Upon completion of the PhD in Health Services and Policy Research, the graduate is able to:

• Analyze key factors that have the potential to influence health and provision and use of health services. These may include policy, organization, and financing of healthcare services. They may also include social, economic, cultural, political, and biological factors that influence population health, health equity, and the use of services.
• Critique, adapt, and develop theoretical analyses of health services and policies, including explanations of their structures and processes, the use of health services, the effectiveness and implementation of health policies, and the effects of health services and policies on individual and population health and health equity. This may be done by drawing upon the foundational fields of sociology, economics, anthropology, political science, psychology, demography, epidemiology, management, and/or organizational science.
• Develop original, relevant, and important research questions to pursue in HSPR that are grounded in both a critical analysis of prior HSPR literature and relevant theoretical perspectives.
• Identify and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of a variety of possible study designs that can appropriately address specific HSPR questions. Appropriate methods may employ experimental or observational approaches, qualitative or quantitative analytic techniques, and a variety of data types.
• Based on relevant theory and selected research question(s), develop an HSPR design, specifying study constructs, research objectives, hypotheses, and methods that reliably and validly measure outcomes of interest. Select optimal analytical approaches, in combination as necessary, to investigate hypotheses.
• Acquire and manage appropriate data to answer HSPR questions. Collect and manage primary health and healthcare utilization data and/or assemble and manage existing data from public and private data sources in accordance with an original research design.
• Apply appropriate analytical techniques to data in order to investigate HSPR questions. Utilize appropriate combinations of analytic techniques to enrich data analysis and interpretation.
• Develop, document, and employ procedures that ensure the reproducibility of the science, the responsible use of resources, mutual accountability with collaborators, and the ethical treatment of research subjects.
• Effectively communicate the process, findings, and implications of HSPR using multiple modes, including via peer-reviewed publications, oral presentations, and electronic media. Translate findings to multiple stakeholders and audiences including funders, research participants, colleagues, policymakers, news media, and managers.

The required PhD courses consist of a foundational curriculum of theory, quantitative and qualitative methods, applications of health services research, and elective courses that can be used to define an area of emphasis. The core courses cover a variety of topics including foundations of health services research, research design and methods, health economics, and organization theory. Mastery of core material is demonstrated by successful completion of the qualifying process, which includes a comprehensive exam and oral defense of the dissertation proposal.

Students enrolled in the program full-time generally complete course work within two years and usually take an additional two years to complete the qualifying process and their dissertations.

Students typically complete a dissertation that is the equivalent of three publishable papers.

A key strength of the PhD program in Health Services and Policy Research is the engagement of a talented interdisciplinary faculty that is eager to mentor doctoral students in a variety of areas.

Faculty are actively engaged in diverse areas of research & scholarship, and the department is closely affiliated with two internal research centers focused on health services related to disability, along with a nearby multi-site center for health services research within the US Department of Veterans Affairs.

Today’s most relevant health care issues are being addressed by ongoing faculty research. Faculty examine a broad range of challenges in the American health care system and introduce fresh approaches by drawing on diverse backgrounds, including social sciences, medicine, economics, business, and policy. Collaboration with affiliated research centers provides access to further resources and expertise.

Health policy & management, health economics, health outcomes measurement, and health reform are the department’s main areas of research. For the most up-to-date research activity, please view the highlights section.

Our program has been awarded a T32 training grant in health disparities from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality that offers full-time tuition, AHRQ-specified pre-doctoral stipend, health insurance, and travel to conferences for the first two years of doctoral study.

The Partnered Evidence-based Policy Resource Center (PEPReC) is a group of health economists and health services researchers that provides timely, rigorous data analysis to support the development of high-priority policy, planning, and management initiatives. PEPReC also coordinates and supports the design and implementation of randomized program evaluations with strong potential to improve the quality and efficiency of VA healthcare. Trainees will learn to analyze very large administrative databases and make valid causal inferences regarding clinical outcomes, costs, and quality of care. Research Assistantships at PEPReC provide a stipend and full tuition coverage for at least four years.

The NIDA-funded Integrated Care for Addiction, HIV and HCV Research and Education (ICAHRE) program provides training for doctoral and masters students in the areas of addiction, HIV and HCV. ICAHRE offers full tuition coverage, stipend, and health insurance coverage. Trainees will participate in research rotations, research communication and dissemination activities, and other mentored research in ICAHRE content areas.

ICAHRE is committed to four years of full funding for doctoral students.

The PhD program also offers a limited number of partial tuition scholarships to incoming doctoral students. All accepted PhD in HSPR students are eligible to receive these scholarships and no additional application is required.  In addition, some advanced students, with assistance from program faculty, have sought and obtained dissertation research grants from federal agencies and other funding sources.

Samantha Auty

Samantha Auty is a doctoral candidate in Health Services Research at Boston University and a research fellow in the NIDA-funded Integrated Care for Addiction, HIV, and HCV Research and Education T-32 training program. Her research uses quasi-experimental methods to examine the impact of health policies on access to care and health outcomes among those with substance use disorders and other chronic conditions, including HCV/HIV. Samantha is particularly interested in leveraging claims data to assess the impact of Medicaid policies on access to health services and prescription medications among those with opioid use disorder. She received her B.S. from St. Lawrence University, and her M.S. in Healthcare Research from the Dartmouth Institute. Prior to attending Boston University, Samantha worked at the Center for Technology and Behavioral Health at Dartmouth College conducting qualitative and quantitative research investigating opioid use disorder, cannabis use disorder, and tobacco use. At Boston University, Sam works closely with Dr. Austin Frakt, Dr. Michael Stein, Dr. Paul Shafer, and Dr. Sarah Hall Gordon.  In her spare time, Sam likes to spend as much time outside as possible.

