Search for Members
Total members: 189
Health Equity/Research Interest
Antiracism, diversity recruitment, inclusion, culturally appropriate care especially regarding end-of-life.
Expertise/Goals
I hope to better focus and direct my above research interests through collaboration with colleagues who are focused on health equity while hopefully identifying a group of mentors who can also help guide this work.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Priscilla Amanquah
Hunter College
Priscilla.Amanquah92@myhunter.cuny.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
The Center for Health Equity provides a platform for innovation and change that is long needed in the health care system. Research in Social disparities and health equity have been overlooked and neglected; this neglect has led to a series of detrimental strong holds within the healthcare system that makes it difficult for individuals more specifically minorities to receive quality health care. →
Expertise/Goals
Being a human biology major at Hunter College I have the opportunity to study a broad range of disciplines that contribute to the health and wellness of human beings. This includes studying the psychology and biology of humans as well as studying the health system in which we depend on. With my studies I will have extensive knowledge and resources at my disposal to contribute to the progression of →
Academic Member

Jessica Ancker, PhD, MPH
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
jsa7002@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My primary area of research is in patient use of health information technologies such as patient portals; although I’ve done work in health numeracy/literacy and patient decision making I have also found that some of the most effective ways to increase patient engagement are actually system-level changes rather than individual-level interventions. My secondary area of interest is in clinical →
Expertise/Goals
I’d like to network with others interested in health equity and potentially develop new collaborations. I’d also like to contribute to educational and policy efforts to promote health equity in medical education.
Health Equity/Research Interest
I have been working with and researching the healthcare of the homeless immigrants and refugees since the mid 90’s. I have developed related training curricula for public health students medical students and residents and participated in related advocacy and policy making at the national and international level. My current research focus is in health disparities curriculum development and cancer →
Expertise/Goals
I have extensive leadership experience in national and international organizations and professional associations that relates to global health and population-based medicine. My wide range of experience in developing service programs educational curricula and research in these fields will bring added value to the current faculty and resources at the center. I am looking forward to collaborating and →
Academic Member

Avery August, PhD
Cornell University
College of Veterinary Medicine
aa749@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am interested in lung inflammatory diseases such as allergic asthma that preferentially affect underrepresented minorities and other under-served communities. I am also interested in work that contributes to increasing the diversity of the next generation of research working on health equity.
Expertise/Goals
Networking with others interested in this area. Finding a networking of basic sciences researchers in health equity.
Academic Member

Ariel C. Avgar
Cornell University
School of Industrial and Labor Relations
aca27@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I explore the role that employment relations factors play in the healthcare industry. As such, I examine the effects of a variety of workplace innovations, including new technology, delivery of care models, and innovative work practices, on patients, frontline employees, and organizational performance.
Expertise/Goals
I believe that my focus on work and workforce related factors can add value to the center. I especially interested in the link between working conditions and outcomes for workers and patients, a link that has the capacity to inform a host of equity related research questions.
Academic Member

Kemi Babagbemi, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
keb2012@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am currently interested in the disparities in Breast cancer screening, diagnosis and treatment outcomes in diverse populations.
Expertise/Goals
I have an extensive background in Women’s imaging particularly in Breast imaging and Ultrasound and I have concentrated most of my teaching efforts in these areas. I am also working on ways to increase the representation of underrepresented minority faculty and trainees in our department of Radiology.
Academic Member

Onyinye Balogun, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
onb9003@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I study local and global disparities in cancer care delivery and outcomes. In particular, I focus on women’s health i.e. breast cancer, cervical cancer and endometrial cancer. There are persistent inequities in the outcomes for women with these cancers across the nation and within cities. In partnership with the Cornell Center for Health Equity, I aim to pinpoint the reasons for these pervasive →
Expertise/Goals
I have prior experience with community education and outreach. I also have experience with clinical research and trial development. I hope to work with like-minded colleagues to ensure that the health of our communities (especially as it relates to cancer) is improved and not dependent on your race or socioeconomic status.
Academic Member

Samprit Banerjee, PhD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
sab2028@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My current research interests are in using multivariate statistical theory to solves the major statistical challenges in analyzing big data (electronic health records health insurance claims) and small data (smartphone data) in the context assessing need of mental health interventions among disadvantaged community members and its delivery to the community. I am also interested in the risk →
Expertise/Goals
I am the Director of the Methods Core of Weill Cornell ALACRITY Center for Late- and Mid-Life Mood Disorders (P50 MH113838) which focuses on behavioral interventions improve the care of older and middle-aged adults with mood disorders treated in the community. I can facilitate connections between CCHEq and ALACRITY. I can also provide statistical guidance to CCHEq investigators in their grant →
Health Equity/Research Interest
Economic and policy strategies to support evidence-based care for mental health and substance use conditions including strategies to promote equity in behavioral health care.
Expertise/Goals
I bring to the Center deep understanding of the interplay among policy organizational and clinical factors that contributed to lack of equity in health care access use and outcomes. I also bring expertise with multiple types of population data to address equity issues. I hope to expand my collaborative network and be inspired and encouraged in general.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Elizabeth Baquero, EdD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
epb2002@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Depression; eating disorders; health education; health communication; prevention; health disparities; alternative therapies for health; and spiritual health.
Expertise/Goals
Received my doctorate in health education from Teachers College Columbia University. Currently working at the Division of General Internal Medicine at WCM and teaching part-time undergraduate communication and health courses.
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am pursuing a career in surgery to improve outcomes for underserved patients, and for the West Indian and African American communities that I represent. With this purpose, I am empowered to address health disparities through research, global health initiatives, and policy reform.
Expertise/Goals
I aim to connect with others who are dedicated to addressing health disparities so that I may learn from those who have come before me, and collaborate on future projects. As a surgical resident, I hope that my perspectives will also serve as a resource to students as they navigate school, residency, and research environments.
Academic Member

Czarina Behrends, PhD, MPH
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
czb2002@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Dr. Behrends’ current research focuses on HIV HCV and opioid overdose prevention among people who use drugs. More broadly her work examines health services access and care for people who use drugs with the goal of generating relevant and timely health policy programmatic and economic research that addresses social justice and health equity concerns of people who use drugs. Ensuring culturally →
Expertise/Goals
I have been working in the area of substance use research for 11 years with a focus on health services that sensitively meet the needs of people who use drugs using a combination of epidemiological methods economic analysis and mixed methods approaches. My expertise in this subject area will help ensure that substance use research is represented in this center to promote health equity research for →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Natalie C. Benda, PhD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
ncb4001@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Women’s health, consumer health informatics, health information technology approaches to improving health equity
Expertise/Goals
Many health equity interventions are now leveraging technologies. My expertise involves evaluating the usability of technology and how it fits the needs and goals of diverse populations. Ensuring the needs and values of users are met ensures that solutions may be equitably utilized. I would like to be connected with others in the Cornell and WCM community doing health equity research to gain →
Health Equity/Research Interest
My interest lies in the development of innovative graduate medical education models that place an emphasis on community engagement and the social determinants of health that will result in new physicians with a primary care and population health focus.
Expertise/Goals
As a physician and clinician educator in Tompkins county I bring detailed knowledge and experience regarding the local healthcare delivery systems and its patient population. Through greater collaboration with the CCHEq I hope to partner physicians in training with local researchers network with community leaders and receive as well as provide education that will increase the health of the local →
Academic Member

