Harvard Health Experts and Contributors

Todd Ellerin, MD

Contributor

Dr. Todd Ellerin has been director of infectious diseases and vice chairman of the department of medicine at South Shore Hospital in Weymouth, MA for 17 years. He is an associate physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School. Additionally, he serves as medical director of the Weymouth Department of Public Health, and was the medical technical specialist for SARS, H1NI, Ebola, and now 2019-nCoronavirus at South Shore Health.

Lisa Ellis

Executive Editor, Online Special Health Reports

Lisa Ellis has been Executive Editor of Harvard Health Publishing’s short-form, online-only Special Health Reports since 2018. She previously was a writer and editor with two award-winning consumer health information websites, InteliHealth (with medical review by Harvard Medical School) and Simple Steps to Better Dental Health. She began her career as a journalist, writing and editing for daily newspapers, including The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Rachel Reiff Ellis

Health Writer

Rachel Reiff Ellis has been a freelance health writer and editor for over a decade. She is a regular contributor to WebMD and Fortune Well, with additional work appearing in Medscape, Prevention, O Magazine, Good Housekeeping, Women’s Health, and Women’s Day. Previously, Ellis was a contributor to the nonprofit health organization Global Healthy Living Foundation, worked full-time in communications at Emory University, and was on the editorial staff of Pregnancy & Newborn Magazine.

Lauren Elson, MD

Contributor; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing

Dr. Lauren Elson is board certified in sports medicine and physical medicine and rehabilitation. She attended Tufts University School of Medicine, did her residency at New York Presbyterian Hospital Columbia/Cornell, and completed a fellowship in sports medicine at Stanford University. A former professional dancer and instructor of jazz, ballet, tap, hip-hop, African, swing, and salsa, she understands the goals and challenges of the physically active patient. She is a board member of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science, the Boston Dance Alliance, and Abilities Dance Company. Dr. Elson is the chair of the Freelance Dancer/Independent Dance Committee for the Dance USA Taskforce on Dance Health, and is on the programming committee for the Performing Arts Medical Association. She has lectured nationally and internationally on dance health and injury prevention to dancers and professional organizations.

Lawrence Epstein, MD

Contributor

Lawrence Epstein, MD is an Assistant Professor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School, the Assistant Medical Director of the Sleep Disorders Service and Program Director for the sleep medicine fellowship program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. He is board certified in Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Diseases, Critical Care Medicine and Sleep Medicine. He is a Past President of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Medical Editor of the Harvard Medical School Special Health Report: Improving Sleep.

Katharine Esselen, MD

Contributor

Dr. Kate Esselen is a gynecologic oncologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, and an assistant professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology at Harvard Medical School. She earned a biology degree with honors from Brown University, then a combined M.D. and M.B.A. from Tufts University School of Medicine. She completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency at Brigham and Women’s and Massachusetts General Hospitals, and a gynecologic oncology fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

Christopher Estiverne, MD

Contributor

Originally from New Jersey, Dr. Christopher Estiverne is currently a staff nephrologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, where he specializes in care of patients with chronic kidney disease. He completed his medical degree and Internal Medicine training at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, and is a recent graduate from the combined Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Massachusetts General Hospital nephrology fellowship program. His other interests include studying health care inequities and medical education.

Huma Farid, MD

Contributor

Dr. Huma Farid is an obstetrician/gynecologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and an instructor in obstetrics and gynecology at Harvard Medical School. She directs the resident colposcopy clinic and is the associate program director for the obstetrics and gynecology residency program at BIDMC. She also writes and reviews medical content for Buoy Health. Dr. Farid graduated from Harvard Medical School. When not involved in resident education or patient care, she enjoys reading and writing.

Susan Farrell, MD

Contributing Editor

Dr. Susan Farrell is the Director of the comprehensive clinical skills OSCE examination at Harvard Medical School, and worked as an educator in the Partners Healthcare Office for Graduate Medical Education, before taking her current position as a Program Director at Partners Healthcare International in 2011. Dr. Farrell graduated from Syracuse University with a BS in engineering, and earned her M.D. at Tufts University School of Medicine in 1990. Her clinical training was in emergency medicine and medical toxicology, both at The Medical College of Pennsylvania.