David Biko

David is a doctoral student in Health Services Research at Boston University interested in research utilizing implementation science and behavioral economics to look at altering value based payment systems to create more accessible prescription drug pricing. He received his BSA in Human Ecology from The University of Texas, and his MHA from Columbia University. Prior to starting at BUSPH, David has worked in consulting, health outcomes research, and health policy analysis.

Breanne Biondi

Breanne (Bre) Biondi is a PhD student in Health Services Research at Boston University School of Public Health. She is interested in studying how policies affect access to medication treatment for opioid use disorder and treatment outcomes. Before coming to BUSPH, Bre worked at Yale University in the AIDS Program as a Research Associate, where her work focused on substance use disorders and their intersection with HIV and justice-involved populations. She received her MPH in Epidemiology from Rutgers School of Public Health and her BA from Muhlenberg College.

Anne Buck

Anne K. Buck, MS is a doctoral student in the Department of Health, Law Policy & Management focusing on health disparities at Boston University School of Public Health. Her research interests focus on the intersection of trauma surgery and social justice to identify community resource disparities. She is currently the Resident Research Chair for the founding chapter of Socially Responsible Surgery at Boston Medical Center. She received her BA in Philosophy from Georgia State University with a focus in Bioethics and her MS in Clinical Research from the BU School of Medicine where she is currently the academic program manager for the MSCR and an instructor of research ethics.

Amanda Davis

Amanda Davis is a PhD student in Health Services Research at the Boston University School of Public Health. Throughout her 15+ years as a healthcare executive, Amanda has developed analytic teams to create data-driven approaches guiding innovative clinical care delivery and health disparities reduction. She has spearheaded the development of population and provider performance reporting tools to further understand health care access and use among vulnerable populations and enable value-based care strategies and appropriate financial reimbursement models. Her research focuses on policies and interventions to reduce socioeconomic disparities in health care access and use among dual-eligible Medicare-Medicaid beneficiaries.

Melissa Davoust

Melissa Davoust is a PhD student in the Department of Health Law, Policy and Management at Boston University School of Public Health. She is interested in the evaluation and implementation of policies and programs to improve access to evidence-based mental health, substance use, and HIV services. Melissa is currently an Integrated Care for Addiction, HIV and HCV Research and Education (ICAHRE) T32 Predoctoral Fellow, funded by NIDA. Previously, she worked as a Research Program Manager at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and prior to that, as a consultant to federal health and social service clients with Atlas Research. She has engaged in program evaluation and project implementation across a variety of topic areas, including mental health, HIV prevention, and reproductive health. Melissa received her MSc in Evidence-Based Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation at the University of Oxford and dual degrees in Brain and Behavioral Sciences (BS) and Sociology (BA) at Purdue University.

Nigel Deen

Nigel is a doctoral candidate in Health Services Research. He is interested in studying racial disparities in maternal and child outcomes and the role data, technology, and policy play in achieving health equity. In the past, he's performed healthcare quality improvement research, business intelligence for an electronic medical records company, and has served as a public health consultant for a federal healthcare agency. He received his B.A. in Neurobiology, with a minor in Global Health and Health Policy, from Harvard University.

Yareliz Diaz

Yareliz Diaz, MPH is a Gates Millennium Scholar in Health Services Research in the Department of Health Law, Policy, and Management at Boston University School of Public Health. In the past, Diaz has worked with the Disparities Research Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital on mental health research under PCORI and NIDA grants. She also coordinated a PCORI Eugene Washington Engagement Award that focused on building research infrastructure and developing genuine engagement in partnership with under-resourced communities in Boston. Diaz is a 2015 graduate of Tufts University and received her MPH at BUSPH with concentrations in Health Policy and Law and Epidemiology/Biostatistics in 2020. Her research interests are on disaster response and its intersection with public health, specifically in low-income communities of color. She is interested in community resilience, the idea of “bouncing forward” after disasters, and how current policies create inequitable outcomes in communities.

Marsida Domi

Marsida Domi is a PhD student in the Health Services and Policy Research program at Boston University School of Public Health. She is interested in examining the effects of policies and interventions, including payment reform and health insurance coverage, on access to care and health outcomes for medically complex and marginalized populations. Prior to joining Boston University, Marsida was a senior research analyst for American Health Care Association where she evaluated the effects of policies on quality in post-acute and long-term care, developed several quality measures, and designed state Medicaid Value-Based Purchasing programs. Additionally, she has served on multiple technical expert panels with the National Quality Forum and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. She received a BA in Economics from Brown University and an MPH in Comparative Effectiveness and Outcomes Research from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.