Kimberly Bloom-Feshbach, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
kimberlybf@gmail.com
Health Equity/Research Interest
As a physician, medical educator and investigator, I aspire to build, teach and empirically study a practice of medicine that is as unrelenting in its application of scientific rigor as it is generous in its consideration of the whole person. My work tackles problems of empathy loss, communication failure, power dynamics, and physician burnout. Clinically, I am interested in improving →
Expertise/Goals
I have an interdisciplinary background in Religious Studies with a focus on medical anthropology and bioethics as well as an epidemiological research background at the NIH. After undergoing a train-the-trainer communication program at Vital Talk, I am hoping to find through the Center collaborators interested in applying these techniques to improve care for vulnerable patients.
Affiliate Member

Marlene Camacho-Rivera, ScD, MS, MPH
SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
marlene.camacho-rivera@downstate.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
As a social epidemiologist, Dr. Camacho-Rivera’s research focuses on three main themes: 1. Elucidating social determinants of racial/ethnic disparities in chronic diseases such as asthma, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer 2. Exploring within-group heterogeneity in the prevention and treatment of chronic disease outcomes among racial/ethnic groups 3. Developing culturally-tailored, →
Expertise/Goals
As a Latina first-generation college graduate, born and raised in the East New York section of Brooklyn, New York, my earliest life experiences have molded my career trajectory as a social epidemiologist and health disparities researcher. As a Center affiliate member, my goals are to strengthen existing partnerships and develop new collaborations with faculty across Cornell to design and evaluate →
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am a primary care clinician educator at the only community based teaching site for our Internal Medicine Residency training program. I also co-direct the Psychosocial Curriculum, a year-long series of seminars offered to our PGY-1 class with emphasis on the biopsychosocial model of health, relationship centered communication skills, identifying social determinants of health, cross-cultural →
Expertise/Goals
I am interested in collaborating with and learning from collaborators, strategies for social determinants of health and cross-cultural care curriculum development. I am also looking forward to the possibilities for new ideas for strategic development and enhancement of pipeline programs.
Academic Member

Colleen Carey, PhD
Cornell University
College of Human Ecology
colleen.carey@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
An economist by training, my research focuses on the industrial organization of health care, with special attention to federal regulation of health insurance markets. My research informs the design of publicly-subsidized health insurance markets such as the Affordable Care Act marketplaces. I am particularly interested in the success of federal regulations, such as reinsurance and risk →
Expertise/Goals
Interested in fostering connections between Weill Cornell and the Ithaca campus.
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am the Associate Director of the Sloan Program in Health Administration (confers the Master of Health Administration degree) at Cornell University (Ithaca campus) and teach both graduate and undergraduate courses in population health and population health management. I enjoy working with community partners to use data to solve real-world problems while providing applied learning experiences form →
Expertise/Goals
I would like to collaborate with other interested members around creating holistic recruitment and retention policies programs and practices of graduate students. Additionally I am interested in trading and creating ideas for building inclusive classroom practices and applied learning opportunities as they related to teaching population health.
Academic Member

Patricia A. Cassano, PhD
Cornell University
College of Human Ecology
pac6@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Dr. Cassano is a nutritional epidemiologist studying the interaction of nutrition with the genome in order to identify strategies to prevent chronic disease. In addition to her discovery-based research program, Dr. Cassano directs The WHO/Cochrane/Cornell Summer Institute for Systematic Reviews in Nutrition for Global Policy Making. The Institute teaches review methods including considerations of →
Expertise/Goals
I hope to network with Center members given my various roles and to find ways to work together to advance goals to reduce health disparities, particularly in relation to the role of nutrition in health inequities. I am interested in representing not only my own professional interests, but the interests of various groups that I represent.
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research focuses on the economics of risky health behaviors. I am particularly interested in obesity and the diet and physical activity patterns that contribute to it. Specifically, I study the factors that explain differences in obesity, the economic consequences of obesity, and I evaluate policies and programs to reduce disparities in obesity, diet, and physical activity. I teach courses in →
Expertise/Goals
I study disparities in risky health behaviors, such as poor diet and physical inactivity, and disparities in health conditions such as obesity. My goals are to shed light on the causes of risky health behaviors, the consequences of risky health behaviors, and the effects of policies and programs to modify risky health behaviors. I also enjoy teaching and mentoring the next generation of scholars.
Academic Member

Philip H. Chang, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
phc9021@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My clinical expertise is in burn care, from the initial injury through the acute hospitalization and oft-needed surgeries to the scar rehabilitation and long term recovery for burn patients. Burn injury disproportionately affects working-class adults and children from lower socioeconomic areas in the United States. Globally, burn injuries are particularly devastating for patients in low and →
Expertise/Goals
I previously worked with Physicians For Peace, a non-governmental organization, dedicated to improving quality of burn care in low and middle income countries through educational outreach missions and visited burn centers in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Colombia, Ghana, and Bolivia. I have over a decade of experience with clinical research on all aspects of burn care. Like many in the →
Academic Member

Eloise Chapman-Davis, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
elc9120@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research focus is both clinical and translational with an emphasis on health disparities among women with gynecologic malignancies. My clinical research includes focus on creation of health interventions to improve compliance for cervical cancer screening. My research interests expand to both local community engagement, health education and international collaborations.
Expertise/Goals
As a gynecologic oncologist, I am both a surgeon and provide chemotherapy for my patients with expertise in cancer care, palliative care discussions and preventative care. I am interested in networking with others interested in health equity with the goal of developing new collaborations to improve care among underserved cancer populations.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Kashmira S. Chawla, MD, MSc
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
ksc9013@nyp.org
Health Equity/Research Interest
Witnessing the narratives behind illness in developing countries early on, I came to understand the biological phenomena of disease as a complex function of cultural norms and lack of access to basic needs, mired in abuse of human rights. I also learned that the challenges to obtaining high quality anesthesia and surgical care are rooted in dysfunctional healthcare systems, ineffective policies, →
Expertise/Goals
I will be able to contribute my robust analytical skills in epidemiology, human rights lens, and insights due to grassroots national and international public health programming experiences. I hope to gain mentorship and collaboration opportunities.
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research has focused on the role of community institutions in the delivery of social and health services particularly to under-served communities such as immigrant communities and communities of color. I am also interested in how key community-based institutions in immigrant and minority communities shape community values and norms particularly in relation to controversial or sensitive topics →
Expertise/Goals
I have been working in and conducting research about immigrant communities and communities of color for more than 25 years. My combined experience as an academic public health researcher urban policy and planning professor and previously as the deputy executive director of an immigrant health organization provides a unique perspective on questions of health care access and health promotion in →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

