Susan Gaylord

Susan Gaylord, PhD, is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Health Behavior at the University of North Carolina’s Gillings School of Global Public Health and holds an Adjunct Associate Professor role in the Department of Family Medicine. She serves as Director of the Program on Integrative Medicine at UNC’s School of Medicine and Director of the UNC Mindfulness-based Stress and Pain Management Program. Additionally, she co-directs UNC’s NIH T-32 CAM Research Fellowship Program and acts as a research psychologist.

Gaylord earned her PhD and MA in Psychology from Duke University in 1984 and 1979, respectively. Her research focuses on complementary and alternative therapies, integrative medicine, and their applications in aging, cancer, diabetes, minority health, obesity, rural health, and substance abuse. She also explores mindfulness-based interventions for stress and pain management.

In her administrative roles, she advises special projects for the Department of Health Behavior, delivers classroom and continuing education lectures, supervises student research, and serves as a practicum preceptor. Her work emphasizes enhancing healthcare delivery through evidence-based integrative approaches.

Gaylord’s professional activities include overseeing initiatives to improve healthcare safety and effectiveness via research, education, and clinical services. She is affiliated with the Gillings School of Global Public Health and UNC School of Medicine, contributing to both academic and clinical advancements in public health and medicine.