Allison Dorneo

Allison Dorneo is a doctoral student in Health Services Research at Boston University School of Public Health. She is also a research assistant at the Partnered Evidence-based Policy Resource Center (PEPReC). Her research interests include payment and delivery system reform, aging, and patient-centered care. Before attending Boston University, Allison was an economist at RTI International. At RTI, she worked on the evaluation of the Financial Alignment Initiative, a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) demonstration integrating care for dual eligible individuals. She also contributed to post-acute care research initiatives under the IMPACT Act for the Assistant Secretary for Planning & Evaluation (ASPE). She received her B.A. in economics and community health from Tufts University.

Yevgeniy Feyman

Yevgeniy Feyman is a PhD student in health services research, with a concentration in health economics. His interests are primarily in topics related to the Medicare Advantage program, drug pricing, and provider consolidation. Previously, he was a senior research assistant at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health where he assisted with research on costs and quality in the Medicare program. Before that, he was deputy director of health policy at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. He received his B.A. in economics and political science from Hunter College. @yfeyman

Christina Freibott

Christina Freibott, MPH, is a doctoral student in the Health Services Research program at the Boston University School of Public Health. She is part of the NIDA-funded Integrated Care for Addiction, HIV, and HCV Research and Education (ICAHRE) T32 training program. Her research interests focus on the impact of drug-related policy change on healthcare delivery for vulnerable populations. Prior to attending Boston University, Christina worked as a clinical researcher at the Trauma Training Center in Columbia University Irving Medical Center. She received an MPH from Thomas Jefferson University and a BA from Columbia University.

Kerrin Gallagher

Kerrin Gallagher is a doctoral student in Health Services Research at Boston University School of Public Health. She is interested in maternal & child health and health policy. She has been working with real-world data and is interested in using healthcare claims data in unique ways to assess health outcomes and cost, and to evaluate programs and policy. Previously, Kerrin earned her MPH concentrating in biostatistics at BUSPH. She has worked as a data analyst at BUSPH’s Biostatistics and Epidemiology Data Analytics Center, Panalgo, and HealthCore. Kerrin will be working with Dr. Megan Cole Brahim on the TEAM UP project.

Demetri Goutos

Demetri Goutos is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Health Law, Policy, and Management at the Boston University School of Public Health, and works as a Graduate Research Assistant at the Center for Antiracist Research and with Dr. Paul Shafer. His interests lie in the measurement of disparities in health, and the evaluation of policy and initiatives designed to reduce them. Prior to joining the School of Public Health, Demetri worked as a researcher at the Yale Center for Outcomes Research and Development, where he focused on the design and implementation of methods to measure disparity in Medicare and Medicaid programs. He has also worked as an operations consultant at a rural health clinical in Guatemala, and participated in research assessing access to care for vulnerable groups in Maine. Demetri received his BA from Yale University and his MBA from La Salle University.

Carolina Herrera

Carolina's research is focused on reforming the delivery of pediatric and young adult behavioral health care. Her thesis project will use mixed methods to investigate how adolescents successfully navigate and access formal and informal mental health services.

 

 

Ginger Jin

Ginger Jin, MS is a doctoral student in Health Services Research at Boston University School of Public Health. Her research interests are mental health and substance use disorders, and related service utilization, health policies, and health disparities, especially racial disparities. Before attending Boston University, Ginger worked at the Center for Surgery and Public Health (CSPH) in the Department of Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where she carried out health service research in collaboration with internal and external researchers and physicians, with an emphasis on public health in the biostatistics field. At CSPH, she worked on projects related to trauma surgery, emergency medical service, geriatric oncology, cancer quality measurements, and other surgical outcome research. Ginger attended the University of Albany, SUNY for both her undergraduate and graduate education and received her B.S in Mathematics and Economics (health), and her M.S. in Biostatistics.

Trina Johnson

Trina’s research interests include disparities in access and treatment outcomes among people with co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorders as well as associated Hepatitis C and HIV. Before coming to BU, Trina provided counseling services to clients with co-occurring disorders in the residential treatment setting, and harm reduction counseling to underserved clients at risk for viral hepatitis. She completed her Master’s thesis on the interplay between NK cell receptors and T cell modulation during viral pathogenesis, and a health services research fellowship investigating race and ethnicity disparities in ED revisits.

Kim Kaczor

Kim Kaczor is a PhD student in the Department of Health Law, Policy and Management at Boston University School of Public Health. Her academic interests are in injury/trauma and child health. Prior to her arrival at Boston University, she was a Sr. Research Scientist at a leading children’s hospital and collaborated with multi-disciplinary teams to conduct child abuse-related research. Her portfolio of work is focused on differentiating abusive from accidental trauma in infants and young children and child abuse-related fatalities. She also served as the Director of Operations for a program addressing leading causes of child mortality and provided provide operational, financial, and strategic leadership for the program. She received her BS in Chemical Engineering from Bucknell University, MS in Biomedical Engineering from The University of Memphis and The University of Tennessee, Memphis – Joint Program in Biomedical Engineering, and MPH in Community Health Needs from DePaul University.

Gintas Krisciunas

Gintas is a full time research assistant professor in the department of otolaryngology at BU School of Medicine / Boston Medical Center and a part time HSR PhD student.  He is interested in clinical outcomes research with a particular focus on head and neck cancer treatment morbidity.  His interdisciplinary research involves testing proactive and reactive behavioral treatments for radiation induced dysphagia (trouble swallowing), designing outcome measurement instruments, and creating/testing novel medical technologies.  He has served as a PI, Co-I, or project manager on a number of NIH, PCORI, industry, and internally funded clinical research projects, and serves as a member of the BUMC IRB.