George S. Corpuz, BS, BA
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
gsc4001@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My experience lies in understanding the mechanisms of social and healthcare disparities created by language barriers. As a linguist with an emphasis in Hispanic sociolinguistics, I conducted a fieldwork based study that sought to examine the opinions and attitudes of limited English proficiency (LEP) Latino immigrants on care in a non-native language (NNL).
Expertise/Goals
I hope to contribute to these research endeavors from my linguistics and political experiences.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Alessandra Cruz
Cornell University
College of Human Ecology
alc284@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I was referred by Dr. Madeline Sterling to join the Cornell Center for Health Equity to explore my research interest in understanding the HCW and patient- physician relationship. What interventions can we utilize to improve numeracy and health literacy among heart failure and cognitively impaired HF patients? Through chart reviews and community-based research I hope to continue the research →
Expertise/Goals
My experiences as a volunteer in the triage of the Emergency Room in Philippine General Hospital in the Philippines inspired my interest in the Cornell Center for Health Equity. I became more aware of the health inequities within the healthcare and medical system when I found that patients could not read medicine labels in English nor could they afford and access basic medical needs such as pain →
Health Equity/Research Interest
Among my many interests is identifying factors and obstacles leading to the leaky pipeline spanning from motivated high school students who are underrepresented minorities or from underserved backgrounds, through college, medical school, and into a career in medicine. I believe many who drop off that path do so for reasons which are eminently manageable. I’d consider it one of my crowning →
Expertise/Goals
My strength lies in my academic and clinical experiences heretofore—I have worked and taught widely disparate environments. For 5 years, I was clinical faculty at an urban community hospital in Bronx, NY. That hospital is under-resourced and the community is underserved in every regard. I bore witness to the frustrations and injustices endured by those on the losing end of health inequity. →
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interests are in human-computer interaction (HCI) information and communication technologies for development (ICTD). My main focus is on designing building deploying and evaluating novel computing systems that improve the lives of underserved populations in low-income regions. I am broadly interested in understanding the social technical and infrastructural challenges faced by diverse →
Expertise/Goals
I am an expert in the design implementation and evaluation of computing technologies that aim to solve problems in health equity. I am looking for community partners and collaborators with medical and health expertise that have in need for or are excited about new technology-based interventions that will positively impact health equity.
Academic Member

Byron Demopoulos, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
byd2001@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
As a clinician in Internal Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine I care for a wide range of patients and have experience with how disparities in health care access and health literacy negatively impact health outcomes. I mentor medical students and residents on how to care for patients of different backgrounds and role model one-tier medical care for a diverse NYC patient population.
Expertise/Goals
I hope to foster collaborations in both education and research across the NYC and Ithaca campuses particularly through medical education for medical students and residents who rotate through electives and courses on both campuses. I am actively involved in recruitment and curriculum development for the newly ACGME – accredited Internal Medicine Residency Training Program based at Cayuga Medical →
Academic Member

Antonio P.. DeRosa, MDSc
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
apd2004@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Antonio has dual roles on the faculty at Weill Cornell Medicine (WCM). In his first role as Program Lead, Decision Navigation & Patient Support in the WCM Meyer Cancer Center’s Office of Community Outreach and Engagement (COE), Antonio is a leader in providing decision navigation support and promoting shared decision-making among the cancer patient community through the management of a Patient →
Expertise/Goals
Research partnerships, collaborations, and mentorship opportunities.
Affiliate Member

Lisa Diamond, MD, MPH, MHS
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
diamondl@mskcc.org
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research focuses on understanding how clinicians’ non-English language proficiency affects the quality of care derived to patients with limited English proficiency (LEP). Ultimately I plan to use the results of my research to establish standards for the appropriate use of non-fluent non-English language skills by clinicians and to identify process and outcomes measures that capture the quality →
Expertise/Goals
My experience in language barriers research has the potential in combination with networking and collaboration with other professionals in the Center from Health Equity to expand the reach of my work into changes in policy to improve care for patients.
Health Equity/Research Interest
Broadly speaking, I am interested in qualitative and quantitative public health research that focuses on improving health outcomes; addressing the social determinants of health; and improving access to, delivery, and quality of healthcare services for people of all ages and backgrounds: especially adolescents and young adults, people of color, sexual and gender minorities, other demographics that →
Expertise/Goals
Through my sexual violence prevention research at Cornell, pharmaceutical outcomes and policy research at the University of Florida, and healthcare policy research at the Massachusetts General Hospital, I have developed my research interests in health equity and skills. At Cornell’s Center for Health Equity, I hope to contribute my skills and experiences to research endeavors, further develop my →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Relicious N. Eboh, BS
Cornell University
College of Veterinary Medicine
re257@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interest focused on preterm birth in African-American women and finding ways to alleviate health disparities in vulnerable populations.
Expertise/Goals
With my research experiences, I hope to be introduced to valuable mentors through networks at Cornell’s Center for Health Equity to allow for my continued growth in the field of public health and medicine.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Joan Esmie, BS
Cornell University
College of Human Ecology
jge38@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Minoring in Inequality Studies with a concentration in Health Equity.
Expertise/Goals
As an undergraduate student minoring in health equity I hope to potentially collaborate with other members and hear about the current research being conducted.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Cisco Espinosa, BS
Cornell University
College of Arts and Sciences
cge25@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interests focus on cardiothoracic surgical technique/technology innovation and biopharmaceutical synthesis and clinical application. Additionally I seek to translate research into affordable and thus practical solutions to health issues that can be used by patients of all disparities regardless of socio-economic background/standing.
Expertise/Goals
I hope to share my passion for healthcare and medical sciences with the Cornell Center for Health Equity in bridging the divide that currently exists within many of the research labs and the medical school/ health center rooted in Cornell.
Health Equity/Research Interest
Deborah Estrin is a Professor of Computer Science at Cornell Tech in New York City. She is founder of the Health Tech Hub in the Jacobs Institute and directs the Small Data Lab at Cornell Tech. Her students in the Master of Science program are interested in projects that could address health equity challenges. She holds The Robert V. Tishman Founder’s Chair and has recently taken on a leadership →
Expertise/Goals
I am interested in collaborating with domain and community expertise.
Academic Member

