Harvard Health Experts and Contributors

Susan Abookire, BSEE, MD, MPH, FACP

Contributor

Susan Abookire, BSEE, MD, MPH, FACP, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, is a senior executive with 20 years’ experience leading healthcare organizations. She has served as chief medical officer, system chief quality officer, and past chair of quality and patient safety at Mount Auburn Hospital. Dr. Abookire began her career as an electrical engineer in aviation systems. A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. Abookire trained at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and practices internal medicine. She received a master’s degree from the Harvard School of Public Health and has taught nationally and internationally on patient safety, high reliability, and systems design. Dr. Abookire also enjoys being a forest therapy guide.

Steven A. Adelman, MD

Contributor

Dr. Steven Adelman graduated from Harvard College, the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and the McLean Hospital psychiatry residency program of Harvard Medical School. He has worked as a medical leader at Atrius Health and Physician Health Services, Inc. He is certified in addiction medicine by the American Board of Preventive Medicine, and he serves as a consultant in psychiatry for the division of alcohol and drug abuse at McLean Hospital. He is also an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Massachusetts School of Medicine.

Marwa A. Ahmed, MD, MS

Contributor

Marwa Ahmed, MD, MS, is a sports medicine specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital and clinical instructor at Harvard Medical School. She also serves as medical director of the Spaulding Rehabilitation Network’s Brighton outpatient center and sports medicine program. With a background in human genetics and training in integrative medicine, she brings a unique understanding and approach to diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of sports injuries. Dr. Ahmed’s treatment philosophy incorporates and optimizes an individual’s nutritional status and lifestyle to cultivate and promote tissue healing, prevent injury, and enhance performance. Dr. Ahmed’s research focuses on the emerging field of sports genomics.

Jessica Allegretti, MD, MPH

Contributor

Jessica Allegretti, MD, MPH, graduated from Cornell University in Ithaca New York, and The Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami in Miami, Florida. She was trained in internal medicine at Massachusetts’s General Hospital and completed her gastroenterology fellowship training at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She later went on to receive a Master of Public Health degree from the Harvard School of Public Health. Currently she is an attending gastroenterologist at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Crohn’s and Colitis Center, where she also serves as the center’s Director of Clinical Trials. In addition to her clinical responsibilities, Dr. Allegretti is the director of the fecal microbiota transplant program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She is currently leading several clinical trials investigating the use of fecal transplantation in several chronic diseases such as Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis and obesity. Additionally, Dr. Allegretti’s lab focuses on investigating the mechanisms of recurrent clostridium difficile infections.

Joseph Allen, DSc, MPH, CIH

Contributor

Dr. Joseph Allen is an associate professor in the department of environmental health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the director of Harvard’s Healthy Buildings Program. He is the coauthor of Healthy Buildings: How Indoor Spaces Can Make You Sick — or Keep You Well, which was recognized as a Best Book of the Year by The New York Times and Fortune magazine.

Daniel Amponsah, MD

Guest Contributor

Daniel Amponsah, MD, is an internal medicine resident at Massachusetts General Hospital. He completed his medical degree at Loma Linda University School of Medicine. Dr. Amponsah has clinical interests in the impact of health disparities on management and outcomes in cardiology. After completing his internal medicine residency, Dr. Amponsah hopes to pursue a career in cardiology. Follow Dr. Amponsah on Twitter @DanAmponsahMD

Christopher D. Anderson, MD, MSc

Contributor

Dr. Chris Anderson is chief of the division of stroke and cerebrovascular diseases at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH), director of the BWH Comprehensive Stroke Center, and an associate professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School. As a clinician-scientist, Dr. Anderson is a computational biologist with research expertise in statistical genetics, medical informatics, and machine learning, and a clinical focus on cerebrovascular disease, brain health, and neurocritical care. He has devoted his career to developing and leveraging computational methods to define biological mechanisms involved in cerebrovascular disease, with the ultimate goal of driving improvements in care through identification of novel treatment targets, and the design and implementation of precision strategies to guide primary and secondary prevention. Dr. Anderson started at BWH in 2006 as a junior neurology resident. He graduated residency in 2009, after which he performed a postdoctoral fellowship in the MGH Center for Genomic Medicine before completing his neurocritical care fellowship at BWH/MGH in 2012. Since that time, he has led a multidisciplinary translational and clinical research group with Dr. Jonathan Rosand at MGH and at the Broad Institute. As a strong advocate for team-based science, he has cultivated extensive collaborations across the International Stroke Genetics Consortium, the McCance Center for Brain Health, and the Broad Institute, where he is an associate member in the Program in Medical and Population Genetics.

