Research Areas
What is Health Services Research?
Health services research examines both individual and population health through a multidisciplinary scientific lens to better understand the mechanisms and processes that optimize healthcare quality, safety and value. As a result, health services research must take into account determinants and outcomes from the perspectives of individuals, families, communities, organizations and the larger contexts of healthcare access and delivery. To put it simply, health services research investigates the access, delivery, financing and management of patient-centered, high-quality health care to improve health and well-being for all, using scientific methods from a variety of medical and non-medical fields.
Health Disparities
The health disparities research program investigates the impact of preventable variations in the opportunity to attain optimal health for socially disadvantaged racial, ethnic and other demographic groups and communities. Investigators examine the reasons for and consequences of health disparities as well as develop strategies to mitigate and eradicate them.
Health Outcomes
The health outcomes research program investigates the impact of health interventions on outcomes from the perspectives of patients including their families, healthcare providers and the healthcare system. Investigators examine the utility and value of interventions to determine what works and what does not in terms of improving health-related quality of life.
Health Promotion
The health promotion research program investigates modifiable health risk factors to prevent disease and enhance disease management. Investigators examine health risk and protective variables, assess policies and programs that influence health behavior, and determine best practices that are sustainable and scalable at the population level.
Health Technology
The health technology research program investigates digital health technologies to improve access to high-quality healthcare while also adding value for patients and their families. Investigators examine technology-enabled interventions across the six domains of quality healthcare, as well as technology-enabled methodological approaches such as artificial intelligence, big data and machine learning to improve disease diagnosis and management.
Current Center Researchers
In alphabetical order by first name.
Alex Price, PhD, DABR
Specialty: Radiation Oncology
Research Focus: Predictive computer models to improve care for patients with pancreatic cancer
Email: Alex.Price@UHhospitals.org
Amy Middleman, MD, MSEd, MPH
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Intervention programs to improve immunization rates among adolescents
Email: Amy.Middleman@UHhospitals.org
Anna Maria Hibbs, MD
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Long-term pulmonary morbidity among neonatal intensive care unit graduates
Email: Annamaria.Hibbs@UHhospitals.org
Charles Macias, MD, MPH
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Pediatric readiness for everyday emergencies and disasters
Email: Charles.Macias@UHhospitals.org
Christopher Towe, MD
Specialty: Surgery
Research Focus: Optimize postoperative pain management to enhance patient recovery
Email: Christopher.Towe@UHhospitals.org
Courtney Batt, MD
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Optimize delivery of evidence-based obesity management among adolescents
Email: Courtney.Batt@UHhospitals.org
David Axelrod, MD, MBA
Specialty: Surgery
Research Focus: Health economics and surgical outcomes in solid organ transplants
Email:David.Axelrod@UHhospitals.org
David Sheyn, MD
Specialty: Urology
Research Focus: Comparative effectiveness of treatments for female pelvic floor disorders
Email: David.Sheyn@UHhospitals.org
Elie Saade, MD, MPH
Specialty: Internal Medicine
Research Focus: Interventions to reduce hospital-acquired infections
Email: Elie.Saade@UHhospitals.org
Erica Zanath, MD
Specialty: Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine
Research Focus: Pre-operative optimization, prehabilitation and post-operative outcomes
Email: Erica.Zanath@UHhospitals.org
Faezeh Sodagari, MD
Specialty: Radiology
Research Focus: Improve access to high-value breast imaging for women with dense tissue
