Dr. Berlacher's primary research interest revolves around medical education, specifically innovative curriculum development and outcome based program development. She is also involved in research surrounding women's cardiology and pregnancy in cardiology.
Dr. Berlacher spends her clinical time at both Magee Women's Hospital, as well as at Presbyterian and Montefiore Hospitals in Oakland. She sees both men and women in her practice. She is broadly based in all areas of general cardiology (including preventive care, non-invasive imaging, valvular disease management, coronary artery and vascular disease, heart failure, dyslipidemia). A large portion of Dr. Berlacher's practice focuses on the cardiac care of women, including cardiac issues encountered in pregnancy, pre- and post- menopausal cardiovascular health, general preventive care in women, as well as cardiac effects of breast cancer and its treatment. Additionally, Dr. Berlacher also focuses some of her practice on cardiac disease in athletes.
Dr. Berlacher participates in medical education at all levels, including medical students, residents, fellows and faculty. She does annual curriculum development for both the fellowship and the residency, spanning from didactic lectures to interactive conferences to newer curriculum delivered with a variety of technologies. She has created a course for both fellows and faculty, focusing on improving physician communication skills when caring for cardiac patients. Nationally, she participates in a variety of projects, including faculty development of medical educators in cardiology and outcomes-based program development. She hopes to further the educational projects she has started in the future, with hopes of modernizing medical education for all levels of learners, bringing innovation and technology and outcomes to the realm of medical education.
- BA, Duke University
- MD, The Ohio State University
- MS, Medical Education, University of Pittsburgh
- Residency, Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
- Chief Residency, University of PIttsburgh Medical Center
- Fellowship, Cardiology, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Education & Training
Sawatsky AP, Zickmund SL, Berlacher K, Lesky D, Granieri R. Understanding resident learning preferences within an internal medicine noon conference lecture series: a qualitative study. The Journal of Graduate Medical Education. 2014; 6(1): 32-8.
Sawatsky AP, Berlacher K, Granieri R. Using an ACTIVE teaching format versus a standard lecture format for increasing resident interaction and knowledge achievement during noon conference: a prospective, controlled study. BMC Medical Education. 2014; 14: 129.
Ryan T, Berlacher K, Lindner JR, Mankad S, Rose GA, Wang A. COCATS 4 Task Force 5: Training in Echocardiography. Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 2015; 65(17): 1786-99.
Countouris ME, Schwarz EB, Rossiter BC, Althouse AD, Berlacher KL, Jeyabalan A, Catov JM. Effects of lactation on postpartum blood pressure among women with gestational hypertension and preeclampsia. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2016
Sawatsky AP, Zickmund SL, Berlacher K, Lesky D, Granieri R. Understanding the challenges to facilitating active learning in the resident conferences: a qualitative study of internal medicine faculty and resident perspectives. Medical Education Online. 2015; 20: 27289.
