Dipali Rinker, PhD, LPC
Dr. Dipali Rinker is assistant professor of behavioral sciences and biostatistics/epidemiology in the Department of Clinical Medicine at AUC. Her teaching responsibilities include the Biostatistics/Epidemiology course, as well as a variety of subjects in behavioral sciences, including substance use, eating disorders, social determinants of health, and patient communication. She also teaches Introduction to Motivational Interviewing and is in the process of becoming a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT).
Dr. Rinker is a Licensed Professional Counselor. She is trained in conducting Motivational Interviewing (MI) with a variety of populations to impact a number of behavioral outcomes, including outpatient substance users (to reduce cocaine, alcohol, and heroin use), veterans (to encourage adherence to colorectal cancer screening guidelines), and parents of babies in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) (to reduce environmental tobacco smoke in NICU infants’ homes). She has also conducted manualized relapse prevention therapy based on empirically supported therapeutic theories, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in an outpatient substance use treatment center at the University of Texas Health Science Center Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. While there, she additionally developed expertise in conducting diagnostic interviews, such as the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM (SCID). Dr. Rinker has also previously worked as a staff counselor in the AUC Wellness Center.
Dr. Rinker has a strong research background, holding concurrently a faculty appointment as a research assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Houston in Houston, TX. Her research has primarily focused on high-risk addictive behaviors and social mechanisms of change. She has maintained her interest in research, both as a member of the Scholarly Activities and Research Committee (SARC), as well as working closely with students on several student-led research projects (e.g., vaccine hesitancy among medical school students, sickle cell disease/trait health literacy on SXM, awareness and impact of blue light on medical student digital eye strain).
Dr. Rinker earned her PhD in Public Health, with majors in Behavioral Sciences and Biostatistics/Epidemiology, at the University of Texas Health Science Center School of Public Health. Prior to this, she earned her master’s in clinical psychology from the University of Houston Clear Lake.
Dr. Rinker has a family with two children and two dogs that keep her active and she enjoys running and all the beautiful beaches on the island.