The Jon Russell lab focuses on thyroid and parathyroid pathology as well as improving patient safety and education using healthcare technology. Additional focuses include utilizing new technology to advance on the techniques of minimally invasive neck surgery. Current and previous efforts include the development of mobile and web-based applications to educate physicians and patients, utilizing ultrasound for vocal cord imaging, understanding the nuances of advanced thyroid cancer, and exploring the role of scarless thyroid surgery in a North American population.

Research in the John Matthew Austin Lab explores health care performance measures, with a goal of improving patient care by enabling healthcare providers to view data about their performance, track patient outcomes and comply with best care practices. Our lab is currently working to develop performance measures for the ICU part, and we are part of The Leapfrog Group, an annual survey of U.S. hospitals that compares hospital performance on national measures of safety, quality and efficiency. Our research also explores the use of scientifically sound decision-support tools for guiding improvements in healthcare delivery systems.

Directed by Debraj “Raj” Mukherjee, MD, MPH, the laboratory focuses on improving access to care, reducing disparities, maximizing surgical outcomes, and optimizing quality of life for patients with brain and skull base tumors.

The laboratory achieves these aims by creating and analyzing institutional and national databases, developing and validating novel patient-centered quality of life instruments, leveraging machine learning and artificial intelligence platforms to risk-stratify vulnerable patient populations, and designing novel surgical trials to push the boundaries of neurosurgical innovation.

Our research also investigates novel approaches to improve neurosurgical medical education including studying the utility of video-based surgical coaching and the design of new operative instrumentation.

Research in the Hanan Aboumatar Lab focuses on advancing patient-centered outcomes through improved patient and family involvement. We also focus on multilevel methods to increase the patient-centered focus of care delivery. Recent research examined the impact of a quality-improvement intervention on patient involvement in primary care and treatment with respect and dignity in intensive care.

The Lisa Cooper Lab is dedicated to researching patient-centered interventions for improving health outcomes and overcoming racial and ethnic disparities in health care. Our primary focus is on the factors of physician communication skills and cultural competence training, patient shared decision-making and self-management skills training. Recently, we have explored patient-centered depression care for African Americans, tactics for improving patient-physician communication about management of hypertension, and reducing ethnic and social disparities in health. In addition, we are currently researching racial disparities in cardiovascular health outcomes for patients living in Baltimore.

Research in the Rosalyn Stewart Lab focuses on medical education and curriculum development; ambulatory medicine; community outreach and advocacy; health outcomes; and preventive medicine. Topics of published studies include the administration of vaccinations, care quality of pediatric sickle-cell disease patients and the improvement of transitional care to reduce hospital readmission rates.

Work in the Graham Mooney Lab focuses on the history of public health interventions as well as the impact of public health policies on population health outcomes. Our research includes topics such as the history of public health in the United Kingdom and United States during the 19th and 20th centuries, and the historical geographies of health and medicine. We also explore infectious disease surveillance and control and historical epidemiology and demography.

The Michelle Eakin Lab conducts research on behavioral science and adherence and asthma outcomes in inner-city children. Our studies into behavioral science have included exploring the impact of medication adherence on lung health outcomes in patients with cystic fibrosis, disparities in anti-hypertensive medication adherence in adolescents and other key topics. We also investigate methods for improving asthma care and treatment as well as health disparities among various ethnicities, particularly in pediatric patients.

Work in the Kristin Riekert Lab focuses on methods for improving health care quality and delivery, particularly among underserved and disadvantaged populations. Our research covers a range of important topics, including health beliefs, treatment adherence, doctor-patient communication, self-management interventions, mobile health initiatives, health disparities and patient-reported outcome methodology. We also work with the National Institutes of Health on multiple intervention trials focused on improving adherence and health outcomes in asthma, chronic kidney disease, cystic fibrosis (CF), sickle cell disease and secondhand smoke reduction.

The Outcomes After Critical Illness and Surgery Group is focused on understanding and improving patient outcomes after critical illness and surgery. Research projects include improving long-term outcomes research for acute respiratory distress syndrome/acute respiratory failure (ARDS/ARF) patients; examining the long-term outcomes for acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ALI/ARDS) patients; and evaluating the effects of lower tidal volume ventilation and other aspects of critical illness and ICU care on the long-term physical and mental health outcomes of ALI/ARDS patients.