Elizabeth A. Shenkman, Ph.D.

Professor and Chair of Health Outcomes & Policy

College of Medicine

2015 Awardee

Elizabeth Shenkman’s research focuses on two primary goals: 1) determining which combinations of health care delivery, community, and patient factors influence quality and outcomes of care; and 2) developing corresponding, evidence-based, health care delivery system and patient-centric interventions to improve health outcomes. A substantial portion of her research in these areas focuses on cancer and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk reduction among vulnerable populations, including low-income adults and children. Her primary research design and methods for these studies are implementation science and pragmatic clinical trials. Currently, Shenkman is the Principal Investigator of a clinical trial designed to examine the comparative effectiveness of the combined use of health navigators, motivational interviewing (MI), and a flexible wellness account on CVD risk reduction among individuals in Medicaid, with co-occurring physical and mental health conditions relative to the usual care provided within Medicaid Managed Care. She is also the Principal Investigator of a three-year James and Esther King Biomedical Research grant that has two key components: 1) building a sustainable practice-based research network infrastructure (the OneFlorida Cancer Control Alliance) to conduct implementation science studies and pragmatic clinical trials focused on tobacco-related CVD and cancers; and 2) conducting an implementation science study to improve health care providers’ screening and counseling related to tobacco use among patients seen in primary care settings. There is a substantial evidence base demonstrating that primary care provider brief interventions contribute to smoking quit rates. Yet, there are significant gaps in screening and counseling, providing many opportunities to reduce tobacco-related diseases and health disparities.