Our Work

Our mission is rooted in advancing health equity in dermatology for populations locally and globally. We make progress towards achieving this

mission by examining how social determinants of health, unmet health-related social needs, structural racism, and

interpersonal discrimination influence health, health care, and health services delivery in dermatology.

Our research focuses on three main themes:

Identifying and Addressing Social Needs in Health Care: We evaluate how social determinants of health, such as housing status (lack of housing, substandard housing, housing instability), impact risk of developing skin diseases and associated systemic illness, diagnosis and management of skin diseases, and high-cost health care utilization for skin diseases.

Understanding How Social Determinants of Health Impact Skin Disease: Many clinicians recognize that social determinants of health challenges are linked to uncontrolled and severe inflammatory skin disease. There are multiple potential factors at play, and it remains unclear how these factors may or may not interact with one another. Our group is working to better understand the pathways between social determinants of health and skin disease.

Improving Care of Marginalized and Minoritized Populations: We work to improve dermatologic care of racial & ethnic minorities, refugees, asylum seekers, immigrants, persons experiencing homelessness, and sexual & gender minority populations by asking research questions of importance to clinicians caring for these populations and examining how factors at the community, health care system, and individual levels influence care.