Jerel M. Ezell, PhD, MPH
Cornell University
College of Arts and Sciences
jme246@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am interested in how health outcomes are determined, socially, politically and economically, in post-industrial cities in the United States. Specifically, I focus on the various “fundamental causes” associated with racial/ethnic disparities in these communities, focusing on Black, Brown, and indigenous groups, using mixed methods approaches. My work takes a broad view of how public policy, and →
Expertise/Goals
I hold degrees in sociology and public health and conduct work that speaks to the intersections of these two fields – adopting both a theoretical view and a perspective rooted in real-world applications. I have a growing publication record in the sociomedical sciences, including original research involving mixed methods, and I have roughly 10 years of experience conducting research and doing →
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interests are related to the health disparities of vulnerable populations in settings of conflict and displacement. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the number of forcibly displaced individuals worldwide has exceeded 65 million. This growing population carries a unique and disproportionate risk of poor health outcomes due to the effects of displacement on →
Expertise/Goals
My long-term career goal is to be a physician-scientist conducting research on health disparities related to conflict and displacement. This is notably relevant in my native country of Lebanon, where there are an estimated 1.5 million Syrian refugees displaced. I have conducted several years of service and research among Syrian refugee populations. In 2014 I was awarded funding through Columbia →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Khalid Fahoum
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
khf4001@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My primary research interest is in the social determinants of health and how they disproportionately impact vulnerable communities locally and abroad.
Expertise/Goals
My experience ranges from basic to clinical research at the undergraduate, graduate, and medical school level. During my MS in Global Health, my research focused on the social determinants of health for West Bank Palestinians and consisted of a literature review of this topic in the context of settlement and occupation. At the medical school level my research thus far has focused on →
Health Equity/Research Interest
Health policy Single payer national health insurance Community engagement: Brooklyn Queens and South Bronx and Lincoln Hospital in the South Bronx.
Expertise/Goals
Networking faculty involvement with the perspectives on the Changing Health Care System Course for all first year medical residents and more faculty involvement in the Rogers Colloquium.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Richard T. Feiner, MFA
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
rif2015@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Social determinants of health; access to care for disenfranchised populations
Expertise/Goals
I am Adjunct Faculty at Columbia University with a teaching focus on cross-sectoral collaborations to combat global health threats.
Academic Member

Roger Figueroa, PhD, MPH, MSc
Cornell University
College of Human Ecology
rf453@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research combines concepts and methods across disciplinary boundaries to examine interconnections between the social and behavioral determinants of health and nutrition, with a particular focus on children’s energy-balance behaviors in underrepresented and low-income communities.
Expertise/Goals
My research program is community centered. I have conducted studies focusing on childhood obesity in diverse early childhood contexts, low-income, and U.S. Latino families. For example, I have engaged in research activities with participants in: (a) Flea markets and Laundromats in low-income community settings in San Antonio, TX; (b) Hispanic Church settings in San Antonio, Texas; (c) Family child →
Academic Member

Joseph J.. Fins, MD, MACP, FRCP
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
jjfins@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
The author of over 400 publications, his most recent book is Rights Come to Mind: Brain Injury, Ethics and The Struggle for Consciousness (Cambridge University Press, 2015). Dr. Fins is also the author of A Palliative Ethic of Care: Clinical Wisdom at Life’s End (Jones and Bartlett, 2006). Dr. Fins is a co-author of the 2007 Nature paper describing the first use of deep brain stimulation (DBS) in →
Expertise/Goals
I am especially interested in health equity for patients with severe brain injury and have advanced a civil rights/disability rights agenda on their behalf building upon advances in the diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of this population. To that end, in additional to addressing the ethical and normative obligations we owe to this population through my work at Weill Cornell Medicine and →
Academic Member

Kathryn J. Fiorella, PhD, MPH
Cornell University
College of Veterinary Medicine
kfiorella@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research aims to understand the interactions among environmental change and livelihood food and nutrition global fisheries and the households that are reliant on the environment to access food and income. The challenges inequalities and unprecedented global environmental change drive my work in two central areas: 1) Effects livelihood and nutrition security and 2) Interactions of resource →
Expertise/Goals
My research examines the interactions between environmental change inequality and health in global settings. Lake Victoria in Kenya and in Cambodia provides rich case studies for better understanding these phenomena. Cornell Center for Health Equity I look forward to opportunities to collaborate and engage with a broad network health equity and to engage new tools and opportunities to support the →
Academic Member

Elizabeth L. Fox, PhD, RDN
Cornell University
College of Veterinary Medicine
elf23@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interests relate to improving the implementation of nutrition interventions such that they are culturally and contextually appropriate for target beneficiaries, particularly for women and children. I am also interested in exploring approaches across food systems, including those related to the food environments and provider behaviors, to support equitable and sustainable diets among →
Expertise/Goals
I use focused ethnographic methods, including semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, participatory observations, free listing, pile sorting, social mapping, and photo elicitation to explore the priorities, preferences, and value tradeoffs people make related to their nutrition decisions.
Academic Member

Esteban Andres A. Fridman, MD, PhD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
esf2005@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My main interest is translational neuropharmacology in neurological disorders without a proven treatment or in which we may be able to move beyond the current gold-standard to improve neurological outcomes. I am particularly interested in catecholaminergic systems (i.e., dopaminergic, noradrenergic and glutamatergic neurotransmission) and drug development in long-term disorders of consciousness →
Expertise/Goals
I am a neurologist specialized in neurological rehabilitation and a neuroscientist with background in neurophysiology, neuroimaging and molecular neuroimaging. I have been extramural PI of the NIH for almost 11 year and Co-Founded NeuroHealing Pharmaceuticals, Inc a startup company. My experience comes from the clinical field, integrating pre-clinical data to form new human background in my fields →
Health Equity/Research Interest
In my pursuit of Biology and Anthropology majors and an Inequality Studies minor all at once in Cornell’s College of Arts and Sciences, I have thus far forged an undergraduate academic experience for myself that firmly rests at the intersection of the studies of life sciences as they relate to the human body and experience, of anthropological theory regarding the human species at bodily and at →
Expertise/Goals
With research in both wet lab and soft science lab environments under my belt, I bring to the table both an interest in and an experienced approach to research that has one foot in the life sciences and the other in the humanities. As articulated in my response to the previous question, my academic path so far leads rather directly to the doorstep of work such as that done by the Center, equipping →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Charlotte R. Gamble, MD, MPH
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
crg9028@nyp.org
Health Equity/Research Interest
I currently focus on health services research as it applies to vulnerable women with gynecologic cancers. Using large statewide and national data sets, I work with a research team within our gynecologic oncology fellowship program to assess the impact of policy decisions on women’s gynecologic cancer care. This past year we have studied the perioperative outcomes, quality of care, and survival of →
Expertise/Goals
As a surgeon-scientist in training, my background in health policy, advocacy, and health services research adds a unique perspective to the center. I hope to network with like-minded individuals, and to leverage these connections not only in collaborative research projects but also in building local and state advocacy into our work and the work of this center.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Annie Geiger, BS
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
amg473@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
In the past I have conducted microbiological global health research in the Nathan Laboratory of Weill Cornell Medicine studying a putative drug target in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. I am currently working on a tick surveillance data analytics project for the Northeast Regional Center for Excellence in Vector-Borne Diseases to highlight disparities between the tick surveillance efforts of different →
Expertise/Goals
Through the Center I hope to dedicate my time research training and knowledge in inequality studies to benefit the work of the Center. I would like to contribute to a research project where assistance is needed and exchange my time and efforts for the development of skills in conducting health equity research and deepening my understanding of disparities in health access. I hope to work directly →
Health Equity/Research Interest
My interests are in the areas of disparities with regard to hypertension as well as other chronic conditions.
Expertise/Goals
I have a long-standing interest in epidemiological research and hope to get involved in more collaborations research and educational opportunities.
Academic Member

