Gabriela Suarez, M.A.

I am a 5^th year doctoral candidate in clinical psychology. I received my undergraduate degree in Applied Psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2014 and my master’s at the University of Cincinnati in 2018.

I am strongly dedicated to working with under-served communities through community-engaged research and intervention projects with the aim of better understanding and addressing health disparities. Some of my previous projects include examining differences in perceived stress and stress-buffering factors among a large sample of individuals from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. In addition, I worked in collaboration with medical providers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC) and Latino community leaders for three years on a pilot intervention with the goal of increasing knowledge and awareness about early detection of Autism Spectrum Disorder and developmental delay conditions among Latino immigrant community members.

Currently, I am working on my dissertation, which focuses on examining the mediating role of risk and protective familial factors on intergenerational acculturation differences and Latino adolescent mental health using a clinical sample. Through this project, I aim to identify additional unique cultural stressors contributing to Latino adolescent mental health, specifically among adolescents seeking clinical treatment, and to use my findings to inform on additional research on piloting/implementing evidence-based, culturally adapted approaches to better address the needs of Latino adolescents and families.

Clinically, I am currently at CCHMC’s Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics (DDBP), where I provide individual and co-therapy services and conduct psychological assessments to children with concerns of a developmental disability (or disabilities). Embedded within CCHMC, I also participate in LEND (Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities), a federally funded training program that focuses on teaching advocacy skills and increasing knowledge on evidence-based screening, diagnosis, and treatment of developmental disabilities to professionals from varying health-related fields.

Contact: suarezgs@ucmail.uc.edu