Farai Kuwonza

Farai Maxwell Kuwonza is a Research Fellow at the Partnered Evidence-based Policy Resource Center (PEPReC), VA. Farai is also a PhD student in Health Services Research (Health Economics) in the Department of Health Law, Policy, and Management at Boston University School of Public Health. Farai has worked as a consultant with Health Capital Group on projects surrounding the 340B Drug Pricing Program - serving clients in the pharmaceutical industry. Prior to consulting, Farai served as a graduate research assistant in the Department of Population Health Sciences at Weill Cornell Medical College, focusing on the acquisition of skilled nursing facilities by private equity firms and real estate investment trusts (REITs).
Broadly, his research interest lies at the intersection of health policy and health care financing. He is interested in using quasi-experimental designs to evaluate health policy challenges that affect vulnerable and underserved populations.
Farai received his MS in Health Policy and Economics from Cornell University- Weill Cornell Medical College, MPhil in Development Finance from Stellenbosch University, and a BSc in Economics from the University of Zimbabwe.

Claudine Lavarin

Claudine is a doctoral candidate in Health Services Research in the School of Public Health at Boston University. She is interested in the investigation and implementation of evidence-based programs in health services to reduce health disparities. Her primary research is centered on sickle cell disease and access to quality care. Claudine received her Master’s in Public Health Policy and Management from New York University. There she began her career in research as an associate research scientist and became a project coordinator on a CDC-funded research study on HIV prevention and sexual health. Drawing on her past, present, and future research, Claudine plans on implementing and sustaining successful interventions that inform policy to improve health systems and help prevent many of the social health injustices that patients face.

Timothy Levengood

Timothy Levengood is a public health researcher passionate about finding what works in healthcare and policy. Tim comes to Boston University by way of the University of Georgia, where he received his MPH and BS, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where he worked as an ORISE research fellow with the Community Guide Branch. While with The Community Guide, Tim conducted systematic reviews and meta-analyses exploring the effectiveness of health system interventions (e.g. team-based care for diabetes control) and health-impacting policies (e.g. built environment city design and physical activity behaviors). Tim joined the Health Services Research PhD program to study the effectiveness and implementation of interventions and policies that affect the health of marginalized populations - sexual and gender minorities, racial minorities, low resource communities. He is particularly interested in health disparities and how the U.S. can better treat or prevent HIV, substance use and mental health disorders.

Alex Levine

Alex Levine is a PhD candidate in Health Services Research at the Boston University School of Public Health. Their research focuses on access, quality, and equity in aging and disability policy and programs. Alex is currently a Senior Research Associate at Tufts Medical Center, where they examine health insurance coverage and patient access to specialty drugs, and a researcher at the VA Center for Healthcare Organization & Implementation Research. Alex received their MPH from the Boston University School of Public Health and their BA in Health & Human Biology from Brown University.. @adelealexandr

Kenneth Lim

Kenneth Lim is a PhD student in Health Services Research in the Department of Health Law, Policy, and Management at Boston University School of Public Health. His research interests include Medicaid managed care, health care delivery reform, and the integration of health and social care within the clinical setting. Prior to attending Boston University, Kenneth was a research analyst at Mathematica, a health services and policy research firm. He worked on projects for federal and state government agencies and private organizations related to primary care transformation, community-based care coordination, and integrated care programs for individuals dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. He received his B.S. in Public Policy and Global Health from Northwestern University. @kennethnlim

Daniel Lipsey

Daniel Lipsey is a PhD student in the Department of Health Law, Policy & Management at the Boston University School of Public Health. He will also be a research assistant at the Partnered Evidence-based Policy Resource Center (PEPReC). He is interested in studying the impact of health information technology on care quality, accessibility, and cost. Prior to joining Boston University, he worked in the Division of General Internal Medicine at Einstein-Montefiore where he helped implement an electronic consult program to improve specialty access for primary care patients. He received his B.A. in Biology from Kenyon College.

Erin Major

Erin Major is a PhD student in Health Services Research at Boston University interested in harm reduction for substance use disorders, particularly supervised consumption sites. She has worked in the harm reduction sphere for over five years now, including experience conducting research on supervised consumption sites in Switzerland and New York, and volunteer efforts with harm reduction organizations in Appalachia. Some of her previous research has also focused on buprenorphine access in rural areas and perinatal substance use disorders, with a particular emphasis on equity and barriers to access. Erin received her B.A. in Public Health and Education Policy at Davidson College in 2019 after conducting research on syringe access programs and other evidence-based harm reduction methods for people who use drugs.

Nicole McCann

Nicole McCann is a doctoral student in the Health Services Research Program at Boston University School of Public Health studying in the NIDA-funded Integrated Care for Addiction, HIV, and HCV Research and Education Training Program. She is interested in researching ways to increase access and engagement in treatment and prevention programs among people with and at risk for HIV, HCV, and substance use disorders. Before coming to BUSPH, Nicole worked at the Medical Practice Evaluation Center of Massachusetts General Hospital evaluating HIV-related policy using cost-effectiveness modeling. Nicole received her BA in Biology and the Science in Society Program from Wesleyan University.

