Standardized Patient

Verna Burden, MS, RD spent the first part of her career in nutrition research. But after a workshop on Motivational Interviewing (MI) in 2001, she began shifting her focus to working with groups and individuals on making habit changes. The core principles of MI struck a deep cord with Verna. Since that time she has applied this approach in employee wellness programs, group facilitation, individual health coaching, and health promotion research. She joined the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers in 2006 and has worked with a wide variety of organizations and professionals in learning and applying MI. Whether in a workshop or in one-to-one coaching, Verna’s favorite thing is to witness a practitioner having an “a-ha” moment of how to make MI strategies and principles their own.