Arnab K. Ghosh, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
akg9010@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Disparities in hospitalised patients as well as disparities in immigrants.
Expertise/Goals
Worked in healthcare finance. Networking and collaborations,
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Christopher J. Gonzalez, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
cjg7003@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research focuses on understanding how socio-cultural behaviors and networks can be leveraged to address disparities in obesity and obesity-related conditions among Hispanic populations. This work utilizes a multidimensional approach through analyses of social networks, socially-mediated behaviors and targeted community engagement.
Expertise/Goals
I am an Internal Medicine-trained primary care physician that continues to serve a predominantly under-resourced Hispanic community. My research aims to understand and leverage community strengths to overcome systemic inequities, and I look forward to collaborations to advance that aim through the Center for Health Equity. As a first-generation Latino physician, I am also deeply committed to →
Health Equity/Research Interest
Racial disparities in arthroplasty utilization and outcomes have persisted for decades but the contributions of race poverty or other social factors have been difficult to sort out. My research has focused on the interactions of race education poverty and other social factors and arthroplasty outcomes.
Expertise/Goals
My experience at HSS in arthroplasty research can bring this area of research interest to the Center to foster collaborations.
Academic Member

Ruth Gotian, EdD, MS
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
rgotian@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My academic interests are focused on metrics of success with a special interest in physician-scientists including their motivation training mentoring personality and learning styles. Additional research projects delve into the areas of mentoring how adults learn adult and program development blended learning social media in learning and organizational culture. I also delve into barriers of success →
Expertise/Goals
I have a doctorate in Adult Learning and Leadership and have done extensive mixed-method research in the areas of adult learning and success especially as they pertain to physician-scientists. My research studies are based on the work of leading adult learning theorists including Kolb Brookfield Freire Deci & Ryan and Mezirow. For nearly 22 years I served as administrative director of the →
Health Equity/Research Interest
As an Assistant Professor of Medicine I am currently growing my research program which focuses on the intersection between geriatric conditions and heart failure. To this end I am currently funded by the National Institute on Aging (R03) to examine the impact of medication prescribing patterns on post-hospitalization outcomes among older adults with heart failure. I ultimately hope to leverage →
Expertise/Goals
I am a board-certified Cardiologist with training in advanced heart failure; and a health services researcher with a Master’s of Science in Clinical Epidemiology & Health Services Research and a special interest in geriatric medicine. I bring a unique blend of skills and interests to the Center as an emerging leader in the growing field of Geriatric Cardiology. I believe that my growing →
Academic Member

Amelia Greiner-Safi, PhD, MS
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
alg52@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I’m an applied social and behavioral scientist with expertise in public health and communication. My work focuses on upstream/social determinants of health on topics including tobacco HIV mental health zoning flooding and environmental toxins. I often focus on vulnerable populations elucidate differential impacts of plans or policies or consider interventions that are appropriate based on →
Expertise/Goals
I’m excited to bring my public health mixed methods social science and risk communication experience to this group. I’ve worked in urban and rural settings with youth and adults clinicians and academics across an array of disciplines policy makers powerful research participants and extremely vulnerable ones. I like thinking about how to explore and talk about these issues so they register. Part of →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Yende A. Grell, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
yag4001@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I hope to one day practice as a global physician leader who will provide underserved populations in the United States and around the world with improved access to medical care. Participating in health disparities work through the Cornell Center for Health Equity will help build the skills, mentorship and network I will need to be able to lead work addressing the inequities in healthcare myself.
Expertise/Goals
I have spent the last 5 years working toward the goal of one day being a global physician leader. I first began this journey as an undergraduate student studying the Chikungunya virus, which caused an outbreak that ravaged many developing countries in the Caribbean and Latin America throughout 2014. In 2016, I was awarded a Princeton Project 55 fellowship, which is given to graduating students who →
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am interested in research the engages the community and addresses the questions raised by those directly impacted, particularly those who are typically excluded, stigmatized or marginalized within our current healthcare system. I work with people who use drugs and other impacted by substance use in a rural setting. I aim to expand our current understanding of what constitutes “success” in our →
Expertise/Goals
I bring years of clinical experience and have worked collaboratively with research teams from several institutions in my role at REACH Medical and previously. As a member, I hope to continue to network, form research collaborations and gain insights into best practices on education for residents and others on topics related to health equity.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Lindsay Grossman
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
Lgg38@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
While I am still a Cornell student I would really like to get involved in health equity research. As a pre-health student I have been waiting for a program like this to bridge the gap between the two campuses and would like to participate in any way that I can. I am specifically interested in rural medicine and health of rural firefighters as I am a volunteer firefighter in Varna NY and have →
Expertise/Goals
Health Equity/Research Interest
Social Determinants of Health, Health Equity, Anti-Racism in Health Care.
Expertise/Goals
Family Physicians are trained to treat and care for the whole person-physically, mentally, emotionally and socially. I have an interest in Social Determinants of Health, Health Equity and integrating The National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services in Health and Health Care. As student demographics at post-secondary institutions become increasingly ethnically and →
Academic Member