Email: Faezeh.Sodagari@UHhospitals.org
Gregory Cooper, MD, MA
Specialty: Gastroenterology
Research Focus: Digestive cancer screening and approaches to increase effectiveness
Email: Gregory.Cooper@UHhospitals.org
Inas Mohamed, MD, MS
Specialty: Radiology, Abdominal Imaging
Research Focus: Enhancing patient access to imaging and addressing healthcare disparities
Email: Inas.Mohamed@UHhospitals.org
Jennifer Levin, MD
Specialty: Psychiatry
Research Focus: Interventions to improve mental health of individuals with cardiovascular disease
Email: Jennifer.Levin@UHhospitals.org
Julia Blanchette, RN, PhD
Specialty: Nursing
Research Focus: Self-management interventions for emerging adults with type 1 diabetes
Email: Julia.Blanchette@UHhospitals.org
Kevin Makino, MD, PhD
Specialty: Psychiatry
Research Focus: Interventions to integrate sexual and reproductive health into adolescent psychiatry
Email: Kevin.Makino@UHhospitals.org
Kiran Faryar, MD, MPH
Specialty: Emergency Medicine
Research Focus: Interventions to integrate evidence-based practices in the emergency department to better address acute and chronic health conditions
Email: Kiran.Faryar@UHhospitals.org
Marion Were, MD, MPH
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Immigrant health and access to health care
Email: Marion.Were@UHhospitals.org
Marlene Miller, MD, MSc
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Healthcare quality, patient safety and diagnostic stewardship
Email: Marlene.Miller@UHhospitals.org
Matthew Mirsky, MD
Specialty: Hematology and Oncology
Research Focus: Interventions to improve the delivery, accessibility and outcomes of cancer care
Email: Matthew.Mirsky2@UHhospitals.org
Melinda Hsu, MD, MS
Specialty: Hematology and Oncology
Research Focus: Long-term impacts of cancer on health and well-being among cancer survivors
Email: Melinda.Hsu@UHhospitals.org
Molly McVoy, MD
Specialty: Psychiatry
Research Focus: Interventions for complex comorbidity in youth and adults with mental health disorders and medical illnesses
Email: Molly.McVoye@UHhospitals.org
Nicholas Zaorsky, MD, MS
Specialty: Radiation Oncology
Research Focus: Interventions to improve quality of care for patients with genitourinary cancers
Email: Nicholas.Zaorsky@UHhospitals.org
Olushola Fapo, MBBS, MPH
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Improve access to pediatric healthcare delivery
Email: Olushola.Fapo@UHhospitals.org
Qian Wang, MD, MPH
Specialty: Hematology and Oncology
Research Focus: Address disparities in lung cancer prevention and early cancer detection
Email: Qian.Wang@UHhospitals.org
Richard Hoehn, MD
Specialty: Surgical Oncology
Research Focus: System-level interventions to streamline cancer diagnosis and treatment
Email: Richard.Hoehn@UHhospitals.org
Robert Trager, DC, DIANM
Specialty: Family Medicine and Community Health
Research Focus: Health service utilization outcomes in chiropractic spinal manipulation
Email: Robert.Trager@UHhospitals.org
Samudragupta Bora, PhD
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Neurodevelopmental follow-up and outcomes of high-risk neonates
Email: Samudragupta.Bora@UHhospitals.org
Sarah Ronis, MD, PhD
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Improve systems of care for low-income families particularly those with children with special health care needs
Email: Sarah.Ronis@UHhospitals.org
Stacy Miner, RN, PhD
Specialty: Psychiatry and Nursing
Research Focus: Evaluation of symptoms and comorbidities in autism spectrum disorder
Email: Stacy.Miner@UHhospitals.org
Steven Shein, MD
Specialty: Pediatrics
Research Focus: Management and outcomes of critical bronchiolitis and critical asthma
Email: Steven.Shein@UHhospitals.org
Susan Mazanec, RN, PhD
Specialty: Nursing
Research Focus: Transition to post-cancer treatment survivorship
Email: Susan.Mazanec@UHhospitals.org
Trygve Dolber, MD
Specialty: Psychiatry
Research Focus: Defining, measuring and optimizing engagement between the health care system and patients with advanced and worsening chronic disease
Email: Trygve.Dolber@UHhospitals.org
Varun Sundaram, MD, PhD
Specialty: Cardiology
Research Focus: Comparative global outcomes in heart failure and utility of electronic health records systems
Email: Varun.Sundaram@UHhospitals.org