Our Scholars

Exploring the links between restrictive abortion legislation and maternal mortality, evaluating the impact of preconception and postpartum insurance coverage on maternal mortality rates, and integrating discussion of pregnancy-associated risk into preconception counseling.

Optimizing emergency department utilization in underserved communities by examining health disparities that preclude timely access to preventative healthcare; investigating methods to increase equitable access to care in urban health settings.

Utilizing cross-cultural education, implementation science, and community-based participatory research methods to improve disparities in emergency medical care, specifically for patients with cardiovascular disease

Advancing the next generation of social determinants of health interventions through translating science to policy.

Using epidemiologic methods to investigate the drivers of disparities in oncologic outcomes and to design effective interventions.

Identifying policies to increase access to care for vulnerable populations by understanding effects of COVID-19 on unemployment, Medicaid enrollment, and healthcare utilization and increasing education in diversity, equity, and inclusion

Investigating multi-level interventions to address social determinants of surgical patients to improve access to timely surgery and transitions of care at discharge. Exploring hospital and population level variation in lung transplantation outcomes.

Investigating how to improve adolescent mental healthcare access and delivery, especially as it relates to suicide prevention services for racial-ethnic minorities.

Exploring multidisciplinary approaches for treating chronic pain, and working to develop patient-centered and equitable approaches to opioid risk mitigation.

Investigating mechanisms to effectively un-silo OBGYN care for the poor and underserved, trialing interventions to support providers caring for the underserved, and researching patient trust to increase patient engagement.

Implementing evidence-based mental health treatments in nontraditional settings, such as schools and primary care, with a focus on increasing overall access and equity in access to mental health care for youth.

Exploring interventions to address the impact of racial trauma and intersections of structural oppression within community, academic, and institutional settings as well as developing historically informed models for organizational change.

Identifying characteristics of healthcare workplace environments that impact diverse clinician recruitment and retention; investigating the relationship between workforce diversity, equitable patient outcomes, and high value care. 

Investigating community based innovations in pediatric mental healthcare delivery to alleviate socioeconomic barriers to health in vulnerable urban populations.

Investigating disparities in the ascertainment, incidence, and prevalence of diseases and syndromes of advanced age, including dementia and frailty. Evaluating opportunities to prolong functional independence for older adults.

Improving the quality of care individuals with substance use disorders receive by determining the best strategies to successfully implement evidence-based practices in hospital and community settings.

Investigating racial and socioeconomic disparities in pediatric cardiac arrest, designing and implementing interventions to mitigate disparities in pediatric critical care.

Investigating structural barriers to successful transitions to adult health care in young, vulnerable populations and exploring health policy innovations to enhance transitional care outcomes.  

Exploring the experiences and intervention needs of new fathers who are survivors of child maltreatment to break intergenerational cycles of child maltreatment and psychiatric vulnerability.

Exploring how healthcare institutions can radically transform the social determinants of health, particularly through supporting community ownership strategies such as food buying clubs, community land trusts, and worker-owned cooperatives. 

Understanding how the patient experience surrounding surgical complications can help inform changes to the pre-operative counseling session prior to breast cancer surgery.

Improving the quality of life and care for older adults living with dementia and their family caregivers by examining innovative, non-pharmacologic interventions to better manage challenging symptoms of dementia

Investigating the interplay of physical health, mental health, and social services needs to improve care for vulnerable patient populations.

Developing interventions to reduce rural-urban disparities in surgically-treated cancers; improving access to the highest quality breast, endocrine and melanoma cancer care; and mitigating the impact of racism and structural violence on surgical outcomes.

Improving health disparities and equity in surgical populations, reducing low value care via quality improvement and policy change, and addressing financial toxicity of the healthcare system

Integrating diverse data sources and research methods to better understand the U.S. acute care system and advocate for the people who use it.

Investigating evidence-based policy solutions for people experiencing homelessness and substance use disorder.

Identifying gaps in health care access and outcomes of vulnerable populations, and investigating how social service interventions delivered in the ED can improve the health outcomes of socially vulnerable populations.

