Program Faculty
Margarita Alegria, PhD
Dr. Alegria is the Chief of the Disparities Research Unit at the Massachusetts General Hospital and The Mongan Institute, the Harry G. Lehnert, Jr. and Lucille F. Cyr Lehnert Endowed MGH Research Institute Chair, and Professor in the Departments of Medicine and Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Alegria’s research is focused on improvement of health care services delivery for diverse racial and ethnic populations, conceptual and methodological issues with multicultural populations and ways to bring the community’s perspective into the design and implementation of health services. Dr. Alegria has mentored over 60 pre- and postdoctoral trainees and faculty members. She has been recognized by the Steve Banks Award for Mentoring from the American Public Health Association and the Excellence in Mentoring award by the National Hispanic Science Network. Dr. Alegria’s research spans primary and secondary prevention by harnessing community engaged research to improve mental health and prevent among minority elders.
Stephen Bartels, MD, MS
Dr. Bartels is the inaugural James J. and Jean H. Mongan Chair in Health Policy and Community Health in the Department of Medicine, Professor of Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Harvard Medical School, and Director of the Mongan Institute at MGH. His research is focused on health disparities, health care management, aging and geriatrics, integration of mental health and primary care, self-management, automated telehealth and mobile technology, evidence-based models of care for complex conditions, population health science, applied health care delivery science, and implementation science. Dr. Bartels has mentored over 50 early career investigators. He is a past president of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry and founding chair of the Geriatric Mental Health Foundation. Dr. Bartels is past Chair for the National Institute of Health Dissemination and Implementation Research in Health (DIRH) Study Section spanning 20 NIH institutes and is a faculty member of the NCI Training Institute in Dissemination and Implementation Research in Cancer (TIDIRC). Much of Dr. Bartels’ work focuses on secondary and tertiary prevention by developing and implementing effective integrated models of care for older persons with mental health conditions.
Deborah Blacker, MD, ScD
Dr. Blacker is a Professor of Psychiatry at MGH and Harvard Medical School and a Professor and Deputy Chair in Epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research focuses on epidemiology, genetics, assessment, and early recognition of Alzheimer’s Disease. She has mentored over 55 early career investigators. She also serves as leader of the Research Education Component and co-leader of the Clinical Core for the Mass Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, and leader of the Analytic Core for the Harvard Aging Brain Study. Dr. Blacker teaches a course in assessment methods in psychiatric research at HSPH and serves as co-director of the Psychiatric Epidemiology concentration. She has served on the DSM-5 Neurocognitive Disorders Workgroup and the American Psychiatric Association’s Workgroup to Revise the Practice Guideline for Dementia, and currently serves on the World Health Organization's Technical Assessment Group on metrics for the UN Decade of the Brain. Dr. Blacker’s research addresses primary and secondary prevention issues related to ADRD by focusing much of her work on the assessment, diagnosis, phenomenology, and early recognition of cognitive disorders.
Zara Cooper, MD, MSc
Dr. Cooper is an acute care surgeon, trauma surgeon and surgical intensivist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) where she serves as Kessler Director for the Center for Surgery and Public Health (CSPH). Dr. Cooper is a Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, associate faculty at Ariadne Labs, and adjunct faculty at the Marcus Institute for Aging research, all in in Boston, MA. Her research aims to improve palliative and geriatric care for older seriously ill surgical patients. She has mentored over 25 pre- and postdoctoral trainees and junior faculty in health services research. Dr. Cooper is currently funded through the National Institute on Aging (NIA), the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR), the Cambia Health Foundation, the National Palliative Care Research Center (NPCRC) and is a co-investigator on multiple federally funded grants. With much of her work seeking to improve quality of life for surgical patients with advanced illness, she has a strong grasp of tertiary prevention for older adults seeking surgical care
Bradford Dickerson, MD
Dr. Dickerson is Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and Tom Rickles Chair in Progressive Aphasia Research, Leader of the Neuroimaging Core of the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, and Director of the Frontotemporal Disorders Unit at MGH. Dr. Dickerson runs a multidisciplinary team of 30 clinicians and scientists using advanced brain imaging and behavioral methods to study how memory, language, emotion, and social behaviors change in normal aging and in patients with neurodegenerative disease, with extensive funding from the National Institutes of Health. His team also studies new approaches to caregiving. He has mentored over 75 pre- and postdoctoral trainees and faculty and was recognized as the 2021 MGH Xandra Breakfield Research Mentor of the Year. In partnership with Dr. Vranceanu, his work to improve quality of life for those with early-onset dementia and frontotemporal dementia along with their caregivers addresses important tertiary prevention interventions.
