patricia kinser

Patricia A. Kinser, Ph.D., RN, WHNP-BC, FAAN

Doris B. Yingling Chair and Distinguished Professor

Dean, School of Nursing

kinserpa@vcu.edu

(804) 828-5174

Box 980567, Richmond, VA 23298-0567

Lab website

Office of the Dean

Education

Ph.D. (Nursing), University of Virginia
M.S. (Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner), Virginia Commonwealth University
B.S.N. (Nursing), Virginia Commonwealth University
B.S. (Biology, Neural and Behavioral Science), Haverford College

Affiliations

Affiliate Associate Professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, VCU School of Medicine

Research/Scholarship Interests

Kinser's program of research is focused on the overall vision of helping mothers, families and children thrive, with specific foci on biobehavioral mechanisms (including epigenetics) of perinatal depression and on the effects of psychobehavioral interventions and complementary health approaches for depression and related symptoms.

Kinser is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the following: as PI of the Mamma Mia Study (R01HD100395; PI: Kinser), a mobile/ internet-based approach to prevent perinatal depression in a large population of women across the United States; as PI of the Mindful Moms Study (R01NR020220; MPIs: Kinser, Bodnar-Deren), a yoga-based approach to intervene with perinatal depression in underserved populations; as site Co-PI of the RECOVER Study (OT2HL161847-01; PI: Katz), which explores the long-term effects of COVID-19 in children and young adults; as Co-PI of the NEXUS Study (R21DA058407; MPIs: Salisbury, Svikis, Kinser) to evaluate an intervention for women at risk of substance use during pregnancy; and, as co-PI of the VCU AWARE Center: Autonomic Wellness Research, Education, and Care Autonomic Wellness (VCU CCTR Funds; MPIs: Chelimsky, Burch, Kinser).

Kinser provides consultations to teams regarding her expertise in intervention research with biobehavioral outcomes/ mechanisms, mixed-methodologies, women's health and symptom self-management. Her research is positioned at the intersection of research and clinical care regarding the promotion of positive health behaviors and interventions for mental and physical wellness. For more information, see her research lab's website.

Area of Current Clinical Practice

Kinser maintains an active clinical practice as a board-certified women’s health nurse practitioner (WHNP-BC), volunteering at a clinic for underserved populations in Richmond (Health Brigade).

Teaching

Kinser teaches in the Ph.D. program, with focus on qualitative research methods, mixed-methodologies and rigorous health intervention research. She welcomes Ph.D. students who have interest in maternal-child health and interventions for mental and physical wellness.

Select Publications

Shah, L., Kinser, P., Moyer, S., Rider, A., Kang, L., Decker, R., Feliciano, D., Lantz, L., Crouch, T., Popoff, E., Mohanraj, L., Hahn, J., Bo, N., Gharbo, R., Chelimsky, G., Burch, J., Salisbury, A., Chelimsky, T. (2026). Lived Experiences and Perspectives of Persons with Conditions Marked by Persistent Sympathetic Activation. PLOS One. 21(8): e0355952.
Lantz, L., Case, K., Brown, R., Arikkat, M., Bodnar-Deren, S., Kinser, P. (2026). Exploring the Relationship between Maternal-Infant (Dyadic) Attachment, Postpartum Depression, and Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy: A Scoping Review. Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing. Published ahead of print, Nov 3, 2026. doi: 10.1097/JPN.0000000000001022
Kinser, P., Moyer, S., Jones, H., Jallo, N., Popoola, A., Thacker, L., Russell, S., Olavesen, E., Sundrehagen, T., Hare, M., Xia, B., Garthus-Niegel, S., Haga, S., Drozd, F. (2025) Perceptions of the Mamma Mia Program, an Internet-Based Prevention Strategy for Perinatal Depression Symptoms. PLOS Mental Health. 2(4): e0000138. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmen.0000138. PMID: 41661763 PMCID: PMC12798229
Gross RS, Thaweethai T, Kleinman LC, Snowden, J., Rosenzweig, E., Milner, J., Tantisira, K., Rhee, K., Jernigan, T., Kinser, P., et al. (2024). Characterizing Long COVID in Children and Adolescents. Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Published online August 21, 2024. doi:10.1001/jama.2024.12747. PMID: 39196964
Moyer S, Kinser, P, Nunziato J, Holmes, C, Salisbury, A (2023). Development of the EPDS-US: An updated perinatal mental health screening tool using a respectful care and trauma-informed approach. Journal of Women’s Health, 32: 1080-1085. 10.1089/jwh.2023.0141. PMID: 37582210

View full publication list

Current Funded Grants

Name of Grant	Role	Funding Agency	Period
Neuro-threat circuity in POTS and PASC: Distinct or more of the same?	MPI	NIH/National Heart Lung and Blood Institute	12/1/24 - 2/28/27
From Distress to Dyad: A Convergent Mixed-Methods Approach Exploring Perinatal Depression, Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy, Dyadic Interaction, and Dyadic Attachment in Marginalized Perinatal Dyads	Mentor/Faculty PI	American Psychiatric Nurse Association Research Grants	10/1/26 - 9/30/27
Pediatric POTS: Does a periaqueductal gray-vagus nerve interface malfunction explain the natural history with its numerous co-morbidities?	Co-I	NIH/National Heart Lung and Blood Institute	7/15/24 - 4/30/29
Center for Rehabilitation Science and Engineering (CERSE) - Wright Center T32 Postdoctoral Training Program in Translational Population Health and Data Science Using Service Member, Veteran and Civilian Healthcare Datasets	Mentor	NIH/National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences	9/1/26 - 8/31/31
A Multi-Center Observational Study: The RECOVER Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-COV-2 (PASC) Pediatric Cohort Study	Site Co-PI	NIH/National Heart Lung and Blood Institute	11/1/21 - 2027
Biobehavioral perspectives on social connectedness and the “Mindful Moms” intervention for marginalized pregnant women with depression	MPI	NIH/National Institute of Nursing Research	5/6/21 - 2/28/27

Professional Service

Kinser maintains an active clinical practice as a board-certified women’s health nurse practitioner (WHNP-BC) at a local safety net clinic. She serves as a grant reviewer at the national level for various federal study sections (e.g., National Institutes of Health; Veterans Administration). She is an active member of the International Marce Society for Perinatal Mental Health, the Society of Behavioral Medicine, the Virginia Council of Nurse Practitioners, the Southern Nursing Research Society, and the American Academy of Nursing. She has most recently contributed policy expertise as a two-term governor-appointed member of the Board of Health for the Commonwealth of Virginia.