Clarisa Medina

Clarisa Medina, MPH, is a doctoral student in Health Services Research in the School of Public Health at Boston University. Prior to beginning her PhD journey, Medina responded to the COVID-19 pandemic through managing vaccine distribution and testing sites in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area. In addition, she worked as a Program Officer for PAHO/WHO, serving Latin America and Caribbean Regions. Clarisa obtained her Master of Public Health in Health Policy and Management from Texas A&M University in 2018, where she was awarded the department’s “Student Excellence Award.” Her research interest includes systemic racism in health care systems, looking at how law impacts health, and how to improve government sponsored healthcare. Clarisa obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies in 2015 from St. Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana, with concentrations in Economic Development and International Development and minors in Intercultural Studies and Spanish. Clarisa Medina was awarded the Gates Millennium Scholarship in 2012 and serves as an active scholar. @medclara13

Martha Mulugeta

Martha Mulugeta is a doctoral candidate in the Health Services Research program at Boston University School of Public Health. She is interested in using mixed-methods research to evaluate the impact of interventions and policies on marginalized populations. More specifically, her interests and past research have centered around health disparities regarding access to care among immigrant and low-income communities. Prior to attending Boston University, Martha received a BS in Neuroscience from the University of St. Thomas and MPH in Epidemiology from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.

Yuxin “Curney” Ni

Yuxin “Curney” Ni previously worked as a research assistant at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill project-China and focused on delivering digital network-based secondary distribution of HIV self-testing among Chinese men who have sex with men. Ni is interested in employing mixed-methods research to identify perceived hurdles and develop evidence-based innovative HIV prevention interventions among sexual and gender minorities through community-engaged strategies.

Shannon Ogden

Shannon Ogden is a doctoral student in the Health Services Research program at Boston University School of Public Health and is part of the Integrated Care for Addiction, HIV and HCV Research and Education (ICAHRE) T32 Training Program. Her research interests lie in the implementation and evaluation of policies and interventions that impact the health and well-being of women and sexual and gender minorities. Prior to attending Boston University, Shannon worked in research related to intimate partner violence and the integration of healthcare and social services; the collection and documentation of sexual orientation and gender identity in the healthcare setting; and assessing the delivery of evidence-based routine cervical cancer screening in clinical practice. Shannon received an MPH from the University of Pennsylvania and a BA from the University of California, Berkeley.

Iman Saeed

Iman Saeed is a research analyst for the Partnered Evidence-based Policy Resource Center (PEPReC) at the VA Boston Healthcare System. She is also a PhD student in health services research at Boston University School of Public Health.  Prior to coming to Boston, Iman completed her ScM at Brown University in biostatistics, and worked for Brown University's Center for Evidence Synthesis in Health as a research associate.  Her current research interests include health care access and quality for vulnerable and under-served populations and econometric methods.

Cara Safon

Cara Safon, MPH, is a doctoral candidate and former AHRQ T32 Fellow in Health Services Research in the Department of Health Law, Policy, and Management at the Boston University School of Public Health. Prior to joining BUSPH, Cara worked with the National Institute of Public Health to evaluate quality of maternal health care in Mexico, and has served as a research associate at the Yale School of Public Health and in the Department of Pediatrics at Boston Medical Center focusing on infant feeding and birth outcomes globally and in the US, respectively. A maternal-child health researcher, her dissertation research uses mixed methods to study access to doula care for pregnant and birthing Medicaid enrollees. Cara received her BA in Public Health from the University of California, Berkeley and her MPH in Social and Behavioral Sciences from Yale School of Public Health. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, baking, and spending time with her husband and baby daughter.

Yi-Jung Shen

Yi-Jung has great enthusiasm for researching major health care system issues ranging from enlarging quality chasm, fragmentation of care, and health system reform from a more comprehensive perspective. Her research interests include the integration of care and the role of physicians and medical facilities in the healthcare delivery system. Prior to coming to Boston University, Yi-Jung received her BA from Taipei Medical University and MS from National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Taiwan where she worked as a research assistant and data analyst.

Sooyeon Song

Sooyeon Song is a PhD student in health services research, with a concentration in health policy and economics. Her interests include delivery and payment reform, provider behavior, and primary care. Before coming to Boston University, she was a health specialist at Korea International Cooperation Agency HQ where she assisted in planning and evaluating policy and programs on quality and costs worldwide. Before that, she was a nurse at Seoul National University Hospital and a research volunteer at World Health Organization HQ. She received her MPH in health policy and management, BS in nursing, and BA in philosophy from Seoul National University, South Korea. blogs.bu.edu/songsy/

Kertu Tenso

Kertu Tenso is a doctoral student in Health Services Research at Boston University School of Public Health and a data analyst at the VA Boston Healthcare System. Kertu's PhD concentration is in health economics and she is passionate about using causal inference modeling to answer various healthcare questions. Prior to joining Boston University, Kertu conducted research at the WHO Regional Office in Cairo, Institut Pasteur in Paris, Harvard Medical School, and Cambridge Health Alliance. Kertu also has a unique policy background which she gained through her previous studies and diplomatic positions at embassies and intergovernmental organizations such as the UNHRC. She received her M.A. in Human Rights and Humanitarian Action with a concentration in Global Health from Sciences Po Paris and B.A. in Government and Politics from University of Tartu.

