Laurel Schaefer, DNP, APRN

Laurel is an ANCC Board Certified Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner who practices at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center Sleep Clinics in Franklin and Nashville. She was appointed to a faculty position at the Vanderbilt School of Medicine in 2016. She has a special interest in helping patients optimize their sleep and improve insomnia using behavioral and lifestyle interventions. She currently serves as the advanced practice team leader in outpatient neurology at VUMC. She lives in Franklin with her husband, John, and their two children Henry and Emma. She enjoys cooking, supporting her children in their athletic endeavors and staying active in her church.

She earned her undergraduate degree in neuroscience at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York in 2008. She also earned her Masters of Science in Nursing and Doctor of Nursing Practice from Vanderbilt University School of Nursing in 2013 and 2019 respectively and was invited to join the Signa Theta Tau Honor Society. She has been awarded the Excellence in Patient Experience Award at VUMC from 2021-2023 and serves as a clinical preceptor at the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing.