Assoc.Prof.Dr. Rosalba “Rose” Hernandez
Dr. Rosalba Hernandez’s interests are in exploring the link between positive psychological well-being and cardiovascular health, particularly in underserved minority populations. She explores whether characteristics like optimism and resilience are associated with low-risk cardiovascular disease profiles, and whether interventions geared toward increasing psychological well-being can favorably impact sub clinical and clinical manifestations of disease. Dr. Hernandez’s goal is to employ theories from positive psychology to help inform primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease and diabetes in Hispanic/Latino and African American adults. Dr. Hernandez is currently funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), Jump ARCHES, and the Rosenfeld Heart Foundation. She is an affiliate of the Institute of Minority Health Research (IMHR) at the University of Illinois at Chicago, the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), and the Beckman Institute. She is also on the Editorial Board of the journal of Health Education & Behavior.
