Kristin Elizabeth Palladino, NP

Kristin Palladino (formerly Smith) received her Ba in psychology from the University of Louisville in 2003, and her BS in Nursing in 2009. While working at Highland Hospital as an RN, she continued with her studies to become a family nurse practitioner and completed her DNP in 2013. She began her ...

Kristin Palladino (formerly Smith) received her Ba in psychology from the University of Louisville in 2003, and her BS in Nursing in 2009. While working at Highland Hospital as an RN, she continued with her studies to become a family nurse practitioner and completed her DNP in 2013. She began her FNP career at Trillium Health where she provided comprehensive primary care to persons living with HIV and earned certification as an American HIV Medicine Specialist (2015-Present). At Trillium health she spent time working with individuals battling substance use disorders (SUDs). She had the great privilege of working with individuals with SUD in the clinic setting, at the syringe exchange, and the mobile syringe exchange van. During that time, she became the clinical director of Trillium's opioid overdose prevention program.

In 2016 she became the director of the NP residency at Highland Family Medicine (HFM) and after developing a robust curriculum, and graduating 2 cohorts, she led the program through national accreditation in 2019 (and re-accreditation 3 years later) with the Consortium for Advanced Practice Providers. She also was PI on a $400,000 non-NIH grant (Advanced Nursing Education Nurse Practitioner Residency Integration
Program). She has presented experience, benefits, and research on NP residencies at the local and national level, as well as recently published in The Journal for Nurse Practitioners. Furthermore, she maintains a role in the Consortium for Advanced Practice Providers as both an accreditation site visitor and accreditation commission member.

The past privilege and honor of severing as a clinical director of the opioid overdose prevention program provided carried over into the role at HFM where Dr. Kristin Palladino, completed her buprenorphine waiver training as soon as NPs were legally allowed to do so. She collaborated with physician colleagues who ran the buprenorphine program at HFM to begin caring for individuals with OUD, and later completed additional training to teach the 4- and 8-hour MAT-waiver course for both ASAM and PCSS. She has provided these trainings locally and nationally, as well as served as a member of the Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder Course planning committee for the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

After stepping away from my role as residency director, she continued as a clinician at HFM, as well as took on per diem positions at the URMC HIV Clinic and the PCN Digital Health Team. At the HIV clinic, she was able to provide buprenorphine management (inductions and maintenance) for patients, as well as mentor colleagues in providing this care. She was also able to assist the clinic in providing medical cannabis certifications for their patients (a role she continues to serve at HFM as well).

At present, Dr. Palladino maintains her primary clinical practice with the UMC Digital Health Team, while maintaining per diem role at HFM which allows for her to follow a small clinical panel of patients (primarily individuals who are living with OUD, part of LGBTQIA+ communities, and those on PrEP or living with HIV), precept NP residents, provide medical cannabis certifications, and continue to provide care for individuals living with OUD on buprenorphine.