Current Investigators

Jean C. Beckham, PhD

Senior VA Research Career Scientist
Durham VA Health Care System
Research Co-Director and Genetics Core Leader
VISN 6 Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center
Professor, with tenure
Division Director
Duke University Medical Center
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Behavioral Medicine Division

Research Interests: Psychological and physical sequelae of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and smoking cessation among those with psychiatric disorders

Hayden B. Bosworth, PhD

Associate Director, COIN: Center for Health Services Research in Primary Care
Senior Career Scientist
Professor of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, Duke University
Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University
Professor of Nursing, Duke University
Adjunct Professor in Health Policy and Administration at the School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Research Interests: I am a health services researcher with research interests comprising three overarching areas of research: 1) clinical research that provides knowledge for improving patients’ treatment adherence and self-management in chronic care; 2) translation research to improve access to quality of care; and 3) eliminating health care disparities.

Kirsten Dillon, Ph.D.

​Research Psychologist
Durham VA Health Care System
Adjunct Associate Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Duke University School of Medicine

Research Interests: Developing mobile interventions for veterans, improving anger treatments, suicide prevention

Stephen Freedland, MD

Staff Physician, Durham VA Health Care System
Professor of Urology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Director of Center for Integrated Research in Cancer and Lifestyle, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Co-director of Cancer Genetics and Prevention Program, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Associate Director for Faculty Development, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Editor-in-Chief, Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Disease
Consulting Editor, European Urology

Research Interests: Prostate Cancer

Daphne R. Friedman, MD

Associate Professor, Division of Medical Oncology
Duke University School of Medicine

Staff Physician, Hematology-Oncology
Durham VA Health Care System

Deputy Director, National Oncology Program
Specialty Services, Veterans Health Administration

Research Interests: Cancer and blood disorders, Clinical Trials

Timothy G Hammond,

MB, BS, BMed Sci, FABDA, FAPWCA, FAPWH

Professor, Nephrology Division
Department of Internal Medicine
Duke University School of Medicine &
Professor, Nephrology Section
Department of Internal Medicine
George Washington School of Medicine &
Staff Physician, Durham VA Health Care System

Research Interests: Drug metabolism

Chenyu Lin, MD

Staff Physician
Durham VA Health Care System
VA National TeleOncology Service

Assistant Professor of Medicine
Division of Hematology Malignancies and Cellular Therapy
Duke University School of Medicine
Immuno-Oncology, Duke Cancer Institute

Research Interests: Investigating novel therapeutics, improving supportive care, and enhancing access for patients with hematologic malignancies.

Christine E. Marx, MD, MA

Staff Psychiatrist; Durham VA Health Care System
Co-Director for Research, VA Mid-Atlantic MIRECC
Director, Interventions and Metabolomics Core, VA Mid-Atlantic MIRECC
Director, Psychiatry Fellowship Program, VA Mid-Atlantic MIRECC
Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine
Director, Translational Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine
Vice Chair for Faculty, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine

Research Interests: The overarching focus of our research efforts has been the translation of bench neurosteroid efforts to clinical trials in CNS disorders (including post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, schizophrenia, pain disorders, and Gulf War Illness), and the investigation of neurosteroids as candidate biomarkers of symptomatology and therapeutic response utilizing highly sensitive and specific mass spectrometry-based methodologies.

Micah T. McClain, MD, PhD

Staff Physician, Division of Infectious Diseases
Durham VA Health Care System
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Division of Infectious Diseases
Duke University Medical Center

Research Interests: Host-based biomarkers for the diagnosis of infectious diseases

Scott D. Moore, MD, PhD

 

Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Behavioral Medicine Division
Duke University Medical Center
Staff Physician
Durham VA Health Care System
Neuroscience laboratory chief
VISN 6 Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center

Research Interests: Characterization of the role stress-related brain circuitry and transmitter systems in the reinforcing effects of drug reinforcement and characterization of risk factors for age-dependent cognitive dysfunction, including genotype and history of traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Bradly P. Nicholson, PhD