Areej El-Jawahri, MD
Dr. El-Jawahri is an oncologist, Associate Director of the Cancer Outcomes Research and Education Program (CORE), Director of the Bone Marrow Transplant Survivorship Program, and Associate Professor of Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). Her research interests include investigating patient-reported outcomes, enhancing patient-centered decision-making interventions, and designing supportive care interventions to improve the care of patients with hematologic malignancies with a special emphasis on patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Her research also explores models of health care delivery to improve patients' quality of life and clinical outcomes. Dr. El-Jawahri has mentored over 15 pre- and postdoctoral trainees and faculty and is the recipient of the Harvard Medical School A. Clifford Barger Excellence in Mentoring Award. She engages predominantly in tertiary technology enhanced prevention interventions.
Brent Forester, MD, MSc
Dr. Forester is the Dr. Frances S. Arkin Professor and Chair, Department of Psychiatry, Tufts University School of Medicine, Chief and Chair, Department of Psychiatry, Tufts Medical Center, Director of Behavioral Health, Tufts Medicine. Dr. Forester’s research focuses on novel treatment methods for managing behavioral symptoms of dementia, such as agitation and aggression. Dr. Forester has mentored over 75 early career investigators and has received the Psychopharmacology Teaching Award and Cynthia N. Kettyle Award for Teaching, Mentorship, and Leadership in Psychiatric Education. Dr. Forester is also past president of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP) and is a distinguished life fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. His work to reduce behavioral symptoms in dementia and support caregivers spans tertiary and primary prevention respectively.
Jennifer Haas, MD, MSc
Jennifer Haas MD, MSc is the Peter L. Gross MD Chair in Primary Care in the Division of General Internal Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. She is a practicing general internist and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. She currently serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Haas’ research has focused on elucidating and reducing racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in health care and outcomes, with a particular focus on cancer control and prevention. Her research also focuses on the implementation and evaluation of systems-based interventions to improve the use of sceening and prevention in primary care and how health information technology can improve the flow of information between patients and providers. She is currently a Principal Investigator of four NIH studies, including a regional collaboration to reduce disparities in breast cancer care and a national consortium to optomize the delivery of the cervical cancer screening process. She was selected to serve as an American Cancer Society Research Professor.
Jeffery Huffman, MD
Dr. Huffman is Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Cardiac Psychiatry Research Program in the Division of Psychiatry and Medicine, where he conducts studies funded by the NIH, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Heart Association. His work spans the topics of psychology, health behavior, and cardiovascular disease. He has additional expertise in factorial designs and the delivery of interventions via text messaging. Dr. Huffman also serves as the associate chief for Clinical Services in the Department of Psychiatry and the director of Inpatient Psychiatry Research. He has mentored over 40 early career investigators and has received the Plasky and Stuart Hauser Awards for outstanding mentorship. He has substantial experience in tertiary prevention intervention research through his leading of two clinical trials integrating depression and anxiety care management programs for patients with heart disease.
Jin Hui Joo, MD, MA
Dr. Joo is a faculty member and attending physician in the Division of Geriatric Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital and Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Hospital. She has recently moved to MGH and is in the process of becoming Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. She has been funded by the National Institutes of Health to conduct health services research on depression and dementia care for underserved older adults to decrease their unmet needs. Her other research focuses include the meaning and use of religious coping among minority older adults, disparities of depression care in primary care, and use of paraprofessionals such as peer mentors and community health workers for vulnerable populations. Dr. Joo uses qualitative and quantitative methods and uses a community-engaged approach to optimize relevance and sustainability of health service interventions. At John Hopkins Dr. Joo has mentored 6 pre-doctoral doctoral trainees. Since her arrival at MGH in January 2022, she has been mentoring 2 PhD and MD junior faculty. Her study of a peer support intervention for depression among low-income and ethnic minority older adults gives her experience with tertiary prevention interventions.
Ruth Lopez, PhD, GNP-BC
Dr. Lopez is Professor and Associate Dean of Research, Jacques Mohr Chair, and Director of the Office of Nursing Research and Scholarship in the School of Nursing at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Institute of Health Professions. Dr. Lopez’s research focuses on the needs of nursing home residents with advanced dementia and their family caregivers, nurses’ perceptions of end-of-life care in nursing homes, family caregivers’ perceptions of treatment decision making, the influence of nursing home culture on feeding decisions in advanced dementia, and uncertainty among family caregivers of nursing home residents with dementia. Dr. Lopez has mentored over 20 pre- and postdoctoral trainees and 12 faculty members. She has received several awards including the Partners in Excellence Award for Outstanding Community Service and an established researcher award from the Gerontological Advance Practice Nurses Association. Dr. Lopez is a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN) and the Gerontological Society of America, and currently serves as a reviewer for the National Institute of Health (NIH). Dr. Lopez’s work falls within tertiary prevention of harm in the setting of advanced dementia in long term care facilities.
