By Merin C. MacDonald
In this month’s Chair’s Spotlight, we highlight the work of Lauren Feld, MD, physician and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and physician executive for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) in the Department of Medicine.
Dr. Feld’s clinical interests include adult gastroenterology, hepatology, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, women’s health in liver disease, and LGBTQ health. She also has a background in clinical medical ethics and quantitative assessment, with specific training and expertise in survey research and secondary data analysis on the impact of psychosocial factors in patient care. Her work focuses on patient-physician communication and access to care and she is equally committed to advocating for workforce gender equity. She served as the principal investigator in the first nationwide study on parental leave in hepatology, supported by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), and has presented at local, national, and international conferences advocating for structural changes to the medical work environment to improve workforce equity.
In her role as the DEIB physician executive for the Department of Medicine, Dr. Feld represents our department’s faculty, staff, house staff, and fellows on issues such as parental leave and gender equity. Of her work, Dr. Feld commented, “I am passionate about improving work environments through structural solutions to allow faculty to achieve personal and professional well-being and provide higher quality patient care.” She is also a member of the DoM team that will be leading unconscious bias training sessions for DoM faculty and staff beginning in late winter.
Dr. Feld joined the faculty at UMass Chan/UMMH in September 2022. She earned her medical degree with Distinction in Research and Distinction in Medical Education from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, New York. She completed her Internal Medicine residency and served as chief resident at the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois, as well as fellowships in Gastroenterology and Hepatology and Transplant Hepatology at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, and in Ethics at the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics in Chicago. She has been the recipient of awards and honors including the Young Investigator Award from the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation, as well as the Emerging Liver Scholars award and the Advanced/Transplant Hepatology Award both from the AASLD.
Dr. Feld brings passion and enthusiasm to her work, and we are thrilled that she has joined us in the Department of Medicine!