Eliminating avoidable blindness by investigating barriers to eye care, designing interventions to strengthen the delivery of ophthalmic services, and advocating for policies that improve vision health around the world.

Improving health equity with a focus on issues relevant to the Latinx community including pediatric obesity, mental health and adverse childhood experiences, trauma and building resiliency.

Investigating innovative primary care delivery models for vulnerable populations in clinic-based and non-clinic based settings through multidisciplinary care teams.

Characterizing pediatric trauma and the multifaceted approach necessary for its prevention and treatment, with a focus on gun violence, injuries and their care in urban versus rural settings.

Understanding the distinct ways chronic conditions affects different populations with an emphasis on global health and disparities and a specific focus on Mexico and immigrant populations in the United States

Identifying, elucidating, and implementing equity in medicine and health for and in partnership with BIPOC, women, LGBTQI, and identity intersections therein.

Examining structural determinants of health among vulnerable populations with a focus on immigrant and refugee communities and exploring equitable health delivery models tailored to promote the health of these populations.

Investigating interventions to transform healthcare work environments to retain a diverse health workforce for the provision of equitable and cost-effective care.

Using CBPR-based methods to mitigate racial and ethnic health disparities with a focus on infant/child nutrition, maintenance of maternal lactation, and food insecurity.

Investigating health inequities in mental health and substance use during the perinatal period and addressing gaps in data disaggregation in Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders mental health research.

Investigating the barriers and alternatives to traditional housing and exploring community-based interventions that improve the health of individuals and families experiencing homelessness.

Designing inclusive curricula and collaborating in a multi-disciplinary manner to disseminate innovative methods of medical education for healthcare providers, medical trainees, patients, and community members.

Investigating how contextual factors like race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status intersect with dementia outcomes, and strategies for increasing representation of ethnoracially diverse older adults and caregivers in clinical research

Evaluating health systems reform and health policy effects in achieving reduced costs and improved patient outcomes for our most vulnerable populations.

Investigating the impacts of social determinants of health, such as trauma and adversity, on biopsychosocial health outcomes and healthcare service disparities spanning the general population, veterans, and multiple sclerosis populations.

Using ethics-informed approaches to examine and enhance preventive health interventions and shared decision-making in adult primary care with patients of low socioeconomic status.

Investigating suicide risk and how the assessment of symptoms, behaviors, and environment, on the individual level using innovative technologies, may improve the efficacy and equity of psychiatric triage and treatment.

Advancing health equity in interdisciplinary health professional education and evaluating community accountability in hospital community benefits spending.

Building systems of accompaniment to improve health for structurally vulnerable patients in the U.S. and globally; investigating the political economy of care infrastructure and access to health technologies.

Examining the use of clinic-community partnerships to empower individuals, families, and communities to improve their health and wellbeing, with a focus on reducing disparities in obesity and obesity-related illness.

Investigating the impact of health policy and health care delivery model innovation in fostering high-value care in urologic oncology and leveraging patient/community centered outcomes in designing targeted interventions.

Investigating hypertension related stroke disparities and designing more equitable systems of stroke care.

Investigating the utility of preoperative testing for low risk procedures and the de-implementation of low-value treatments in older women with breast cancer.

Working with local communities to research and develop sustainable solutions that reduce firearm injuries.

Investigating the association between intraoperative ventilator parameters and the incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications.

Understanding and intervening upon the frictions of health care to design a more user-friendly system and coproduce goal-concordant care, particularly for older adults and their families in the inpatient setting.

Investigating outcomes disparities in cardiac surgery and improving diversity within cardiac surgery.

Evaluating clinical and economic impacts of inadequate housing; exploring how housing policy and urban planning shapes patient outcomes; addressing housing inequities through multidisciplinary collaborations to support pediatric health and development.

Investigating neighborhood-level differences in health outcomes; using thoughtful urban and regional planning, public policy, and community engagement to mitigate health inequities; surveilling public health from the emergency department.

Understanding health disparities using behavioral economics, identifying modifiable factors associated with patient-centered outcomes in transitions of care, and designing health system interventions that incentivize long-term health.

Economically quantifying and thinking about acute care health system readiness and disaster preparedness.