Kathleen Lyons, ScD, OTR/L
Dr. Lyons is a Professor at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Institute of Health Professions and a rehabilitation scientist whose research is focused on developing the evidence base for cancer rehabilitation and psycho-oncology. Her primary area of interest is in developing and testing participant-directed interventions that are tailored to address individual priorities and needs. Dr. Lyons has mentored over 15 early career investigators and is the recipient of the 2023 Excellence in Cancer Rehabilitation Award from the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Her research has been funded by the American Cancer Society, National Cancer Institute, and the American Occupational Therapy Foundation. Her tertiary prevention interventions use occupational therapy and palliative care strategies to improve quality of life in cancer survivors.
Olivia Okereke, MD, MS
Dr. Okereke is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Epidemiology at Harvard Medical School and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She also serves as Director of Geriatric Psychiatry, Director of the Geriatric Psychiatry Clinical and Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Director of the MGH Psychiatry Center for Racial Equity and Justice. Dr. Okereke’s research is focused on identifying modifiable risk factors in adverse mental aging, prevention of depression and cognitive decline in older adults and community engaged research. Dr. Okereke has mentored 37 faculty members, psychiatry fellows and residents and teaches and mentors as part of 2 T32 and 1 R25 in Psychiatry. Dr. Okereke’s work centers on primary prevention of depression and ADRD.
John Orav, PhD
Dr. Orav is Associate Professor of Medicine and Biostatistician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He serves as the statistical consultant for the Center for Aging and Serious Illness and is a Director for the Institute on Healthy Aging in Toulouse. He has worked with clinical investigators for many years in very productive collaborations, including many fellows and junior faculty. He has taught quantitative research skills to clinicians as part of the summer Program in Clinical Effectiveness. This program started over 35 years ago and has successfully helped train thousands of clinician investigators in academic medicine. His work with collaborating researchers spans the continuum from observational studies, to clinical trials, to quasi-experimental designs.
Elyse Park, PhD, MPH
Dr. Park is a Professor of Psychiatry and Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)/Harvard Medical School and a Senior Scientist in the Mongan Institute Health Policy Center. She is Associate Director of the MGH Cancer Center Survivorship Program, Director of Behavioral Sciences Research in the MGH Tobacco Research & Treatment Center, Director of Behavioral Health Research in the MGH Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine, and Director of the Health Promotion and Resiliency Program within Psychiatry and Internal Medicine at MGH. Her research focuses on development and integration of motivational and behavioral intervention treatments, particularly for chronic stress and smoking cessation, into cancer and survivorship care. Dr. Park has mentored over 36 pre- and postdoctoral trainees and faculty members. She was a recipient of a National Cancer Institute K24 mentoring award. She was also awarded the 2020 Ruth McCorkle Excellence in Research Mentorship Award by the American Psychosocial Oncology Society. Dr. Park’s work to improve health-related behaviors among populations at risk for cancer and cancer survivors centers on primary prevention.
Robert Parker, Scd
Dr. Parker is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Biostatistician at the Massachusetts General Hospital. He also serves as lead biostatistician for the Center for Health Outcomes and Interdisciplinary Research, where he supports 10 federal grants as well as 7 active or pending career development awards. Dr. Parker attends the weekly CHOIR research seminars where he provides statistical input for works in progress. He also mentors 2 assistant professor level faculty on increasing their biostatistical skills to support their transition to becoming biostatisticians at CHOIR. Dr. Parker is also the biostatistician on 2 pending grants led by the MPIs. His work with collaborating researchers spans the prevention continuum.
Patrick Purdon, PhD
Dr. Purdon is an Associate Professor of Anesthesia at Harvard Medical School and the Nathaniel M. Sims Endowed Chair of Anesthesia Innovation and Bioengineering at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). Dr. Purdon’s research interests center on understanding the mechanisms of anesthesia, Alzheimer’s disease and brain health, anesthesia and the developing brain, neural signal processing, and developing novel technologies for brain monitoring. He has mentored over 50 early career investigators. He is also an inventor on 16 pending patents and has received numerous awards, including the National Institute of Health Director’s New Innovator Award. His work focused on neurocognitive recovery in older surgical patients seeks to address an important tertiary prevention goal of minimizing harm from surgical interventions.
