The Team at Providence Women and Children’s Health Research Center
Overview
Meet the team of nationally renowned scientists and researchers at Providence Women and Children’s Health Research Center.
Heidi D. Nelson, MD, MPH, is Medical Director of Providence Women and Children’s Health Research Center and the Providence Women and Children’s Program. She is an international expert on developing evidence-based medical guidelines in women’s health and her work has been published widely. Her research includes evaluations of the effectiveness of prevention services and therapies resulting in practice recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and the National Institutes of Health. These include appropriate use of postmenopausal hormone therapy, screening for osteoporosis, screening for sexually transmitted diseases, screening for family and intimate partner violence, screening for breast and ovarian cancer, genetic testing for breast cancer risk, and universal newborn hearing screening, among others. Additional research focuses on the effects of moderate alcohol use in older women, development of interventions to prevent serial osteoporotic fractures, and methods to prevent and detect depression during pregnancy and postpartum.
Dr. Nelson is Professor of Medical Informatics and Clinical Epidemiology and Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University and she is an investigator in the Oregon Evidence-based Practice Center. She serves as a Director of the Women’s Health Fellowship at the Portland VA Medical Center.
Nancy R. Davis, MPH is Director of Research and Clinical Information at the Women and Children’s Health Research Center. Ms. Davis provides administrative leadership for the scientific missions of the Research Center, and also directs the technical and knowledge systems and services needed to support the clinical, quality and data needs of the Regional Women and Children’s Program. She coordinates and oversees Research Center staff and resources involved in clinical databases, quality reporting, outcomes research, program evaluation, analysis of patient data, clinical trials, use of decision support systems, and development of integrated clinical information systems for the Women and Children Program and the Research Center. Ms. Davis also serves as an advisor on research planning and oversight committees, and is a member of the Providence Health & Services Privacy Board and the Regional Research Administrative Council.
Valerie T. Stewart, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist at Providence Women and Children’s Health Research Center.Dr. Stewart, whose doctoral degree is in Social Psychology, began her research career at UCLA’s Institute for Social Science Research where she developed a specialization in survey research as well as knowledge about logistics of conducting large-scale research projects. Dr. Stewart founded the first acute stroke registry in the state of Oregon in 2002, funded by the Centers for Disease Control in collaboration with Oregon Health and Sciences University and Oregon Health Division. The project lasted over two years and resulted in ongoing stroke-related quality improvement reports for sixteen hospitals in the state. Women are diagnosed with more strokes than men and an analysis of potential differences in acute care experiences is ongoing. (See www.oregonstrokeregistry.org for more information.)
Another primary research interest is in physician-patient communication under various social circumstances. Dr Stewart has published research concerning the relationship of malpractice claims history and physician communication during routine office visits, the impact on physician communication with the computer in the exam room, and how patients perceive different types of communication about patient safety. Dr. Stewart also serves on the Adjunct Faculty in the Department of Psychology at Portland State University where she has mentored students in applied health-related research.
Sarah Hamilton Boyles, M.D., is Medical Director for Urogynecological Services at Providence Portland Service Area. Dr. Hamilton completed her internship and residency in Obstetrics & Gynecology at The Ohio State University, and completed a Fellowship in Urogynecology and Reconstructive Plastic Surgery at OHSU. She is a graduate of the NIH’s Human Investigations Program and has conducted several research studies in incontinence and pelvic prolapse.
John V. McDonald, M.D., is Medical Director for Newborn Services at Providence Health & Services in Oregon and Medical Director of the NICU at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center. Dr. McDonald completed his medical degree at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin, and his residency in Pediatrics at Oregon Health & Sciences University in Portland, Oregon. He completed a Fellowship in Neonatology at the Cardiovascular Research Institute at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. McDonald has interests in the areas of population based health improvement initiatives in newborns including prevention of early onset group B streptococcus infection and prevention of kernicterus. He also has an interest in creating successful teams of health care providers to promote optimal patient outcomes and family experiences.
Dr. McDonald is the CEO of Northwest Newborn Specialists, P.C. a practice of neonatologists who provide services at four NICU’s located in Oregon and Washington.
