About Our Work

Our research focuses on the following:

• the influence of social determinants of health and contextual factors  (e.g., race and ethnicity, language, culture, health behaviors, patient preferences and goals) on chronic disease prevention and self-management, particularly among patients with multiple chronic conditions;
• integration of social determinants of health and contextual factors, particularly unmet health-related social needs (e.g., food insecurity), into clinical care including patient-clinician communication;
• and the use of photos as a tool for patients to communicate with their clinical team about contextual factors important in chronic disease prevention and self-management.

This work is based on the premise that photos can promote efficient information exchange and activate patients to communicate their complex lived experiences, including their goals and preferences that may otherwise be difficult to elicit or challenging to discuss in current clinical practice.