Alessio Fasano, MD

Contributor

Pediatric gastroenterologist Dr. Alessio Fasano is head of the Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center at Massachusetts General Brigham (MGB); professor of nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health; and professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. He is director of the Center for Celiac Research and Treatment at MGB, and is widely sought after as an expert in gut microbiome, intestinal permeability, and autoimmune disorders including celiac disease. Dr. Fasano received his medical degree from the University of Naples School of Medicine. He is the author of Gluten Freedom and co-author with Susie Flaherty of Gut Feelings: The Microbiome and Our Health, published in March 2021 by MIT Press. View his work at Twitter @celiacresearch; Facebook @celiacresearch; and Instagram #celiacresearch.

Jeremy Samuel Faust, MD, MS

Contributor

Dr. Jeremy Samuel Faust, is an emergency physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. He completed his residency training at Mount Sinai Hospital and Elmhurst Hospital Center in New York, after graduating from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine (MD, MS in biomedical sciences). He is the cohost of FOAMcast, an award-winning free medical education podcast bridging core emergency medicine content with cutting-edge topics, which has been downloaded nearly two million times. He is a frequent contributor to Slate, has published essays in The New York Times, The New York Daily News, and Mother Jones, and has appeared on The Rachel Maddow Show (MSNBC) and The Takeaway (Public Radio International/WNYC/WGBH). He serves on the editorial board of the Annals of Emergency Medicine and ACEP Now, and has served as a content editor for the New England Journal of Medicine Resident 360 Series. He graduated from Williams College with honors in music, and holds a master's degree in music composition and theory from UC Davis. He is the associate conductor of the Longwood Chorus (an ensemble of medical professionals and students), and serves as board president of the Grammyaward–winning vocal ensemble Roomful of Teeth. His wife Kate Taylor is a Metro reporter for the New York Times.

Sara Fazio, MD, FACP

Contributing Editor

MD practices General Internal Medicine at the BIDMC, and is an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School. She received her undergraduate and medical degree from Brown University. After completing her internal medicine training at the Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, she was a chief resident at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and subsequently completed a Rabkin Fellowship in Medical Education. She is the chair of the Board of Directors for the Alliance in Academic Internal Medicine. At Harvard, she is the Master of the Walter Bradford Cannon Society and the Associate Director of Innovation in Medical Education at the HMS Center for Primary Care. She directed the BIDMC Internal Medicine clerkship from 1999-2015 and was the CME Editor for the New England Journal of Medicine from 2011-2014. Dr. Fazio served as the SGIM (Society of General Internal Medicine) editor of the national CDIM (Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine)-SGIM Curriculum in Internal Medicine. She has received numerous teaching awards, including the Best Clinical Teacher Award from the classes of 2003, 2005 and 2007 at Harvard Medical School, the Faculty Prize for Excellence in Teaching, the Louis Pangaro Educational Program Development Award from CDIM, the S. Robert Stone Award for Excellence in Teaching at Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and the SGIM National Award for Scholarship in Medical Education. Dr. Fazio is among a team of educators who were recently named winners of the second annual Costs of Care and American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation Teaching Value and Choosing Wisely Challenge.

Laura C. Fine, MD

Contributor

Dr. Laura Fine is an ophthalmologist who specializes in cataract surgery and medical, laser, and surgical treatments for glaucoma. She is president and medical director of Ophthalmic Consultants of Boston, and is an instructor at Harvard Medical School and Tufts Medical School, where she trains medical students, residents, and fellows. Dr. Fine is past president of the New England Ophthalmological Society and the Chandler-Grant Glaucoma Society. She actively serves in leadership roles within the American Academy of Ophthalmology, including the AAO’s Eye Care America, a public service program that provides free eye care to seniors in need through a national network of volunteer ophthalmologists. She also serves on the board of the Ophthalmic Mutual Insurance Company, the largest medical malpractice insurer of ophthalmologists in the United States. Dr. Fine has special interest in patient safety and quality improvement, career development and mentorship, advanced technologies for early glaucoma detection, and surgical innovations for cataracts and glaucoma. She earned her medical degree at the University of Pennsylvania and completed her residency in ophthalmology at the University of California San Francisco. She completed her glaucoma fellowship at Harvard Medical School at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary.

