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, we are investigating how medical providers discuss medication prescriptions with their patients, and the extent to which modifying the content of provider communication may enhance patient adherence. We are examining this in samples of adolescents and young adults, and also among samples of parents of school-aged children. We hope to better understand strengths and weaknesses in patient-provider communication so that we may develop interventions to enhance communication about medication as a method of enhancing medication adherence.

Parent Trauma Symptoms in Response to Youth PICU Admission. In collaboration with researchers at University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, we are developing a project to examine cognitive risk factors for parent trauma symptoms in a sample of parents whose children were admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). A parallel project is investigating broader experiences of parents of adolescents who have been traumatized with the goal of understanding salient cognitive risk and protective factors. The long term goal of this program of research is to better understand how to prevent parental post traumatic stress symptoms via delivery of brief interventions during the child’s hospital stay. 

Health Risk and Health Promotion Behaviors in College Students with and Without Chronic Medical Conditions. In collaboration with researchers at DePaul University, we are examining the role of daily hassles and physical health symptoms in prospectively influencing health risk and health promotion behaviors in undergraduate students with and without chronic health conditions. We plan to use this information to identify individuals who may be at risk for poor adjustment and ultimately develop interventions that may enhance self-management and health promotion in this group.

Adolescent and Young Adult Adherence to CDC Guidelines to Reduce the Spread of COVID-19.
In fall 2020, we began a new data collection initiative to understand social cognitive factors that influence adolescent and young adults’ decisions related to social distancing, mask wearing, and engagement in other CDC-recommended behaviors related to reducing the spread of COVID-19. This project is in the data analysis and manuscript submission phase.

Current Students

	Lindsay Durkin, MS Lindsay is a 6th year student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program. Her research interests include understanding how parent and family factors (i.e., personality traits, level of involvement, family functioning) may impact child outcomes, such as medication adherence. This year, Lindsay is completing a practicum at DePaul Family and Community Services where she is providing parent-child interaction therapy (PCIT) and neuropsychological testing to children ages 0-6 years old and their families. Lindsay is also a neuropsychological technician at Northwest Suburban Psychology where she is gaining experience conducting assessments with children and adolescents in a private practice setting. In her free time, Lindsay enjoys playing with her dog and aerial yoga.
	Estée Feldman, MS Estée is a 5th year student in the PhD program. Currently, she is completing her pre-doctoral internship as an O’Grady Resident at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Medical Center, with a focus of training on pediatric pain of multiple etiologies. Prior clinical training sites include Shriners Hospital for Children, and the University of Chicago. Her research interests include pediatric pain of diverse etiology, functional illness, and rare genetic disorders. Collaborators include the Goodhope EDS Clinic and the University Health Network in Toronto, Canada. In her spare time, she can be found reading "Brown Bear Brown Bear" to her infant son, and walking trails with her dog and husband.
	Meghan Howe, BA Meghan is a 3rd year student in the Ph.D. program. She is interested in identifying processes by which child- and family-level factors confer risk or promote resilience in children diagnosed with chronic medical conditions and psychometrics of existing pediatric psychology assessment tools. Her long-term goals are to conduct collaborative research and clinical work to improve psychosocial outcomes in children and families coping with chronic illness. This year, Meghan is completing an early childhood behavioral health practicum at Rush University Medical Center. Meghan enjoys dancing, trying new restaurants, and running in her free time.
	Sara Lampert-Okin, MS Sara is a 2nd year student in the PhD program. Her research interests include adolescents and emerging adults with chronic health conditions, adherence behaviors, and the influence of the patient-provider relationship on self-management. This year, Sara is completing a child therapy practicum at Rush University Medical Center. In her free time, Sara enjoys baking, participating in book club, doing puzzles, and going for walks.

Alumni

Pediatric Psychology or Pediatric Neuropsychology:

• Lindsey Bugno, PhD
  • Internship: Indiana University School of Medicine/Riley Children’s Hospital
  • Fellowship: Northwest Suburban Psychology Group (pediatric neuropsychology)
• Samantha Carreon, PhD
  • Internship: Children’s Hospital Boston
  • Fellowship: Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children’s Hospital
• Eve Nguyen, PhD
  • Internship: Kennedy Krieger Institute
  • Fellowship: Children’s Hospital Orange County
• Jill Plevinsky, PhD
  • Internship: Brown University School of Medicine
  • Fellowship: Cinicinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
• Natasha Poulopoulos, PhD
  • Internship: Jackson Miami Medical Center
  • Fellowship: Children’s Hospital Boston
• Molly Thomason, PhD
  • Internship: University of New Mexico
  • Fellowship: Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children’s Hospital (pediatric neuropsychology)
• Jennifer Walter PhD
  • Internship: University of New Mexico
  • Fellowship: Neuropsychological Services of New Mexico (pediatric neuropsychology)
• Andrea Wojtowicz, PhD
  • Internship: Nationwide Children’s Hospital
  • Fellowship: Nationwide Children’s Hospital

Health Psychology:

• Amitha Gumidayala, PhD
  • Internship: VA Palo Alto Health Care System
  • Fellowship: VA Palo Alto Health Care System
• Cassandra Kandah, PhD
  • Internship: Lovell Federal Health Care Center
  • Fellowship: Loyola University Medical Center
• Jessica Naftaly, PhD
  • Internship: Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital
  • Fellowship: Michigan Medicine