Jih-Cheng Yeh

Jih-Cheng (Jack) Yeh is an Integrated Care for Addiction, HIV and HCV Research and Education (ICAHRE) T32 Predoctoral Fellow. He is passionate about addressing health disparities among vulnerable populations such as underrepresented racial/ethnic and sexual/gender minorities at a population level. His research interests include social determinants of health and related inequalities surrounding health outcomes related to alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and opioids. He’s especially drawn to harm reduction approaches that incorporate strategies for long-lasting positive treatment outcomes.  Jack obtained his B.S. from the University of Washington and MPH from National Taiwan University.

Yingzhe Yuan

Yingzhe is currently investigating the impacts of health information exchange and the effects of home and community-based personal care programs on hospitalizations and related costs. She is interested in health economics and the use of econometrics and statistical methods for health services research.

 

Sugy Choi, PhD, MS

Sugy Choi, PhD, MS, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Health at New York University Grossman School of Medicine. She received her PhD. in Health Services Research from BUSPH in 2021. She is interested in conducting evaluations of state and federal health policies and programs, with a focus on improving access to treatment services for vulnerable populations like individuals with Medicaid, substance use disorder (SUD), HIV, and other severe mental illnesses. Her dissertation identified multilevel facilitators and barriers to addiction treatment services for pregnant and parenting women to improve access and engagement in SUD treatment.

Why were you interested in getting a PhD in Health Services Research?

I wanted to strengthen my knowledge of national population health research and to engage in practical and translational research that can impact the most vulnerable populations. I was particularly interested in learning about innovative and practical approaches to solve health disparities and inequities. Finally, I realized that I needed more training to conduct independent research, and thought a PhD in HSR will help me develop the research skills necessary to become an independent researcher.

What stood out about the PhD program at BU?

I was drawn by the rigorous research methodology classes at BUSPH and its extensive research, training, and service in addiction treatment and policy. Additionally, the emphasis on interdisciplinary studies in HSR appealed to me.

How do you feel the program prepared you for your current position?

The HSR program trained me in many ways of conducting research: conceptualizing research questions and study designs driven by a framework, carrying out hypotheses using rigorous methods, and scientifically sharing and disseminating results.

Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba, PhD

Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba is Executive Director of Children’s HealthWatch, a multistate research and policy network based at Boston Medical Center. Dr. Ettinger de Cuba has worked on issues related to the health of young children and their families in program, policy/advocacy, and research roles. She has published on connections between health/health care utilization and public program participation, food security, and housing stability, particularly focused on equity and children of immigrants. Dr. Ettinger de Cuba served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Bolivia and received her BA from the University of Michigan and her MPH in International Health from BU School of Public Health.

Why were you interested in getting a PhD in Health Services Research?

My career has had a lot of zigzags that allowed me to gain experience in a wide variety of fields and roles, ultimately coalescing around a core interest in the health and health care utilization of families and children and how they are affected by changes to public policy and the environment they live in. I had worked on research in various roles for a long time and realized that to pursue my own interests and ideas as a researcher, I would need a PhD. Moreover, I knew my abilities were strong in some areas but limited in others, and I wanted to strengthen my skillset in both quantitative and qualitative study design and analysis.

What stood out about the PhD program at BU?

When I came to the department for the first time to see if my interests fit within Health Services Research, I was greeted with enthusiasm.  What was supposed to be a 30 min exploratory meeting turned into a 2-hour conversation. The then-director of the PhD program introduced me to the professor who later become my advisor and I found we had so much to talk about. The department’s focus on mixed methods was really exciting to me and, given my own unusual path to Health Services Research, I was excited to hear about all of the cross-disciplinary work that was happening.

How do you feel the program prepared you for your current position?

I took on my current position during my time in the PhD program, which was definitely a challenging balancing act to ensure I was giving my best to both roles – and to my family – during that period.  However, the benefit of working while studying is that each informs the other.  I could see immediate applications in my work leading our research and policy network of the concepts and theories I was learning in class. Simultaneously, I could bring my real-world experience into class to ground conceptual discussions.  The program’s focus on being a critical thinker, designing rigorous methods, writing succinctly, and constantly asking questions have made me both a better leader and a better researcher.

Kevin Griffith, PhD

Kevin Griffith is an assistant professor in the Department of Health Policy at the Vanderbilt School of Medicine and an investigator at the Boston VA Healthcare System. His work has been published in a variety of journals including Health Affairs, JAMA Network Open, Diabetes Care, and Medical Care. Prior to joining Boston University, Kevin worked for the U.S. Army and Department of Defense where he evaluated the costs and outcomes of interventions to improve mental health & resilience in active duty soldiers.  He received his M.A. in Public Policy & B.S. in Economics from The Ohio State University.

Why were you interested in getting a PhD in Health Services Research?

My unusual journey to health policy has shaped the types of questions and research I’m interested in. I’ve worked in government at various levels, observed public programs in action, worked with their data. I’ve developed a lifelong commitment to making these programs better – not simply because I am interested in their effectiveness, although that is important. I want these policies to be informed by research and evidence, and to use that evidence to improve their incentive design, effectiveness, and value. I wanted the PhD so that I could serve as principal investigator, enabling me to select research topics that I care most about and set my own research agenda. I've also always enjoyed teaching and mentorship, and I knew that a PhD would open doors to academia where I could continue these experiences.

