B.Sc.: Physician Associate, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine
MPH: Health Administration and Policy, Portland State University
DMSc: Medical (PA) Education, University of Lynchburg
Dr. McKenna is the founding Director of the MBKU Doctor of Medical Science (DMSc) Program and an Associate Professor. He previously served as Interim Program Director and Director of Accreditation at MBKU School of PA Studies (SPAS), where he continues to teach evidence-based medicine.
His career began as a US Navy Corpsman, followed by work as an emergency medicine and urgent care PA. He then spent 33 years in the biopharmaceutical industry as a Medical Science Liaison and Director of Field Medical Affairs at Merck & Co., Sanofi Genzyme, and Radius Health. His therapeutic expertise spans cardio-renal diseases, rheumatology, asthma, immunology, and metabolic bone diseases. He also served as the Internal Medicine Editor for Audio-Digest, a Wolters Kluwer Health publication.
Dr. McKenna, an NCCPA-certified PA licensed in California, is a Distinguished Fellow of the AAPA and a Fellow of the Academy of Doctoral PAs and the California Academy of PAs. As a former member of the AAPA Research and Strategic Initiative Commission, he received an AAPA research grant in 2022 and was inducted into the Sigma Xi Research Honor Society in 2026. He is a peer reviewer for several journals, a widely published researcher, and an invited national presenter. In his free time, he volunteers with the Medical Reserve Corps of Los Angeles and serves as a volunteer scientific SCUBA diver at the Aquarium of the Pacific.