Featured Graduates
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Hawa O. Abu, MD, MPH, PhD
2019 Graduate
Prior Education: MD, University of Ibadan, Nigeria; MPH, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Research Interests: Understanding the role of social-cultural factors (religiosity, spirituality, cultural beliefs) on cardiovascular health outcomes; improving healthcare access; addressing health disparities and immigrant health challenges
Mentors: Catarina Kiefe PhD MD and Robert Goldberg PhD
Dissertation: Religiosity and Patient Activation and Health Outcomes among Hospital Survivors of an Acute Coronary Syndrome
Post Graduation: Dr. Abu is a Post-Doctoral Associate in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School
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Matthew Alcusky, PharmD, PhD
2019 Graduate
Prior Education: PharmD and MS from the University of Rhode Island
Research Interests: Pharmacoepidemiology, health services research, health policy, pharmacoeconomics
Mentor: Kate Lapane
Dissertation: Anticoagulant Use, Safety, and Effectiveness for Ischemic Stroke Prevention in Nursing Home Residents with Atrial Fibrillation
Post Graduation: Dr. Alcusky is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Epidemiology, Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Medical School.
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Daniel Amante, PhD
2016 Graduate
Prior Education: BA, Biological Psychology, College of the Holy Cross; MPH, Boston University School of Public Health
Research Interests: Patient-facing technologies, implementation science, and disease management
Mentor: David Harlan, MD
Dissertation: Evaluating Acceptability, Feasibility and Efficacy of a Diabetes Care Support Program Facilitated by Cellular-Enabled Glucose Meters
Post Graduation: Dr. Amante is Program Director in the Division of Health Informatics and Implementation Science, Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Medical School
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Ganga Bey, PhD, MPH
2019 Graduate
Prior Education: BA, Anthropology, Princeton University; MPH Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Research Interests: Racial and gender chronic disease disparities; identity-based stress and health; social justice and health
Mentor: Sharina Person, PhD and Catarina Kiefe, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Gendered Race, Interpersonal Discrimination, and Cardiovascular Disease Disparities: Application of the Emerging Identity Pathology Model
Post Graduation: Dr. Bey is now a postdoctoral fellow on an NHLBI CVD Epidemiology training grant in the Gillings School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina Chapel
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Han-Yang Chen, PhD
2015 Graduate
Prior Education: BA in Economics, National Taiwan University, MS in Information Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, MS in Population Health Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Research Interests: Cardiovascular disease epidemiology
Mentor: Robert Goldberg, PhD
Dissertation: Hospital Treatment Practices, 30-Day Hospital Readmissions, and Long-Term Prognosis in Patients Hospitalized with Acute Myocardial Infarction: A Dissertation
Post Graduation: Dr. Chen is an Assistant Professor (Research) at UTHealth.
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Yong Chen, PhD
2011 Graduate
Prior Education: MD, Shanghai Jiao Tong University; MS, Johns Hopkins University
Research Interests: Study design and patient safety
Mentor: Becky Briesacher, PhD
Dissertation: Comparative Effectiveness of Alendronate and Risedronate on the Risk of Non-Vertebral Fractures in Older Women: An Instrumental Variables Approach
Post Graduation: Dr. Chen is an Epidemiologist and Senior Scientist at Merck Corporation
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Yendelela Cuffee, PhD
2012 Graduate
Prior Education: BS in Biology, Hampton University; MPH, New York Medical College
Research Interests: Health disparities and international health
Mentor: Jeroan Allison, MD, MScEpi
Dissertation: "Exploring the Psychosocial and Behavioral Determinants of Medication Adherence Among African Americans with Hypertension"
Post Graduation:Dr. Cuffee is an Assistant Professor at Penn State College of Medicine
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Carol Curtin, PhD
2015 Graduate
Prior Education: BA in Sociology and Psychology, Trinity College and an MSW in Casework and Groupwork, Boston University School of Social Work
Research Interests: The identification of unique modifiable risk factors for obesity in children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and the development of targeted and tailored interventions to address their needs.
Mentor: Eric Mick ScD
Dissertation: Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Screen Time, Physical Activity, and Diet Quality
Post Graduation: Associate Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center at UMass Medical School. Within the Shriver Center, Dr. Curtin is the Director of the University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) and the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) programs, and a Co-Director of the Healthy Weight Research Network (HWRN).
Dr. Curtin is currently an Associate Professor of Family Medicine & Community Health and Psychiatry and is a faculty member in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at UMass Medical School. She is also a Lecturer in Pediatrics at the Tufts University School of Medicine and a faculty member at the Moakley Center for Public Administration at Suffolk University.
