Hillary E. Swann-Thomsen, PhD

Post-Doctoral Fellow, ICHR

Research Interests

Pediatric health psychology, health care utilization and delivery, perinatal psychobiology, developmental behavioral neuroscience

Sample Publications

Swann, H. E., & Brumley, M. R. (2018). Locomotion and posture development in immature male and female rats (Rattus norvegicus): Comparison of sensory-enriched versus sensory-deprived testing environments. Journal of Comparative Psychology.

Gee, B. M., Devine, N., Aubuchon-Endsley, N. L., Brumley, M., Ramsdell-Hudock, H. L., & Swann, H. E. (2017). The Reciprocity Team: Development of an Interprofessional Research Collaboration. Journal of allied health, 46(2), 43E-49E.

Brumley, M. R., Kauer, S. D., & Swann, H. E. (2015). Developmental plasticity of coordinated action patterns in the perinatal rat. Developmental psychobiology, 57(4), 409-420.

Bio

Dr. Swann-Thomsen is a post-doctoral fellow in the ISU/St. Luke’s Applied Research program where she is examining care coordination practices in pediatric patients with complex health needs. She is particularly interested in improving the efficacy of health care delivery to pediatric populations and more broadly is interested in pediatric health psychology, as well as perinatal and development psychobiology.

Dr. Swann-Thomsen began her research career working with non-human animal models to examine the development of coordinated action during early ontogeny, including the role of sensory feedback and experience in modulating motor behavior. More recently, she studied how maternal perinatal risk factors, such as cortisol and perceived stress, impact infant developmental outcomes.

Dr. Swann-Thomsen received her PhD in Experimental Psychology from Idaho State University where she was an NIH INBRE supported Research Assistant. She is also an adjunct faculty for the Department of Psychology and teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in Behavioral Neuroscience.