Alaine Reschke-Hernandez

I seek to inform and inspire the effective use of music for health-related outcomes through interdisciplinary research. I am a highly trained musician and have performed professionally for over 20 years. As a board-certified music therapist, I have two decades of clinical experience that has prompted practical understanding of the utility of my research in its translation to music-based intervention training and implementation. I have worked with diverse individuals in several settings across the lifespan and am passionate about improving the well-being of individuals impacted by dementia, their caregivers, and their families. I am privileged to have received interdisciplinary research training in qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods. I was a research assistant for Dr. Sheri Robb (now Director, Indiana CTSI KL2 Young Investigators Program; Leadership Team for Sound Health Network) and completed advanced training with three highly regarded experts in music therapy: Dr. Deanna Hanson-Abromeit at the University of Missouri – Kansas City (now Associate Professor, University of Kansas) and Drs. Kate Gfeller and Mary Adamek at the University of Iowa (both recently retired). I was a member of Dr. Daniel Tranel’s (fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science) cognitive neuroscience laboratory at the University of Iowa, where I led two successful interdisciplinary studies that integrated expertise in cognitive neuroscience, music therapy, and music cognition. As an Assistant Professor of Music Therapy at the University of Kentucky, I have continued this pattern of interdisciplinary collaboration in partnership with the College of Social Work, Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, and Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC). The invaluable opportunity I had in the IMPACT-AD fellowship program equipped me with tools to advance my skills as a clinical trialist. In the last three years, I have led or co-led three funded projects that have allowed me to gain more experience in clinical trial management and interdisciplinary team leadership in music-based intervention research in telehealth and community-based settings.