Sue-Ellen Anderson-Haynes, MS, RDN, CDCES, LDN, NASM-CPT

Contributor

Sue-Ellen Anderson-Haynes, MS, RDN, CDCES, LDN, NASM-CPT is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist (CDCES) and a Nutrition & Diabetes Educator at Joslin Diabetes Center. She is the founder & CEO of 360Girls&Women®LLC – a holistic wellness company for girls and women – and a National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) Women’s Fitness Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer. She is a member of the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics and the Boston Organization of Nutritionist and Dietitians of Color (BOND), a Board Advisor for the Boston Alliance for Diversity in Dietetics (BADD), and has coauthored articles in several scholarly medical publications. Sue-Ellen obtained her Bachelors of Science in Food Science & Human Nutrition, Specialization Dietetics, with a minor in Health Science Education from the University of Florida and her Masters of Science in Nutrition & Wellness from Andrews University, Summa Cum-Laude. She enjoys cooking, reading, and going on outdoor activities with her husband and two children.

Chika Anekwe, MD, MPH

Contributor; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing

Chika V. Anekwe, MD, MPH, is an obesity medicine physician at Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center, and an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School. Her professional interests are in the areas of clinical nutrition, obesity, nonsurgical weight management, health policy, and community health outreach, with a special interest in underserved populations.

Adjoa Anyane-Yeboa, MD, MPH

Contributor

Dr. Adjoa Anyane-Yeboa is a board-certified gastroenterologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, and an instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. She is also a member of the Clinical and Translational Epidemiology Unit, a subdivision of the Mongan Institute at MGH. Her work focuses on health equity in gastroenterology, specifically in IBD and colorectal cancer. Follow her on Twitter @AdjoaGIMD and Instagram @dradjoa_gimd.

Wynne Armand, MD

Contributor

Dr. Wynne Armand is a physician at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), where she provides primary care; an assistant professor in medicine at Harvard Medical School; associate director of the MGH Center for the Environment and Health; and affiliated faculty, Harvard Chan Center for Climate, Health, and Global environment (C-CHANGE). She is medical co-director for MGB Primary Care Office InSite (PCOI), a website that provides patient information as well as guidelines for practicing physicians and health care staff. Dr. Armand earned her medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, where she also completed her internal medicine residency in a program dedicated to training physicians to become leaders in the care of the underserved. She has an interest in promoting climate-smart health care.

Sait Ashina, MD

Contributor

Dr. Sait Ashina is an assistant professor of neurology and anesthesia at Harvard Medical School, and a director of the Comprehensive Headache Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, MA. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and a diplomate in Headache Medicine of the United Council for Neurological Subspecialties. He is a member of the education committee of the International Headache Society. Dr. Ashina also served as a member of the International Headache Society's headache classification subcommittee for the third edition of the International Classification of Headache Disorders. His research interests include epidemiology of headache and chronic pain, quantitative sensory testing, human pain models, muscle pain, the role of photophobia in migraine pathophysiology, vestibular migraine, and structural brain lesions in migraine.

Steven J. Atlas, MD, MPH

Contributor

Dr. Atlas is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Practice-Based Research and Quality Improvement in the Division of General Internal Medicine Division at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he is also a practicing primary care physician. His research interests include spine disorders, cancer prevention, and population health as well as engaging patients in their health care. Dr. Atlas serves as a medical editor for low back and neck pain for UpToDate, an electronic knowledge resource for clinicians, and for the Informed Medical Decisions Foundation, part of Healthwise, where he has developed shared decision making programs to better inform patients about their treatment options.

Parham Azimi, PhD

Contributor

Dr. Parham Azimi is a research associate in the department of environmental health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, investigating the indoor environment’s impact on occupant health and wellness and strategies to improve it. Much of his research work has focused on fate, transport, and control of indoor aerosols of indoor and ambient origin, chronic health impacts of fine particles, and the transmission of airborne infectious diseases.