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Hongliu Ding, PhD
2008 Graduate
Prior Education: MD, Anhui Medical University of China; MPH, Shanghai Medical University
Research Interests: Quantitative risk analysis and risk reduction interventions, clinical drug trials
Mentor: Terry Field, PhD
Dissertation: Bone Health and Coronary Heart Disease in Postmenopausal Women with Breast Cancer Treated with Tamoxifen
Post Graduation: Dr. Ding holds joint appointments as a Commissioner's Fellow at the US Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition and an epidemiologist at National Center for Food Safety and Technology, Division of Food Processing Science and Technology
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Nathaniel Erskine, MD, PhD
Prior Education: BA in Chemistry with High Honors - Swarthmore College (Swarthmore, PA); MD – University of Massachusetts Medical School (Worcester, MA)
Research Interests: Cardiovascular disease epidemiology, clinical outcomes research, health disparities
Mentor: Catarina Kiefe PhD MD, Robert Goldberg PhD
Dissertation: Barriers to Healthcare Access and Patient Outcomes after a Hospitalization for an Acute Coronary Syndrome and other Acute Conditions
Post Graduation: Dr. Erskine continues his clinical training as a resident physician in the Department of Anesthesiology at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC.
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Barbara Gandek, PhD
2014 Graduate
Prior Education: BA in Economics, Swarthmore College; MS in Health Policy and Management, Harvard School of Public Health
Research Interests: patient-reported outcomes measurement
Mentor: John Ware, PhD
Dissertation: "Psychometric Evaluation of Joint-Specific Patient-Reported Outcome Measures Before and After Total Knee Replacement"
Post Graduation: Dr. Gandek is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and Director of Research at John Ware Research Group -
Lauren Gellar, PhD
2011 Graduate
Prior Education: AS in Culinary Arts & BS in Clinical Nutrition, Johnson and Wales; MS in Nutrition and Public Health & Med in Community Nutrition, Columbia University
Thesis Advisor: Lori Pbert, PhD
Dissertation: The Effect of Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load on Glucose Control, Lipid Profiles and Anthropometrics among Low-Income Latinos with Type 2 Diabetes
Post Graduation: Dr. Gellar is a tenure-track assistant professor position in Public Health Nutrition at the University of Tennessee
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Alexandra Hajduk, PhD
2014 Graduate
Prior Education: BS in Health Sciences, Northeastern University; MPH, University of Connecticut
Research Interests: epidemiological methods and cognition in aging
Mentor: Jane Saczynski, PhD
Dissertation: "Cognitive Status and Initiation of Lifestyle Changes Following Acute Coronary Syndrome"
Post Graduation: Dr. Hajduk is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Training Program in Geriatric Clinical Epidemiology & Aging-Related Research at the Yale University School of Medicine -
Aimee Kroll-Desrosiers, PhD
2019 Graduate
Prior Education: BA, Cultural Anthropology, Mount Holyoke College; MS, Epidemiology, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Research Interests: Perinatal mental health; care coordination; mechanisms of effective care pathways for perinatal depression; qualitative and quantitative mixed methodology
Mentor: Kristin Mattocks, PhD, MPH
Dissertation: Understanding the Experience and Evaluating the Occurrence of Depression in a Sample of Pregnant Veterans
Post Graduation: Dr. Kroll-Desrosiers has accepted a position as a Research Health Scientist with the VA Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System
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Lisa Lines, PhD
2014 Graduate
Prior Education: BS in Technical Communications (Biomedical Sciences Concentration), Northeastern University; MPH, UMass Amherst
Research Interests: health services and outcomes research
Mentor: Arlene Ash, PhD
Dissertation: "Outpatient Emergency Department Utilization: Measurement and Prediction"
Post Graduation: Dr. Lines is a Health Services Researcher, RTI International and Instructor, Population and Quantitative Health Sciences, UMMS -
Shao-Hsien Liu, PhD
2017 Graduate
Prior Education: BS in Physical Therapy, National Yang Ming University, MPH in Health Policy Management, Emory University
Research Interests: Musculoskeletal epidemiology, pharmacoepidemiology, and epidemiologic methods
Mentor: Kate Lapane, PhD
Dissertation: Impact of Intra-Articular Injection Use on Patient-Reported Outcomes Among Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis
Post Graduation: Dr. Liu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences at University of Massachusetts Medical School.
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Andrea Lopez-Cepero, PhD, MHSN
Prior Education: BS, Molecular Biology, University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras campus; MHSN, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences campus
Research Interests: nutrition, stress and Latino health disparities
Mentor: Milagros Rosal, PhD
Dissertation: Physiological and psychological stressors associated with glucose metabolism in the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study
Post Graduation: Dr. Lopez-Cepero is a postdoctoral research fellow in the Nutrition Department at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
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Tanya Lord, PhD
2011 Graduate
Prior Education: BS in Special Education, Boston University; MPH, University of New Hampshire
Research Interests: Patient safety improvement and medical error prevention
Mentor: Roger Luckmann, MD, MPH
Dissertation: Early Detection and Treatment of Acute Clinical Decline in Hospitalized Patients: An Observational Study of ICU Transfers and an Assessment of the Effectiveness of a Rapid Response Program
Post Graduation: Dr. Lord holds joint appointments as a Patient Safety Consultant at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and a Patient Engagement Consultant at the Foundation for Healthy Communities New Hampshire
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Camilla Pimentel, PhD
2015 Graduate
Prior Education: AB in Community Health, Brown University and MPH in Sociomedical Sciences - Aging and Public Health, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
Research Interests: long-term care, cancer-related symptom management among older adults, person-centered care, pharmacoepidemiology
Mentor: Kate Lapane, PhD
Dissertation: Use of Opioids for Pain Management in Nursing Homes
Post Graduation: Dr. Pimentel is a postdoctoral fellow in the Prevention and Control of Cancer: Training in Implementation Science (PRACCTIS) program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She is based at the Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research (CHOIR) at the Bedford VA Medical Center.
