Rachel Adams
Profiles

Rachel Sayko Adams, PhD, MPH

Research Associate Professor, Health Law, Policy & Management - Boston University School of Public Health

(617) 358-2809
adamsr@bu.edu
Talbot (T Bldg)
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Biography

Rachel Sayko Adams, PhD, MPH is a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Health Law, Policy & Management at BUSPH. She is a proud alum of BUSPH where she completed her Master in Public Health in Health Policy & Management followed by a PhD in Social Policy at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. Dr. Adams is a health services researcher with expertise studying substance use, access and quality of addiction treatment, and morbidity and mortality outcomes in high-risk populations (e.g., military/Veterans, persons with traumatic brain injury or other disabilities). Prior to joining BUSPH in 2022, she spent a decade at the Institute for Behavioral Health at Brandeis University’s Heller School for Social Policy & Management, where she led a portfolio of addiction health services research. She has led studies from the National Institutes of Health (i.e, NIMH, NIAAA, NIDA, and NCCIH), the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), and Uniformed Services University at the Department of Defense. Dr. Adams has an appointment as a health services researcher with the Veterans Health Administration Rocky Mountain Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center in Aurora, Colorado.

Education

  • Brandeis University, PhD Field of Study: Social Policy
  • Brandeis University, MA Field of Study: Social Policy
  • Boston University, MPH Field of Study: Health Policy Management
  • Skidmore College, BA Field of Study: Sociology/Anthropology

Websites

Publications

  • Published on 5/1/2026

    Huntington N, Highland KB, Moresco N, Carpenter J, Bauer MR, Costantino RC, Larson MJ, Adams RS. Post-Deployment Polypharmacy and Opioid Receipt Among Active Duty Soldiers Returning from Afghanistan and Iraq: A Retrospective Study. Mil Med. 2026 May 01; 191(5-6):e938-e944. PMID: 41124337.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 3/4/2026

    Bowles AO, Brenner LA, Adams RS, Baugh CM, Degraba TJ, Kinney AR, Caban J, Lyle A, Smith A, Tung M, Wal I, Pickett TC. Challenges with Tracking Post Concussive Symptoms Using the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory in Active Duty Service Members with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. Mil Med. 2026 Mar 04. PMID: 41778638.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 2/26/2026

    Strombotne KL, Palani S, Li Y, Podlogar M, Bourgeois J, Lauver M, Schaper E, Hernandez G, Adams RS, Garrido MM. Suicide Risk and Health Care Utilization Among Veterans Contacting the Veterans Crisis Line: Retrospective Cohort Study. Psychiatr Serv. 2026 May 01; 77(5):397-404. PMID: 41742357.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 12/23/2025

    Cornacchione Ross J, Jebai R, Gray JC, Rosellini AJ, Little MA, Adams RS. Tobacco Product Use and Type by Military Veteran Status: Findings from the National Health Interview Survey, 2021-2023. Nicotine Tob Res. 2025 Dec 23; 28(1):79-89. PMID: 41035128.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 12/22/2025

    Lippi SLP, Buchholz C, Gray JC, Lipson SK, Adams RS. Alcohol use and binge drinking among US college students by military veteran status: Findings from the Healthy Minds study, 2021-2022. J Am Coll Health. 2025 Dec 22; 1-9. PMID: 41428402.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 11/4/2025

    Fonda JR, Loeffel LB, Livingston NA, Knoff AA, Bravman V, Gradus JL, Adams RS. Sex-Specific Associations Between Deployment-Related Traumatic Brain Injury and Nonfatal Drug Overdose Among a National Cohort of Post-9/11 Veterans. J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2025 Nov-Dec 01; 40(6):E491-E500. PMID: 40845918.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 11/4/2025

    Brenner LA, Tung M, Forster JE, Kinney AR, Smith AA, Adams RS, Caban JJ, Wal I. Newly Identified Suicidal Ideation and Suicide Attempts Among Military Service Members Following Traumatic Brain Injury, by Sex. J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2025 Nov-Dec 01; 40(6):E482-E490. PMID: 40845919.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 9/7/2025

    Lee EH, Cirillo M, Solomon Z, Banaag A, Fuhrman B, Adams RS, Koehlmoos TP. Diagnosing prenatal alcohol exposure and fetal alcohol syndrome in military-connected children: Insights from US military data claims, 2016-2023. Alcohol Clin Exp Res (Hoboken). 2025 Oct; 49(10):2213-2224. PMID: 40916352.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 8/11/2025

    Adams RS, Larson MJ, Moresco N, Ogan D, Setzer M, Ritter GA, Dufour S, Vest N, Milliken CS, Gray JC. Postdeployment At-Risk Drinking Among Active Duty Women: Health Care Utilization and Military Readiness Outcomes. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2025 Nov; 34(11):1381-1390. PMID: 40788848.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 8/11/2025

    Flake E, Lee EH, Apilado KP, Adams RS, MacMahon A, Koehlmoos TP. Behavioral interventions for individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: A review of systematic reviews. Alcohol Clin Exp Res (Hoboken). 2025 Sep; 49(9):2064-2075. PMID: 40789801.

     Read At: PubMed

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