Researcher | Research Overview
Dr. Wisk's research program focuses on improving access to care, health outcomes, and quality of life for youth with chronic medical conditions. She has conducted survey-based research on health care access, utilization, and costs for children, adolescents, young adults, and their families, and possess extensive methodological expertise in analyzing 'big data' (including claims data and large survey data) and applying advanced statistical techniques to address multilevel research questions. Dr. Wisk's current research extends her background in health services research, epidemiology, and biostatistics to study health behaviors, insurance and finances, and other developmental outcomes for youth growing up with a chronic illness, particularly during adolescence and young adulthood.
Researcher | Research Background
Dr. Lauren Wisk is an Instructor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and a Research Associate in the Division of Adolescent/Young Adult Medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital. A health services researcher and methodologist, her overarching program of research focuses on understanding health and health services use among children, adolescents, and families, particularly those with chronic medical conditions. Her work integrates a biopsychosocial model, social determinants of health model, and life course framework to investigate independent and interactive effects of biological, psychological, and social factors on health across the life course.
Dr. Wisk received a BS from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and PhD from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and she completed her post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital. Her research is supported by grants from the Academic Pediatric Association, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health & Society Scholars Program.