Yakeel Quiroz, PhD
Dr. Quiroz is an Associate Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Harvard Medical School. She is a Clinical Neuropsychologist and directs the Multicultural Assessment and Research Center (MARC). She is also Director of the Multicultural Alzheimer’s Prevention Program (MAPP) and the Familial Dementia Neuroimaging Lab, and the Multicultural Track of the Psychiatry Internship in Clinical Psychology. Dr. Quiroz's research focuses on the primary prevention of ADRD among individuals with genetic predisposition, with a particular focus on Latino Populations. Dr. Quiroz has mentored over 15 early career investigators.
Karen Sepucha, PhD
Dr. Sepucha is a decision scientist and the director of the Health Decision Sciences Center at Massachusetts General Hospital and an associate professor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Her research focuses on shared decision making including development and evaluation of interventions (such as patient decision aids), measures and training. Some of her recent work on shared decision making in older adults has looked at improving surgical decision making for older adults with dementia, engaging in shared decision making to de-implement medical tests and treatments, and examining how mild cognitive decline may influence measurement of shared decision making. Dr. Sepucha has been active in local, national, and international efforts to improve decision quality, and is on the steering committee for the International Patient Decision Aids Standards collaboration. She has mentored over 37 pre- and postdoctoral trainees and faculty members. Dr. Sepucha leads efforts to implement shared decision making locally and nationally. Her shared decision making work spans secondary and tertiary prevention interventions in older adults.
Louisa Sylvia, PhD
Dr. Sylvia s a staff psychologist and Associate Director at Dauten Family Center for Bipolar Treatment Innovation and Director of the Office of Women’s Careers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). She is also an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Sylvia’s research interests involve developing resiliency and wellness programs for individuals with mood disorders as well as for older minoritized individuals in the community. Dr. Sylvia has mentored over 30 early career investigators. She has spoken nationally on the importance of role models and mentors for female faculty and oversees faculty development for women at MGH. Her research spans secondary and tertiary prevention.
Jennifer Temel, MD
Dr. Temel is a Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Clinical Director of Thoracic Oncology at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Co-Director of the Cancer Outcomes Research and Education Program at the MGH Cancer Center, and co-leader of the Dana Farber/Harvard Cancer Center Outcomes Research Program. Dr. Temel’s research interests are in early, integrated palliative care for patients with advanced cancers, and her work focuses on optimizing palliative and supportive care for patients with cancer and their families. Dr. Temel has mentored over 25 early career investigators and received the Partners Outstanding Mentor Honor in 2015, 2018 and the John T. Potts Faculty Mentoring Award in 2018. She also serves as the co-Principal Investigator on a National Cancer Institute grant to conduct a workshop on methods in supportive oncology research for junior faculty. Her work in advanced cancer uses palliative care tertiary prevention approaches to improve quality of life and increase survival.
Anne Thorndike, MD, MPH
Dr. Thorndike is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and serves as the Director of the Cardiac Lifestyle Program at the Massachusetts General Hospital Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Center. Her research is focused on the primary and secondary prevention and treatment of obesity, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes through physical activity and diet interventions, with a special focus on how social factors, such as food insecurity and housing instability, influence dietary intake and health. Much of her research has tested novel behavioral economic strategies to promote healthy food choices in workplace and community settings. Dr. Thorndike has a mid-career mentoring award (NHLBI K24) focused on mentoring interdisciplinary trainees at MGH and nationally. She has mentored over 40 early career investigators and trainees.
Peter Wayne, PhD
Dr. Wayne is the Bernard Osher Associate Professor of Medicine in the Field of Complementary and Integrative Medical Therapies at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and serves as the Director for the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, jointly based HMS and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. The primary focus of his research is evaluating how mind-body and related complementary and alternative medicine practices clinically impact chronic health conditions and understanding the physiological and psychological mechanisms underlying observed therapeutic effects and therefore most of his work focuses on primary and secondary interventions. He has expertise with pain management interventions and the use of Tai Chi among older adults. Dr. Wayne is actively involved in the teaching and training of students and fellows in integrative medicine research and has mentored over 50 pre- and postdoctoral trainees and faculty members. He is co-director of the NCCIH Funded T32 in Integrative Medicine and has a NIH mid-career K24 mentoring award.