Julie Darnell, PhD, MHSA, MA

Dr. Darnell's research focuses on access to, and the delivery and financing of, health care for poor and vulnerable populations and the safety net organizations that serve them. She has earned a national reputation for her work on free clinics, which are volunteer-based nonprofit clinics that provide healthcare services at little or no charge to low-income people who are predominantly uninsured. Findings from her research on free clinics have been published in the Archives of Internal Medicine and Medical Care and in a report to the U.S. Congress. She is frequently invited to speak at national, regional, and state free clinic association conferences. Her work on free clinics has received numerous awards and recognition from organizations including the Society for Social Work and Research, the National Association of Social Workers Foundation, the Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action, the American Public Health Association, and the Public Health System Research Interest Group of AcademyHealth.

She received her master’s and doctoral degrees in Social Service Administration from The University of Chicago. She also has a master’s degree in health services administration from The George Washington University.