Ashwini Bapat, MD

Contributor

Dr. Ashwini Bapat is thrilled to work as an attending palliative care physician at Massachusetts General Hospital. She received her undergraduate education at McGill University; her medical degree at Tufts University; and completed her internal medicine residency and fellowship in hospice & palliative medicine at Yale-New Haven Hospital. Her interests include the intersection of palliative care with medical education, telemedicine, narrative medicine, and global health.

Miriam Barshak, MD

Contributor

Miriam Barshak, MD, is an Infectious Disease Specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital and Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Barshak’s undergraduate education was at Stanford University, where she earned a BS in Biological Sciences. She then graduated from Harvard Medical School and completed residency training in Internal Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and fellowship training in Infectious Diseases at the Partners’ Combined Program in Infectious Diseases (Brigham & Women’s Hospital/Massachusetts General Hospital). Dr. Barshak has extensive experience in treating patients with infections. Through her work at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, she has gained extensive experience and expertise in treating eye and ear infections.

Melissa Bartick, MD

Contributor

Melissa Bartick, MD, MSc, is an internist and assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School who has worked as a hospitalist since 1997. Her primary research interest is in breastfeeding and its implications for women’s and children’s health, public health, economics, and sudden infant death. She has published peer-reviewed articles on sleep in hospitalized patients, and hospital quality improvement. She has served in leadership positions in numerous statewide, national, and international organizations, including the American Public Health Association, the US Breastfeeding Committee, and the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine. She has two adult children.

Elizabeth Bashoff, MD

Contributor

Elizabeth Bashoff, MD, is an Endocrinologist and Senior Physician in the Adult Diabetes section at the Joslin Diabetes Center, an Attending Physician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School. She serves as Medical Director of the Joslin Clinic Diabetes Outpatient Intensive Treatment (DO IT) program, a specialized team approach for people whose diabetes requires extended attention and evaluation. Dr. Bashoff teaches clinical diabetes skills to medical students, residents, and fellows, and is a member of the OSCE Core Faculty at Harvard Medical School.

Nicole Baumer, MD, MEd

Contributor

Nicole Baumer, MD, MEd is a child neurologist/neurodevelopmental disabilities specialist at Boston Children's Hospital, and an instructor in neurology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Baumer is director of the Boston Children's Hospital Down Syndrome Program. She specializes in treatment of individuals with Down syndrome, autism, ADHD, and other neurobehavioral disorders. Dr. Baumer's research involves characterization and diagnosis of neurodevelopmental profiles in Down syndrome, and investigation of educational, behavioral, and medical interventions in neurodevelopmental disorders. Dr. Baumer has an older sister with Down syndrome and has lifelong experience with individuals with disabilities. Dr. Baumer received her medical degree from Harvard Medical School. She trained in pediatrics at Massachusetts General Hospital, and in neurodevelopmental disabilities at Boston Children's Hospital. Dr. Baumer has a master’s degree in education from Harvard Graduate School of Education. Dr. Baumer was a fellow in the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disorders (LEND) program at Boston Children's Hospital.

Lisa Bebell, MD

Contributor

Lisa Bebell, MD, is an Instructor at Harvard Medical School and Assistant in Medicine at MGH in the Infectious Diseases Unit. As a physician, she practices Critical Care Medicine and Infectious Diseases, though she spends most of her time carrying out research on peripartum infections, including antibiotic resistant infections during and after pregnancy. Currently, she is working to better understanding the role of the placenta in transplacental antibody transfer and early life health outcomes, particularly among HIV-exposed, uninfected children in Uganda. Dr. Bebell received her MD from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and completed her residency at the University of California, San Francisco.

Mark Benson, MD, PhD

Contributor

Mark D. Benson, M.D., Ph.D. is the Director of Preventive Cardiology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC). He is also a basic and translational researcher in the field. Dr. Benson received his B.A. in biological sciences from Columbia University and his M.D. and Ph.D. in pharmacology from the University of Michigan. He completed his residency training in internal medicine at the University of Michigan, his fellowship training in cardiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and his post-doctoral training in multi-omics research at BIDMC. Dr. Benson is a principal investigator at the CardioVascular Institute at BIDMC. His laboratory’s interests are focused on applying emerging metabolomics, proteomics, and genomics technologies to detect signatures of small molecules in blood that may be used to predict an individual’s future risk of developing cardiovascular disease. The ultimate goal of this research is to identify novel biomarkers and pharmacological targets that may improve preventive cardiovascular disease therapy.