Karla L. Hanson, PhD
Cornell University
College of Veterinary Medicine
kh289@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am interested in food security, health equity, and public policies affecting families with children. I am currently exploring farmers’ markets, cost-offset (subsidized) community supported agriculture (CSA), gardening and foraging as pathways to enhance access to fresh fruits and vegetables and increase food security in low-income households.
Expertise/Goals
I have expertise in both quantitative and qualitative methods, social-behavioral intervention research, and program evaluation. I hope to collaborate on community-based research with other researchers, students, and local organizations.
Health Equity/Research Interest
My area of interest is in passing legislation that will provide every resident of New York State with equitable healthcare. My specific focus is in working with poor rural residents who suffer from a limited access to preventative medicine and treatment in the existing system. My research and personal experience shows that some of the challenges facing these underserved groups are that they have →
Expertise/Goals
I hold a master’s degree in Community Change and Civic Leadership focused on environmental justice. I have been working with Physicians for National Health Program (PNHP) and Single Payer New York (SPNY) for passage of single payer health legislation on both the federal and state level. Lobbying legislators in Washington, DC and Albany, NY with coalition members for federal and state legislation →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Benedict Harvey, BS
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
bbh2001@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interest and hopes are to do strengthen the nation’s physician workforce and efficacy through helping to increase the number of underrepresented minorities interested in medicine and understanding the obstacles to this path of NYC residents.
Expertise/Goals
As an individual with hopes of pursuing medicine myself, I graduated with a Biology degree with an emphasis on sociology and diversity. Through the Center for Health Equity and the Diversity Center of Excellence we hope to debunk the path to medicine for students and increase the quality of physician-patient relations to address the growing diversity in the national patient population.
Health Equity/Research Interest
Nutrition and Adolescent Sexuality.
Expertise/Goals
I have been a primary healthcare provider for adolescent and young adults for greater than 20 years. Working primarily with underserved and underrepresented minorities (my preference) I have had an extensive opportunity to address health inequity and disparities. I have developed community programs and collaborated with other agencies and institutions to improve the quality of healthcare for these →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Khalid J. Haynes, MPA
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
Khalidh676@gmail.com
Health Equity/Research Interest
Interested in 1. Advocacy for Healthcare Reform (Single Payer Plans) and other health care policies 2. Health Equity and diversification of Healthcare Leadership 3. Implementations of integrating public health into clinical care. Putting preventative medicine at the forefront- exercise, nutrition, acupuncture, meditation, etc. 4. All things on chronic diseases, socioeconomic differences and →
Expertise/Goals
I hope to get change in the healthcare system or learn how I could better position myself to influence change in the future. I used to be a personal trainer and I understand the importance of health promotion and preventative care. If we could focus on prioritizing this type of care where it is applicable we could prevent and reduce chronic disease prevalence significantly. Also if the hospital →
Health Equity/Research Interest
Youth Empowerment Services in Medicine (YES iM) wishes to address the existing racial/ethnic health and healthcare disparities in the United States through increasing the number of underrepresented physicians in medicine. Specifically, YES iM targets its efforts to increase the number of Black and Latino male physicians, as well as increasing the number of underrepresented women in healthcare →
Expertise/Goals
As Founder of BLMiM, I’ve been afforded the opportunity to navigate the diversity community at WCM and NY region. These experiences have garnered a network which, in partnership with the Center for Health Equity, would certainly aid in coordinating the most impactful opportunities needed for our underrepresented youth. Additionally, the Center’s academic resources would assist in establishing →
Academic Member

Caitlin Hoffman, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
ceh2003@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interest focuses on reducing attrition of URM pipeline students. Mentorship is an essential component of perseverance confidence and success. Through collaboration with Mentoring in Medicine in the Bronx we are therefore creating a longitudinal mentorship program that targets modifiable components of preparedness to increase application and matriculation of under-represented →
Expertise/Goals
I serve as the Diversity Champion for our department and have established a collaboration with Dr. Lynne Holden Founder of Mentoring in Medicine to sponsor labs in our Neurosurgical Innovations space for students interested in the health sciences. This collaboration and experience provides a connection to students who could benefit from the initiatives of the Center. I have also pursued Healthcare →
Health Equity/Research Interest
Health equity is a key concept to addressing health disparities and understanding the impact/outcomes of social determinants of health. I have spent the last 15 years across the HIV prevention, substance use, youth development, and health policy areas of public health to work on these issues. My interest in membership of this center is to explore collaborations (campus county connections) between →
Expertise/Goals
I have a broad range of experience both in terms of settings (rural, suburban, urban, racial/ethnic diversity and LGBTQIA+ populations which allows me to bring many perspectives to complex issues related to health equity. I hope to explore potential collaborations between the Cornell Cooperative Extension system and the Cornell Center for Health Equity. Also I am interested in building on my →
Academic Member

Said Ibrahim, MD, MPH, MBA
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
sai2009@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Said Ibrahim MD MPH MBA is chief of the newly established Division of Healthcare Delivery Science and Innovation and Vice Chair for Development and Strategy in the Department of Healthcare Policy & Research at Weill Cornell Medicine. Previously he was Professor of Medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine University of Pennsylvania and the Director of the Philadelphia VA National Center of →
Expertise/Goals
Health equity research; mentoring young faculty in health equity research careers; developing cross-institutional collaborations to promote health equity research and health services research; work with young scholars interested in developing research in the space where technology/innovation meets social determinants of health and health equity; advocate and promote diversity and inclusion at the →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Renny John, MPH
Cornell University
Cornell Cooperative Extension
rlj83@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (or PrEP) and PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis).
Expertise/Goals
I have worked all over New York City for the past 6 years and I have extensive experience in human services having worked with both adolescents and adults with a particular focus on under-served populations. Prior to my current position as a Prevention Navigator I worked with the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene as an Outreach Specialist conducting outreach and health education focused →
Academic Member

Christine Joyce, MD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
christineljoyce@gmail.com
Health Equity/Research Interest
Health care disparities as they impact outcomes on pediatric ICU patients Creating a curriculum addressing health care disparities for PICU providers
Expertise/Goals
Pediatric Critical Care fellowship director I am looking to increase awareness of healthcare disparities and how they impact our clinical care and patient outcomes.
Community Member

Chris Kai-Jones, PhD, MSW
Cornell University
Cornell Cooperative Extension
chj7@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I currently work with a number of faculty, students and community members to facilitate community engagement alongside appropriate research modalities while implementing programs intended to enhance community well-being. I am interested in applying different lenses: psychodynamic, trauma-responsive, socio-ecological, and general social work practices to address community health challenges in a →
Expertise/Goals
Having recently completed a PhD at Cornell on community, race and the construction of identity, I am currently completing NYS licensure as a social worker. I have worked on a number of health-related projects in Tompkins County over the past three years and am excited to have the opportunity to foster synergies at the intersections of Cornell and the wider community. Through membership of the →
Community Member