Jennifer Fisher, MMSc, PA-C

Health Writer

Jennifer is a board-certified physician assistant. She earned her bachelor of science in kinesiology at James Madison University, then went on to obtain her master of medical science at Tufts University School of Medicine, where she completed the physician assistant program. Jennifer has clinical experience in general and cosmetic dermatology, plastic surgery, and hospitalist medicine. In addition to her clinical work as a PA in dermatology, Jennifer works in medical writing. Jennifer is a member of the American Medical Writers Association (AMWA), American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA), and Society of Dermatology Physician Assistants (SDPA).

Naomi D. L. Fisher, MD

Contributor

Dr. Naomi Fisher is an endocrinologist at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. She serves as Director of Hypertension Services at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, with both clinical and research expertise in cardiovascular endocrinology. Dr. Fisher received her medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania. She completed her residency in internal medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital, and her fellowship in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Hypertension at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She is a veteran teacher, speaking on local, national and international levels. In addition to medical topics, she teaches about effective communication.

Angela Fitch, MD

Contributor

Dr. Angela Fitch, FACP, FOMA, is the former associate director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center, and a former faculty member at Harvard Medical School. She is board certified in obesity medicine, internal medicine, and pediatrics. Dr. Fitch graduated from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and then stayed for a combined residency in internal medicine and pediatrics. Dr. Fitch was chief resident in internal medicine before moving to Minnesota to practice primary care at Fairview Health Systems and the University of Minnesota. She began the practice of obesity medicine at the University of Minnesota, treating children with obesity. In 2012, Dr. Fitch became the medical director for the Metabolic Health and Weight Management Clinic at Park Nicollet, and began practicing obesity medicine full time. Dr. Fitch became a diplomate of the American Board of Obesity Medicine in 2012. Dr. Fitch moved back to Cincinnati to create a multidisciplinary medical surgical weight center. There she was also appointed medical director of the Executive Health Program and vice president of primary care before moving to Boston. She currently is serving as vice president of the Obesity Medicine Association. Dr. Fitch enjoys seeing patients of all ages to help them reach their weight and wellness goals.

Sarah Flier, MD

Contributor

Tamara Fong, MD, PhD

Contributor

Dr. Tamara Fong is an assistant scientist in the Aging Brain Center at the Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, and associate professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School. She directs the cognitive clinic within the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center COVID-19 Survivorship Program.

Viviane Fornasaro-Donahue, PhD, RDN, LDN

Contributor

Viviane Fornasaro-Donahue is a registered dietitian who supports patients in weight management care. She holds a PhD in psychology with a concentration in behavioral science and a master’s degree in nutrition and food science from the University of Rhode Island. She also earned a bachelor’s degree in nutrition from São Camilo University in São Paulo, Brazil, and is a certified intuitive eating counselor. Viviane provides patient-centered care grounded in mindful and intuitive eating principles, helping individuals develop self-compassionate, sustainable habits that support long-term health and well-being. Her clinical experience includes metabolic and bariatric surgery nutrition, behavioral and lifestyle interventions, and medical weight management. Originally from São Paulo, Brazil, Viviane is fluent in Portuguese and Spanish. She values culturally sensitive care, and enjoys engaging in research and interdisciplinary collaboration that advances equitable health outcomes.

