Faculty
We promote collaborative team science.
Our faculty includes health professionals and public health scientists from multiple scientific disciplines who conduct groundbreaking research and lead award-winning educational programs.
Center Leadership
Lisa A. Cooper, MD, MPH, MACP
Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Health Equity and James F. Fries Professor of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Areas of Expertise and Research Interest
Lisa A. Cooper, MD, MPH's research interests include: Depression and Mental Illness, Hypertension, Social Determinants of Health (SDOH), Patient-Physician Communication
BIO
Lisa A. Cooper, MD, MPH, MACP, is the James F. Fries Professor of Medicine and the Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Equity in Health and Health Care at the Johns Hopkins University Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health. She founded and directs the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Equity and the Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute.
A physician trained in internal medicine and public health researcher, Dr. Cooper’s work highlights the transformative role of doctor-patient relationships in reducing racial and ethnic health disparities. Regarded as one of the top clinicians and scientists in health equity, Dr. Cooper has designed innovative approaches to improve physicians’ communication skills, patients' self-management skills, and the ability of healthcare organizations to address the needs of populations experiencing health disparities. She has authored more than 300 highly cited and influential, peer-reviewed publications, including the book Why Are Health Disparities Everyone's Problem, and several book chapters—one of which was featured in the Institute of Medicine's 2003 Report, Unequal Treatment.
In 2021, President Biden appointed Dr. Cooper to the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, where she advises policymakers on crucial scientific and technological developments. She has been honored with numerous prestigious awards, including a MacArthur Genius Fellowship in 2007, the Helen Rodríguez-Trías Social Justice Award from the American Public Health Association in 2017, the 2023 Eisenberg Award for career achievement in research from the Society for General Internal Medicine, and the 2023 William B. Graham Prize for Health Services Research. She served on the Board of The Carter Center from 2020 to 2023. As a respected member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine, Dr. Cooper is recognized globally for her research on health disparities in racially and economically marginalized communities.
Deidra Crews, MD, ScM
Professor, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Areas of Expertise and Research Interest
Deidra Crews, MD, ScM's research interests include: Chronic Kidney Disease or Transplantation, Hypertension, Social Determinants of Health (SDOH), Nutrition, Social Needs
Bio
Deidra Crews, MD, ScM is a Professor of Medicine in the Division of Nephrology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, with appointments in the Schools of Public Health and Nursing, the Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research, the Center on Aging and Health, and the Center for Health Equity, where she is Deputy Director.
Through her work, she has highlighted the root causes of kidney disease among socially marginalized populations and developed interventions to address these issues. Her research has informed clinical guidelines and public policies.
Dr. Crews is an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the Association of American Physicians, and the National Academy of Medicine. She has received the W. Lester Henry Award from the American College of Physicians (ACP) and is a Master of the ACP.
The American Society of Nephrology (ASN) has honored her with its Distinguished Leader Award, and she currently serves as ASN President.
Chidinma Ibe, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Jessica Yeh, PhD
Professor, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Yvonne Commodore-Mensah, PhD, RN
Professor
Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Oluwabunmi "Bunmi" Ogungbe, PhD, MPH, RN
Assistant Professor
Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Areas of Expertise and Research Interest
Oluwabunmi "Bunmi" Ogungbe, PhD, MPH, RN's research interests include: Big Data, Cardiovascular, Community Health, Disparities, Equity, Health Technology, Public Health, Quantitative Research Methods/Statistics
Center Faculty
Rexford Ahima, MD, PhD
Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Diabetes
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
Denis Antoine, MD
Associate Director, Urban Health Institute
Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Lawrence Appel, MD
C. David Molina, MD, MPH Professor of Medicine
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
Mary Catherine Beach, MD, MPH
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Wendy Bennett, MD, MPH
Associate Professor of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Jagriti ‘Jackie’ Bhattarai, PhD, MS
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Lee Bone, RN, MPH
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Kelly Bower, PhD, MSN/MPH, RN
Associate Professor
Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
Jeanne Charleston, PhD
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Thomas Cudjoe, MD, MPH
Associate Professor, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Areas of Expertise and Research Interest
Thomas Cudjoe, MD, MPH's research interests include: Leveraging Large Datasets to Advance Inquiries Related to Social Isolation and Loneliness, Social Determinants of Health (SDOH), Subsidized Housing, Human Centered Design, Home-Based Medicine, Aging/Older Adults, Artificial Intelligence
Gail Daumit, MD, MHS
Samsung Professor, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Cheryl Dennison-Himmelfarb, PhD, RN, ANP, FAAN, FAHA, FPCNA
Sarah E. Allison Professor of Nursing
Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Sherita Hill Golden, MD, MHS
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Risha Irvin, MD, MPH
Health Equity Program Director, Johns Hopkins Health System
Associate Professor of Medicine, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Theodore "Jack" Iwashyna, MD, PhD
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Theodore "Jack" Iwashyna, MD, PhD's research interests include: Social Determinants of Health (SDOH)
John Jackson, ScD
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Noelene Kimiko Jeffers, PhD, MSN, BS, RN APRN, CNM, IBCLC
Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
Areas of Expertise and Research Interest
Noelene Kimiko Jeffers PhD, MSN's research interests include: Health Disparities and Equity, Maternal Health, Social Determinants of Health, Women’s Health
Seth Martin, MD, MHS
Professor, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Lena Molly Mathews, MD, MHS
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Eliana Perrin, MD, MPH
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Tanjala Purnell, PhD, MPH
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Somnath Saha, MD, MPH
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
Nakiya Showell, MD
Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Nae-Yuh Wang, PhD, MS
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Areas of Expertise and Research Interest
Nae-Yuh Wang, PhD, MS's research interests include: Cardiovascular Disease (CVD), Depression or Other Mental Illness, Diabetes, Hypertension, Obesity, Social Determinants of Health (SDOH), Maternal and Child Health, Hearing Loss, Intervention to Balance Disorders, Prevention of Postoperative Delirium