Lara Kaltman, MPH
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County
ljp9@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I provide leadership and direction for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County’s nutrition education, obesity prevention, food access, maternal and child health and community development programs. In addition to my nutrition and health programmatic focus, I am interested in identifying and testing strategies that support multisector teams in advancing health equity and creating resilient →
Expertise/Goals
As a public health practitioner and registered dietitian, I have over 11 years of experience engaging with community collaboratives with a diversity of stakeholders to design, implement, monitor and evaluate activities that advance health equity in Tompkins County and its surrounding region. Over the past three years I’ve seen tremendous growth in our organization’s ability to identify and act →
Academic Member

Shashi Kapadia, MD, MS
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
shk9078@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My current research is focused on the equitable delivery of Hepatitis C treatment to people who use drugs. I am studying the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of accessible care delivery models for this population by integrating HCV treatment into substance use care. I am developing skills in mixed-methods health services research related to this issue: my recent work investigates the impact of →
Expertise/Goals
As a junior investigator in Infectious Diseases and in Healthcare Policy and Research I am eager to create research synergies with Center investigators. With the help of my mentors I am developing skills in mixed-methods health services research economic evaluations of healthcare interventions and in research related to infectious diseases and substance use disorder. These skills can be used to →
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am interested in wealth-related health disparities and stigma surrounding mental health issues.
Expertise/Goals
I am a junior at Mount Holyoke College majoring in Neuroscience and a minor in Critical Social Thought. I am interested in the subject of health equity and mental health treatment in the underserved communities in particular. In the past, I was a volunteer at Kurn Hattin Home for Children (VT, USA) as well as at the Center for Curative Pedagogy and Differentiated Learning (Pskov, Russia) where I →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Neil Kelly, PhD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
nak4002@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Prior to enrolling as a medical student at Weill Cornell, I obtained my Ph.D. and completed a year-long post-doc in the fields of skeletal and cardiac muscle physiology. Although my training to date has been in basic and translational research, I have always maintained an interest in societal equity/disparity in general. I am still early in my medical training but health equity in particular has →
Expertise/Goals
My hope is that I can marry my basic/translational research background with an exposure to larger scale epidemiological research to identify meaningful opportunities to improve health equity. Furthermore, I am excited by the prospect of identifying and contributing to community outreach opportunities.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Chenab Khakh
Cornell University
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
ckk47@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am fascinated with the impact of nutrition education and access on youth development particularly in urban environments. I am interested in facilitating and implementing youth nutrition education programs. I believe community health engagement is a part of preventative health care.
Expertise/Goals
This past summer I worked at the Cornell Cooperative Extension in New York City teaching nutrition to young children in Queens and Brooklyn and have continued to be involved with CCE on campus in Ithaca. I am passionate about public health nutrition and youth development. I would love to combine these passions with my interests in medicine and research with work going on at Weill and the new →
Academic Member

Dhruv Khullar, MD, MPP
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
khd9010@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am interested in how social and economic factors contribute to health disparities for vulnerable populations as well as the policy levers that can help promote health equity.
Expertise/Goals
My interests and experiences span clinical medicine healthy policy and media. I am particularly interested in communicating about important and timely health issues to patients practitioners and the public. I hope to engage with other members of the Center to research and advocate for evidence based practices that promote health equity.
Health Equity/Research Interest
Historically, my research interest was in equity and health literacy in end of life care. Currently, my role is to support SNAP-Education implementation in WNY which serves low income communities.
Expertise/Goals
My goal is to make sure our program lives, breaths, and constantly aims for healthy equity in all elements of our work. From staff recruitment, inter-team dynamics, strategic program planning, implementation, community feedback, etc. that we are considering, applying, and constantly re-evaluating if we are doing all that we can for health equity.
Community Member

Rhonda Kost
Rockefeller University Center for Clinical and Translational Science
kostr@rockefeller.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
We will share our work developing the Community Engaged Research Navigation model to help basic investigators engage with community stakeholders to inform early translational research. By engaging communities including those affected by health disparities investigators often find they need to alter their science n order to incorporate community priorities or lived experience that affect the →
Expertise/Goals
We anticipate that closer relationships with the Center will lead to important collaborations research on effective practices and more successful engagement of communities.
Academic Member

Rachel H. Kowalsky, MD, MPH
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
rachel.kowalsky@gmail.com
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research focus is twofold. First, I am interested in historic narratives about race, and the way in which these narratives persist in the design and application of the medical literature. Second, I am interested in using narrative medicine and the humanities to design curricula that provide a platform for discussion and mitigation of implicit bias in medicine. In my experience, these critical →
Expertise/Goals
As a pediatric emergency physician with a public health degree and background in comparative literature, I understand the ways in which the healthcare system and social narratives intersect with the lives and care of individual patients. I lead narrative medicine sessions at the medical campus at every level from trainee to faculty, and have also led workshops nationally. My goal is to work →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Nick Krachler, MSc
Cornell University
School of Industrial and Labor Relations
njk77@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research focuses on institutional change in the care economy, in particular as it relates to three mechanisms: the emergence of new roles; intensifying competition between providers; and the regulation of work and employment. A major theme that connects my focus on these three areas is my desire to critique these mechanisms from the perspective of inequality. I also endeavor to identify →
Expertise/Goals
My professional experience prior to my PhD encompasses frontline work as a paramedic which taught me much about professional hierarchies, the service ideal and difficulties of coordinating across organizations in healthcare. I also worked as a human resource management consultant and this experience taught me the value of human resource management practices for organizations as well as the →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Jamuna Krishnan, MD, MBA
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
jmkesavan@gmail.com
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am interested in disparities in chronic respiratory disease outcomes, and am currently focusing on race and sex based disparities in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. My research interests are to conduct observational studies to discover targets for intervention in the patient population with COPD that drive differences in outcomes based on race, gender and socioeconomic status. I would →
Expertise/Goals
My educational background and experience provide a unique lens to approach healthcare disparities research. During my MD/MBA training, I focused on healthcare systems design innovations to deliver high quality care to vulnerable populations. In addition, I was involved in the development of a dedicated curriculum incorporated healthcare disparities education at the University of Michigan Medical →
Academic Member

W. Marcus Lambert, PhD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
wil2009@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research efforts focus on educational and health equity interventions that improve access, equity and diversity in science and medicine. Current projects include developing a tool to assess diversity climate at academic medical centers, and understanding the factors that influence the career decisions of women and underrepresented trainees, graduate and medical students. See latest work in →
Expertise/Goals
I am a basic biomedical scientist by training, spending the early part of my career studying the transcriptional regulation of the glucocorticoid receptor in an attempt to better understand stress regulation in the brain. However, I’ve gained skills in social science research methods in order to better understand challenges in areas of diversity, equity, and student development. Additionally, my →
Academic Member

