Dr. Chris T. Pernell, a physician-leader and health and wellness visionary, strives to heal and transform souls. Specializing in vulnerable populations, she has expertise in health and wellness consultancy and prevention strategies.
Before joining the Labor Management Project, Dr. Chris, as she is affectionately known, founded My Body & Me as a faith-based initiative to combat overweight and obesity and associated chronic illnesses. My Body & Me has expanded to include diverse audiences, spearheading the use of novel prevention practices for engaged, healthful living and total well-being. The program was adapted for the public school setting with workshops for parents of school-aged children, and as a series for the residents of the Essex County Juvenile Detention Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Dr. Pernell is also a writer. As a contributor to Health Care Rx, an online expert panel conducted by the Washington Post, she submitted weekly blogs on the health-care reform debate. In her first book, Letters to My People, she affirms the unique greatness of each person in hopes of empowering others to tap into their highest calling and abundance.
A cum laude graduate of Princeton University, Dr. Pernell received her medical degree from Duke University School of Medicine and an Executive Master of Public Health in Health Services Management from the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health. She trained clinically before segueing to population-based care. As part of the Johns Hopkins General Preventive Medicine Program, she facilitated local, regional and national public health and preventive medicine projects. Dr. Pernell is a board certified preventive medicine and public health specialist.