Christina Frank

Health Writer

Christina Frank has been an editor and writer for consumer publications, medical schools, and nonprofit organizations for over 20 years. Her work has been published by The Yale School of Medicine, Tufts Medical School, Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, the National Bleeding Disorders Foundation, Verywell Health, and GoodRx. She lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Richard Frank, PhD

Contributor

Richard G. Frank, PhD, is the Margaret T. Morris Professor of Health Economics in the Department of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School. From 2009 to 2011, he served as the deputy assistant secretary for planning and evaluation at DHHS directing the office of Disability, Aging and Long-Term Care Policy. From 2013 to 2014, he served as a Special Advisor to the Office of the Secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services, and from 2014 to 2016 he served as Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation in the Department of Health and Human Services. His research is focused on the economics of mental health and substance abuse care, long term care financing policy, health care competition, implementation of health reform and disability policy. He was elected to the Institute of Medicine (National Academy of Medicine) in 1997. He is co-author with Sherry Glied of the book Better but Not Well (Johns Hopkins Press).

Samuel Frank, MD

Contributor

Dr. Samuel Frank is the director of clinical research network development and a movement disorder neurologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), a teaching hospital for Harvard Medical School. He completed his fellowship in experimental therapeutics with a clinical focus on movement disorders at the University of Rochester. Since that time, over the course of 20 years, he has served as the site investigator and held leadership roles in over 50 clinical trials related to Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and dystonia.

Elizabeth Pegg Frates, MD, FACLM, DipABLM

Contributor

Dr. Beth Frates is a trained physiatrist and a health and wellness coach, with expertise in lifestyle medicine. She is an award-winning teacher at Harvard Medical School, where she is an assistant clinical professor. Dr. Frates is one of the first fellows of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and a pioneer in lifestyle medicine. She developed and taught a college lifestyle medicine curriculum at the Harvard Extension School in 2014, and it is still one of the most well-received courses offered at the school. She was voted president of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine in August 2020. Dr. Frates serves as President from 2022 to 2024.

Angelika Fretzen, PhD, MBA

Contributor

Angelika Fretzen serves as chief operating officer and technology translation director at the Wyss Institute, where she founded the Women’s Health Catalyst. In 2024 she received the Joseph B. Martin Dean’s Leadership Award for the Advancement of Women’s Careers at Harvard Medical School. Before joining Wyss, Angelika spent two decades in the pharmaceutical industry, including leading pharmaceutical development of Linzess at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals. Angelika completed her undergraduate studies in Germany, earned her PhD in chemistry in Switzerland, and conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard University. She holds an MBA from Suffolk University.

Gregory Fricchione, MD

Contributor; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing

Dr. Gregory Fricchione is associate chief of psychiatry, director of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine and of the Chester Pierce Division of Global Psychiatry, and co-director of the McCance Center for Brain Health in the department of neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Mind Body Medical Institute Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He specializes in neuropsychiatry and psychosomatic medicine, and for over 40 years has helped care for patients with severe medical, neurological, and surgical illnesses. He has published more than 250 publications and has authored or co-authored six books, including Compassion and Healing in Medicine: On the Nature and Uses of Attachment Solutions for Separation Challenges and The Science of Stress. His research interests include study of the catatonic syndrome, the neurophysiology of stress and resilience, and how the comparative neurology of brain evolution illuminates our concepts of health and illness and medical caregiving.

Harvard Health Experts and Contributors

List of Experts

Todd Ellerin, MD

Lisa Ellis

Rachel Reiff Ellis

Lauren Elson, MD

Lawrence Epstein, MD

Katharine Esselen, MD

Christopher Estiverne, MD

Huma Farid, MD

Susan Farrell, MD

Alessio Fasano, MD

Jeremy Samuel Faust, MD, MS

Sara Fazio, MD, FACP

Laura C. Fine, MD

Jennifer Fisher, MMSc, PA-C

Naomi D. L. Fisher, MD

Angela Fitch, MD

Sarah Flier, MD

Tamara Fong, MD, PhD

Viviane Fornasaro-Donahue, PhD, RDN, LDN

Christina Frank

Richard Frank, PhD

Samuel Frank, MD

Elizabeth Pegg Frates, MD, FACLM, DipABLM

Angelika Fretzen, PhD, MBA

Gregory Fricchione, MD