Tashara Leak, PhD, RD
Cornell University
College of Human Ecology
tml226@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
As a health disparities researcher I conduct interventions that address socioeconomic and environmental influences on food choices while drawing upon my expertise in mixed methods and community-based research. More specifically I design innovative and culturally relevant interventions that aim to improve dietary behaviors among impoverished minority youth that reside in urban communities. Thus my →
Expertise/Goals
I am a registered dietitian formally trained as a nutritional scientist and I have extensive training in the area of diet assessment. My area of expertise can be used to assist others who are interested in 1) collecting diet data (e.g. 24 hour recalls) and 2) designing dietary interventions. From the membership I am interested in identifying potential academic and community partners who are →
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Sylvia Lee, BS
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
syl2006@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interests lie in finding gaps in palliative care utilization and addressing racial disparity in access to and quality of end-of-life care. I currently work with the Patient Activated Learning System (PALS) to write patient education materials with the goal of ensuring equal access to quality health information for patients and caregivers of all backgrounds.
Expertise/Goals
I graduated from Cornell University (’18) with a B.S. in Human Biology Health and Society and a minor in Gerontology. I hope my current role as a Medical Content Developer for PALS and my connections with the Cornell-Ithaca and the NYC community will help facilitate intercampus collaborations to help serve underserved communities and promote health equity.
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am interested in improving health disparity and health literacy in minority populations.
Expertise/Goals
Being able to communicate effectively with the Chinese population (Cantonese and Mandarin) would allow me to deliver community lectures to increase health literacy, as well as educating them on health care opportunities including telemedicine to narrow the gap in health disparity. By joining the center for health equity, I hope to meet collaborators with similar interests and extend the education →
Health Equity/Research Interest
Medical education; health disparities; primary care; home care
Expertise/Goals
I hope to broaden my network of professionals who are dedicated to improving the lives of people we care for starting with those with the most vulnerable needs.
Student/Trainee/Staff Member

Emily M. Levin, BS
Cornell University
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
eml227@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Throughout my life I have slowly developed interest between the intersection of health and law. Two classes that I found both inspiring and equally upsetting were Population Health and the Sociology of Medicine. In Population Health, a representative from the Cleveland Clinic came to speak to us about new task forces centered around digital technology, with a goal of increasing health equity and →
Expertise/Goals
My various positions of leadership and academic work has always been centered around the core idea and desire I’ve had of creating a better future for future generations. But through the reflection of my life, it’s entailments, and my curiosity towards others did I realize that my passion does not simply lie in the idea of positive change, but in the systemic changes required to ensure individual →
Health Equity/Research Interest
Interested in testing novel techniques to prevent age-related weight gain in minority populations.
Expertise/Goals
Eating Behavior Weight Control Nutrition use of self-weighing to control body weight.
Academic Member

Neil Lewis Jr, PhD
Cornell University
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
nlewisjr@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
I am social psychologist whose research generally asks two questions (1) what motivates people to pursue our goals and (2) how does the interplay between our identities and social contexts support or undermine our goal pursuit efforts? I am particularly interested in using the answers to these questions to address social disparities particularly disparities in education and health outcomes.
Expertise/Goals
I hope this center will help to facilitate research collaborations with health equity researchers at Weill Cornell. As I study racial and economic disparities in health outcomes. I am increasingly interested in studying medical education practices and how they influence discordant doctor-patient interactions that sometimes contribute to disparities. I’m particularly interested in conducting →
Health Equity/Research Interest
As a physician, researcher, and Director of the Office of Faculty Development at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, I focus on career development for physicians and scientists. I work closely with Dr. Carol Brown, Director of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Office of Diversity Programs in Clinical Care, Research, and Training. We aim to the diversity of the healthcare workforce, →
Expertise/Goals
I will contribute my experience of 30 years on the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center/Weill Cornell Medicine faculty to build collaborations and undertake joint educational initiatives with my Tri-Institutional colleagues interested in health equity.
Health Equity/Research Interest
The disparities in health and healthcare are becoming more extreme. The misconception that the quality and access to healthcare contributes most to our overall wellbeing enables these health inequalities to perpetuate. The Center for Health Equity functions as an agent of change. It transforms this old notion of medicine as the only solution to this new idea that our health is greatly influenced →
Expertise/Goals
As an undergraduate student minoring in inequalities on the health equity tract, I was able to begin learning about the multitude of factors that influence health outside of medicine and science. As a member of the Center, I hope to deepen my understanding of health equity beyond the scope of just taking classes by collaborating with researchers and other members.
Academic Member

Elizabeth Luth, PhD
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
eal2003@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
Elizabeth Luth is a T32 Postdoctoral Fellow in Behavioral Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine. She is a medical and life course sociologist who researches social determinants of health disparities in older adults. Her research focus on racial ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in outcomes at end of life for patients with advanced dementia and their family caregivers.
Expertise/Goals
I have expertise in social determinants of health theory research design and advanced quantitative methods.I hope to expand my network of folks with similar interests in health equity and find opportunities for mentorship and to collaborate on projects with clinicians and researchers.
Academic Member

Alexandra L. MacMillan Uribe, PhD, RDN
Cornell University
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
alm439@cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
As a community nutrition researcher, I am driven to find effective community-focused strategies that address health equity through increasing the capacity of mothers with infants disproportionately affected by obesity and chronic disease to establish healthy dietary patterns. More specifically, I am interested in conducting community-informed research with Latino immigrant communities to create →
Expertise/Goals
My expertise in qualitative research is of benefit to the Center as it is often used as an important starting point, and throughout the research process, to meaningfully engage with community members and create high quality data that can inform subsequent research or projects. Through my work, I have extensive experience engaging communities and key stakeholders. Additionally, I have developed →
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research interest is of learning financial models in the field of the healthcare industry to increase the benefit-cost ratio for insurance providers.
Expertise/Goals
My area of expertise is that of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmacology and also of Public Healthcare.
Academic Member

Jialin Mao, MD, MS
Cornell University
Weill Cornell Medicine
jim2012@med.cornell.edu
Health Equity/Research Interest
My research focuses on surgical and device outcomes primarily on population level. My areas of interest include device and surgical safety evaluation women’s health and understanding the impact of provider characteristics. I have expertise in advanced methods for surgical epidemiological research. My research interest in disparities is related to those in the field of surgery and medical device. →
Expertise/Goals
My past research experience is in surgical and device outcomes research including topics of device safety provider effect and policy impact. I have expertise in advanced methods for surgical epidemiological research. My current research is extending to look at disparity questions involved in device and surgical fields. My experience and expertise will contribute to the generation of evidences that →