I use applied behavioral and social sciences to answer the question “What does it take for the healthcare system to work well for children with chronic health conditions?"

I view the healthcare system as a human system. The major goal of my research is to design, test and implement ways to enhance collaboration among all types of people (patients and families, clinicians, researchers and others) throughout the healthcare system. My colleagues and I have done this by increasing the number of people with the will and ability to self-organize, making it easier for them to create and share resources, and assisting them in forming teams to work on shared goals.

In our lab, we have created and replicated collaborative learning health systems or Learning Networks. These networks have improved outcomes for pediatric patients with a range of different medical conditions.

A major challenge is that there are more than 7,000 rare diseases and fewer than 20 Learning Networks. My research aims to make launching and growing Learning Networks easier and more effective so that everyone can be part of improving the healthcare system as a whole.

Other research interests stem from applied research in medical settings and human systems. I feel very satisfied to apply my interests in human systems, research training, and experience in applied research in healthcare settings to solve problems that matter. All of the discoveries that I participated in have been collaborative endeavors.

I’ve worked with other faculty at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center along with pediatric patients and parents to reconceptualize and redesign a prototype Collaborative Chronic Care Network. We have replicated this model in various Learning Networks and have created a computational model of Learning Networks to inform the search for mechanisms of action and best strategies for scaling Learning Networks.

I have more than 20 years’ experience in my field and first joined the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in 2006. I received the Cincinnati Children’s Team Science Award for Learning Networks, served as a member of the Health Care Quality and Effectiveness Research (HCQER) Study Section at the Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research, and on the Review Board of the Journal of Clinical Outcomes Management.

My research has been published in journals such as Statistics in Medicine, Learning Health Systems and Pediatric Quality and Safety.