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Hilary Placzek, PhD
2012 Graduate
Prior Education: BA Colgate University, MPH (International Health) Boston University School of Public Health
Research Interests: Improving healthcare, policy
Dissertation: A Population-Based Epidemiological Description of Socio-Demographic Characteristics and Predictors of Severity Among Hospitalized H1N1 Cases in Massachusetts
Post Graduation: Dr. Placzek is a Senior Analyst in health outcomes for WellPoint, Blue Cross Blue Shield Division of Clinical Research
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Alan Rathbun, PhD
2014 Graduate
Prior Education: BS (Magna Cum Laude) in Biology, Rider University; MPH, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) School of Public Health
Research Interests: mental health in the context of chronic physical disease
Mentor: George Reed, PhD
Dissertation: "Depression in Rheumatoid Arthritis and an Estimation of the Bi-Directional Association of Depression and Disease Burden"
Post Graduation: Dr. Rathbun is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Epidemiology of Aging Training Program at the University of Maryland School Medicine -
Apurv Soni, PhD
Prior Education: BA, Biology with specialization in Neurobiology
Research Interests: Global health; health disparities research; mobile technology; healthcare access and delivery; Public policy analysis; Maternal and child health; Noncommunicable diseases
Mentor: Jeroan Allison, MD, MScEpi
Dissertation: Trends, Predictors, and Consequences of child undernutrition in India
Post Graduation: Apurv will resume his medical training as part of the UMMS MD-PhD program
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Christine Ulbricht, PhD
2015 graduate
Prior Education: BA in Psychology, University of Maryland College Park; MPH in Epidemiology, University of Maryland College Park
Research Interests: Psychiatric epidemiology
Mentor: Kate Lapane, PhD
Dissertation: Latent Variable Approaches for Understanding Heterogeneity in Depression: A Dissertation
Post Graduation: Dr. Ulbricht is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Medical School
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W.W. Sanouri Ursprung, PhD
2013 Graduate
Prior Education: BS in International Studies with a concentration in Biochemistry, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Research Interests: addiction, health disparities, policy driven research, advocacy, and the dissemination of relevant translational research abroad
Mentor: Joseph DiFranza, MD
Dissertation: "Developing Three New Pathophysiologically Based Measures of Nicotine Dependence: A Dissertation"
Post Graduation: Dr. Ursprung is a Deputy Director in the Office of Statistics and Evaluation at the Bureau of Community Health and Prevention, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Boston, MA -
Mollie Wood, PhD
2015 Graduate
Prior Education: BA in Zoology, Miami University, and an MPH in Epidemiology, Boston University
Research Interests: Reproductive and perinatal epidemiology, pharmacoepidemiology, treatment of chronic illnesses during pregnancy, neurodevelopmental disorders of children, and causal inference and epidemiologic methods
Mentor: Jean Frazier, MD
Dissertation: Causal Inference Methods for Assessing Neurodevelopment in Children Following Prenatal Exposure to Triptan Medications
Post Graduation: Dr. Wood has completed her post-doctoral fellowship with the University of Oslo and now is doing a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University. -
Rui Xiao, PhD
2015 Graduate
Prior Education: Degree in clinical medicine from Jilin University, China; MPH in Epidemiology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst
Research Interests: nutritional epidemiology and women’s health with a focus on psychosocial and behavioral factors leading to weight management during pregnancy and postpartum
Mentor: Molly Waring, PhD
Dissertation: Diet Quality And Evening Snacking In Relation To Sleep Duration And Quality Among Women With Young Children
Post Graduation: Dr. Xiao is a Senior Epidemiologist at IQVIA

Employers
of CPHR Graduates
Academia
Brown University
Harvard Medical School
Mercer University School of Medicine
New York University Langone Medical Center
Hospital for Tropical Diseases, Viet Nam
University of Massachusetts Medical School
University of Oregon Medical School
University of Tennessee
Yale School of Medicine
Industry
Biogen Idec
HealthCore, Inc.
Merck
Government
Department of Veterans Affairs
Food and Drug Administrations
Massachusetts Department of Public Health
North Carolina Center for Health Statistics
Non-profit/ Advocacy
Foundation for Healthy Communities New Hampshire