In addition to Rachel Werner, MD, PhD, a core investigator with the HSR&D Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion (CHERP), two additional HSR&D investigators were elected to the National Academy of Medicine (NAM). Drs. Lucila Ohno-Machado and Albert Siu also are part of the 75 new U.S. and 10 international NAM members elected by their peers for accomplishments and contributions to the advancement of the medical sciences, healthcare, and public health.
Lucila Ohno-Machado, MD, PhD, a research scientist at the VA San Diego Healthcare System and Chair of Biomedical Informatics at UC San Diego Health, was elected for creating an algorithm that allows sharing access to clinical data while respecting the privacy of individuals and institutions. Dr. Ohno-Machado is currently working on an HSR&D-funded study Design and Evaluation of User Centered Electronic Health Records that is expected to provide an assessment of how providers use EHR systems in clinical VA settings, and help to quantify the effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction with which users can achieve their intended tasks.
Albert Siu, MD, MSPH, directs the Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC) at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center in New York, and is a Professor of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York. He was elected for his seminal contributions to evidence-based practice in health services research – and in pioneering programs that intersect geriatrics and palliative care. Dr. Siu’s HSR&D study focused on the use of VA and Medicare by older Veterans. Advancing the field by examining incident disability among Veterans, he found that older male Veterans using VA healthcare were 1.3 times as likely to become disabled as Veterans not using VA and non-Veterans
“VA is extremely proud to have Drs. Siu, Ohno-Machado, and Werner on our healthcare team,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “ Their accomplishments and the tremendous work they do each day to improve the health and lives of our Veterans exemplifies the level of excellence we aspire to achieve as an agency.”