Director, Molecular Epidemiology Research Laboratory (MERL)
Durham VA Health Care System

Research Interests: Infectious Diseases

Jason A. Nieuwsma, PhD

Associate Director
Mental Health and Chaplaincy, Department of Veterans Affairs
Associate Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center

Research Interests: Religion / Spirituality and Health

Thomas A. Polascik, MD

​Lawrence C. Katz Distinguished Professor of Urologic Surgery
Professor of Radiology
Director of Surgical Technology, Duke Prostate and Urological Cancer Center
Director, Urologic Robotic Surgery
Director, Focal Therapy program
Duke Cancer Institute
Co-founder, Focal Therapy Society

Research Interests: 

Karthik Raghunathan, MD, MPH

Assistant Professor, Department of Anesthesiology
Duke University Medical Center
Anesthesiology Service
Durham VA Medical Center

Research Interests: Patient safety, perioperative and intraoperative care

Kenneth Schmader, MD

Professor of Medicine
Chief, Division of Geriatrics
Duke University Medical Center
Director, Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC)
Durham VA Health Care System

Research Interests: Drugs, Infections and Vaccines in Older Adults

Cindy Swinkels, Ph.D.,

CBSM, DBSM

Co-Associate Director, VISN 6 MIRECC Clinical Core

Research Interests: Focused on family interventions for Veterans with mental health concerns. More specifically, working to develop interventions that provide support and education to family and close loved ones around suicide prevention and lethal means safety training.

Robert Tighe, MD

 

Staff Physician
Durham VA Medical Center
Assistant Professor
Duke University School of Medicine

Ephraim L. Tsalik,

MD, MHS, PhD

Staff Physician, Emergency Medicine Service
Durham VA Health Care System
Associate Professor of Medicine
Division of Infectious Diseases
Center for Applied Genomics & Precision Medicine
Co-Director, Duke Scholars in Infectious Diseases
Duke University School of Medicine

Research Interests: Host-Pathogen Interactions and Infectious Disease Diagnostics Development

Karen Welty-Wolf,

MD

Section Chief, Pulmonary/Critical Care Medicine, Durham VAMC
Medical Director, Respiratory Care Services, Durham VAMC
Associate Professor of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center

Research Interests: Mechanisms of organ injury and recovery in sepsis

Christina D. Williams,

PHD, MPH

Deputy Director, Cooperative Studies Program Epidemiology Center-Durham
Durham VA Health Care System
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Division of Medical Oncology
Duke University School of Medicine

Research Interests: Health Services Research in Cancer Treatment and Outcomes/Health Disparities

Stephanie Y. Wells, PhD

Clinical Research Psychologist, Durham VA Health Care System
Core Investigator, Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation (ADAPT)
Affiliate Faculty, VA VISN 6 MIRECC
Psychologist, Trauma Recovery Program, Durham VA Health Care System

Research Interests: My research interests broadly are to improve the effectiveness of and delivery of evidence-based posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatments. In particular, I am interested in increasing access to and engagement in evidence-based PTSD treatments. Additionally, my work focuses on how effective evidence-based PTSD treatments are for commonly co-occurring issues, quality of life, and functioning. Finally, I am also interested in studying complementary approaches, such as meditative approaches, to evidence-based PTSD treatments.

Christopher Woods, MD, MPH

Chief, Infectious Diseases
Durham VA Health Care System
Professor of Medicine, Pathology and Global Health
Associate Directory, Center for Applied Genomics and Precision Medicine
Duke University Medical Center
Director of Graduate Studies
Duke Global Health Institute

Research Interests: Applied Genomics and Infectious Disease Diagnosis and Epidemiology

Leah Zullig, PhD, MPH

Research Health Science Specialist
Center for Health Services Research in Primary Care
Durham VA Health Care System
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Division of General Internal Medicine
Duke University School of Medicine

Research Interests: Health Services Research in Cancer and Chronic Disease Management

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