What stood out about the PhD program at BU?

My campus visit to Boston University was very different from my experiences at other schools. The faculty were warm, articulate, and seemed genuinely eager to learn about my interests and background. Office doors were open and folks seemed to enjoy each other's company. The department also has a large and diverse faculty, both in terms of educational background and research areas. So there's ample opportunities to get involved in research, no matter what topic you're interested in. I also appreciated the ability to specialize in health economics, and to take coursework or collaborate with professors in the Department of Economics and Questrom School of Business. Lastly, the faculty have strong links with the Veterans Health Administration which was attractive given my  background working with military populations.

How do you feel the program prepared you for your current position?

The coursework provides a strong foundation in study design, quantitative and qualitative research, and conceptual models for health services research. I also had numerous opportunities to serve as a teaching assistant and to collaborate with various professors to gain applied research experience. Faculty supported and encouraged me to conduct my own research, present at conferences, and to write articles for peer-reviewed journals. My mentors also provided critical grant-writing expertise and guidance, which helped me to obtain NIH funding for my dissertation and prepared me to take advantage of future opportunities.

Michal Horný, PhD

Michal Horný is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences at Emory University and an Affiliate Research Fellow at the Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute. His work examines how health policy, provider incentives (payment models), and patient incentives (cost-sharing and other aspects of health insurance benefit design) impact the use of care and ultimately health outcomes, with a particular focus on cancer screening and diagnostic imaging. He is also interested in drivers of health care spending and the assessment of the value of care.

Why were you interested in getting a PhD in Health Services Research?

My preoccupation with the health care system was triggered early by my parents—both practicing physicians. After graduating from college, I worked for a consulting company. I enjoyed the few healthcare-related projects in which I had the opportunity to participate, but I regretted that I did not have a role in the decision-making on which problems of the health care system to prioritize. Even more importantly, I quickly started to realize that my skills and knowledge were limited and I needed a more rigorous education.

What stood out about the PhD program at BU?

The program at BUSPH offered a combination of three aspects that I found extremely valuable. First, not only did BUSPH have several excellent faculty members that were associated with the program, but they were also generally available to students and always willing to help. Second, I found the size of the program just right. On the one hand, the number of students in a typical cohort offered an intellectually stimulating environment as well as an opportunity to make friends; on the other hand, I always felt connected to the program. Third, I appreciated the opportunity to learn not only to conduct high-quality research but also to teach.

How do you feel the program prepared you for your current position?

I believe the program prepared me well. Although the learning process never ends, the program gave me a strong knowledge base and taught me how to teach myself new skills whenever a need arises.

Hillary Mull, PhD, MPP

Hillary Mull, PhD, MPP is an investigator from VA Boston Healthcare System’s Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research (CHOIR), as well as a research assistant professor in the Department of Surgery at Boston University Medical School. Dr. Mull received her PhD in Health Services Research from the Boston University School of Public Health in 2011. She also has a Master's in Public Policy from the University of Michigan and her BA in Japanese from the University of Michigan. Dr. Mull completed a VA HSR&D-funded Career Development Award on adverse event surveillance in outpatient surgery in 2018. She is interested in the application of informatics tools to increase the efficiency of patient safety surveillance and to improve quality of care, particularly in outpatient settings.

Why were you interested in getting a PhD in Health Services Research?

I had been studying informatics tools for adverse event surveillance as a health policy analyst. I had so many questions and ideas about how these tools could be harnessed with data from electronic medical records to improve care. I realized I could only lead my own research with a PhD and that HSR would give me the desired skills to achieve an independent research career.

What stood out about the PhD program at BU?

The faculty are wonderful, not just because of their extensive research portfolios but because of their genuine commitment to student’s success.

How do you feel the program prepared you for your current position?

I continue to work with a lot of BUSPH faculty, and without getting my PhD at BU I don’t think I’d have this job!

Janine Molino, PhD, MS

Janine Molino graduated in May 2018 from Boston University with a Ph.D. in Health Services Research. She also holds a M.S. degree in Statistics from Stanford University.  Currently, she works as a Research Scientist at Rhode Island Hospital and as an Assistant Professor (Research) for the Department of Orthopaedics at the Warren Alpert School of Medicine, Brown University. In these roles, she serves as a biostatistician, supporting graduate students and medical residents in the design and conduct of research projects, as well as assisting junior and senior faculty on grant applications and NIH funded grants. Janine also serves as a statistical reviewer for Radiology.

Why were you interested in getting a PhD in Health Services Research?

Prior to getting my PhD, I worked as a statistical programmer and biostatistician for Boston Children's Hospital. In those roles, I was focused primarily on statistical programming in SAS, STATA, SUDAAN, and R and conducting data analysis for 10-20 different research projects. This narrow focus wasn't satisfying enough at the time. I slowly started to become more interested in the bigger picture associated with research, wanting to better understand the intricacies of research methods, including the development of research questions and study hypotheses and the strengths and weaknesses of varying study designs. When I thought about my career in more detail, I realized that the projects that I liked working on most fell into the field of health services research, particularly access and use of health care, health outcomes, and quality of care.

What stood out about the PhD program at BU?