Bonnie Bermas, MD

Contributing Editor

Dr. Bonnie L. Bermas, is an associate rheumatologist at Robert Breck Brigham Arthritis Center, and an associate professor of medicine, Harvard Medical School.

Rachelle Bernacki, MD

Contributor

Dr. Rachelle Bernacki is an associate professor at Harvard Medical School, senior physician at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and medical director of the Center for Geriatric Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH). As a geriatrician and palliative care clinician, the overarching goal of her work is to improve the quality of care and long-term outcomes of seriously ill older adults. Her areas of expertise are focused on advance care planning, communication, implementation science, and the integration of palliative care and geriatrics into population health and surgery. Dr. Bernacki also served as the associate director of the serious illness care program at Ariadne Labs, and is board certified in palliative medicine, geriatrics, and internal medicine. She is a fellow of both the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) and the American Geriatrics Society, and currently serves on the board of directors of AAHPM. In 2022 Dr. Bernacki received the BWH Senior Faculty Mentoring Award.

Aaron Bernstein, MD, MPH

Contributor

Aaron Bernstein, MD, MPH, is the co-director of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and a pediatric hospitalist at Boston Children’s Hospital. In his work at the Center, Dr. Bernstein examines the human health effects of global environmental changes, such as climate change and the loss of biodiversity, with the aim of promoting a deeper understanding of these subjects among students, educators, policy makers, and the public. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in human biology from Stanford University, he received graduate degrees in medicine (MD) and public health (MPH), from the University of Chicago and Harvard University, respectively. He is a recipient of Stanford University’s Firestone Medal for Research and a Harvard University Zuckerman Fellowship. He serves on the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Environmental Health Executive Committee, the Board of Scientific Counselors to the CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and the board of directors of the US Green Building Council. An avid bicyclist, Dr. Bernstein pedals to and from work year-round. (Photo credit: Harvard University)

Carolyn A. Bernstein, MD, FAHS

Contributor

Carolyn Bernstein, MD, FAHS, is a neurologist specializing in headache medicine. A graduate of Boston University School of Medicine, she interned at Boston City Hospital. She did her postgraduate training at Boston City Hospital and New England Medical Center, and is board certified in neurology and headache medicine. Dr. Bernstein has won Harvard Medical School awards for teaching and for humanism in medicine. She was also awarded the National Headache Foundation’s Healthcare Provider of the Year award in 2008. Her interests include migraine, hormonal headache, women’s issues in neurology, and the use of integrative therapies in the treatment of headache and pain. She is the author of The Migraine Brain: Your Breakthrough Guide to Fewer Headaches, Better Health (Free Press 2008). She has edited and co-written two textbooks: Pain in Women (Springer, 2012) and Medical Problems During Pregnancy (Springer, 2017). Dr. Bernstein is an assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School.

Harvard Health Experts and Contributors

List of Experts

Susan Abookire, BSEE, MD, MPH, FACP

Steven A. Adelman, MD

Marwa A. Ahmed, MD, MS

Jessica Allegretti, MD, MPH

Joseph Allen, DSc, MPH, CIH

Daniel Amponsah, MD

Christopher D. Anderson, MD, MSc

Sue-Ellen Anderson-Haynes, MS, RDN, CDCES, LDN, NASM-CPT

Chika Anekwe, MD, MPH

Adjoa Anyane-Yeboa, MD, MPH

Wynne Armand, MD

Sait Ashina, MD

Steven J. Atlas, MD, MPH

Parham Azimi, PhD

Ashwini Bapat, MD

Miriam Barshak, MD

Melissa Bartick, MD

Elizabeth Bashoff, MD

Nicole Baumer, MD, MEd

Lisa Bebell, MD

Mark Benson, MD, PhD

Bonnie Bermas, MD

Rachelle Bernacki, MD

Aaron Bernstein, MD, MPH

Carolyn A. Bernstein, MD, FAHS