Several factors drew me to the HSR PhD program at BU. The primary factor was the knowledge and dedication of the faculty. After leaving my interview, I knew this program would provide me with the training and encouragement to not only successfully complete my PhD, but also to succeed and grow in my career after graduation. My experience in the program and thus far after exceeded these expectations. No matter what life threw at me, I knew I could count on my professors to provide me the support and reassurance to achieve my goals. The second factor was the ability to complete my degree while working part-time and/or full-time in the field. The ability to hold a job in the field while taking classes and completing my dissertation allowed me to apply what I learned on a daily basis, further honing the training that I received and better preparing for my current positions.

How do you feel the program prepared you for your current position?

The program set me up to excel in my current positions. It provided me with the skills that I lacked to make a contribution to research by ensuring proper study design and research methods. The class projects and presentations also helped me to overcome my fear of public speaking and to learn how to effectively communicate my expertise to colleagues.

Kyung Min Lee, PhD

Kyung Min Lee is an Investigator at the VA Informatics and Computing Infrastructure (VINCI), a national resource center at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) responsible for administering and providing the analytical platform for national VA patient data. This position is a natural extension of the data analytics and statistical programming work that Kyung conducted at the VA during his doctoral studies. As a VINCI investigator, Kyung lead the analytic work to characterize clinical phenotypes based on the VA electronic health record (EHR) data. Over the past year, he has worked as a Co-Investigator on several national VA studies, including the Million Veteran Program, which analyzes genome-wide data to study the relationship between genetics and health, Precision Medicine in Mental Health, a study analyzing the value of pharmacogenetic data in health, and LEAP, a study that leverages national EHR data to characterize glycemic status and medication use on the trajectory, complications, and outcomes of prediabetes and diabetes among Veterans.

Why were you interested in getting a PhD in Health Services Research?

Initially, I considered a career in medicine. I realized during my master’s program in health services research that pursuing a research career in HSR had the potential to help patients at the population level. I liked the interdisciplinary nature of HSR and its notion of solving problems in health care and improving patient outcomes through empirical research.

What stood out about the PhD program at BU?

The faculty’s diverse research interests and expertise was an attractive characteristic of the HSR PhD program at BU. Through discussions with various faculty members, I was able to articulate my ideas and form my research interests. In addition, BU’s affiliation with the VA provided a unique opportunity to not only apply classroom learning into practice, but also acquire professional experience in analytical methods.

How do you feel the program prepared you for your current position?

I firmly believe that the comprehensive and well-rounded curriculum at BU prepared me well to begin my career as a research scientist. The HSR PhD program’s emphasis on conceptualization of ideas into a testable model and applying the appropriate and rigorous methods to conduct analysis helped me acquire the necessary skillset to critically assess and improve real-world research.

Naomi Sacks, PhD

Naomi Sacks is a Director for Precision Xtract, part of the Precision Medicine Group. At Precision, Naomi focuses on delivering scientifically rigorous and commercially relevant health economics and outcomes research to global biopharma clients. Before joining Precision Xtract, Naomi was an Instructor and Project Director in the Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Medical School, where she directed research on Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI) hospitalizations and outcomes in elderly Medicare beneficiaries. This research used Medicare administrative data to evaluate trends in AMI hospitalizations and post-AMI mortality, variations in these trends by race, sex and age, and trends in the coding of AMI over time, in response to financial and other incentives. Naomi is an adjunct professor at the Tufts University School of Medicine, where she is course director for Introductory Health Economics and Topics in Health Economics courses.

Why were you interested in getting a PhD in Health Services Research?

I came to the BUSPH program in HSR from a career in software quality assurance, and prior graduate training in social anthropology. When the software industry imploded in the early 2000's, I was suddenly—and unexpectedly—unemployed. I enjoyed SQA, but didn’t find my work meaningful, and was reluctant to seek another tenuous position in what was then a shaky industry.  I had been involved in a retrospective analysis of diabetic foot ulcers using insurance claims data in my most recent position at a biotech software startup, and, while I didn’t know it then, I was hooked on health services research. A BUSPH PhD epidemiologist whom I had met at the biotech startup encouraged me to consider the BUSPH program.

What stood out about the PhD program at BU?

My graduate program in social anthropology emphasized qualitative research. But my subsequent work in software and data analysis was quantitative. The Health Services Research program, which was new at the time, provided training in both quantitative and qualitative approaches to research. The interdisciplinary aspects of HSR also appealed to me, given my interdisciplinary background. Finally, as the mother of 3 children (then ages 10, 15 and 17), the part-time option at BU enabled me to continue to work and support my family while completing my degree.

How do you feel the program prepared you for your current position?

I now work for the Precision Medicine Group where I design, implement and oversee health economics and outcomes research. Much of my work involves using large, administrative databases—claims and/or electronic medical record data. Coursework in health economics, health policy and survey design have been valuable to me in this work. Most important, my dissertation work prepared me for designing and implementing research on the economic and clinical burden of disease and treatment outcomes. I am also an adjunct assistant professor at the Tufts University School of Medicine, where I teach introductory health economics courses to MPH and other graduate students. HSR faculty were very helpful as I prepared my first classes.

The Health Services Research PhD Program Profile offers a statistical portrait across key metrics, which we hope will provide prospective PhD students a clear sense of the program.

Boston University’s PhD Program Profiles