about me
I am a Professor of Otolaryngology, Pediatrics, and Health Policy & Management, and Director of Pediatric Otolaryngology at Johns Hopkins University. My work focuses on how patients and families navigate decisions and how communication, trust, and health systems shape patient outcomes.
In my research lab, my team has analyzed hundreds of audio-recorded surgical visits and parent interviews to better understand trust, treatment recommendations, shared decision-making, and variation in care. My research explores why patients with similar conditions may receive very different treatment paths and how communication influences the experience of illness, surgery, and uncertainty. My work is federally funded and widely published across surgery, pediatrics, and communication forums.
I am dedicated to improving health outcomes through enhanced doctor-patient communication and organizational change. Across my career, I have led clinical operations, surgical quality, care coordination, and revenue cycle initiatives within a major academic health system. These experiences make me particularly interested in how workflow demands, policy, and technology affect both patients and clinicians during the healthcare visit.
I write and speak to the public about children’s health, communication in medicine, healthcare delivery, and navigating medical uncertainty.
I am a mother and stepmother of three teens. I eat carbs and meat, I have a 125 lb human-in-dog-suit labradoodle, and I lay in wait every Sunday for the NYT crossword. As a physician, parent, and human, I sit on all sides of the exam table and understand how important it is to connect with patients, and how overwhelming the healthcare system can feel for patients and families trying to make decisions.
Career Perspectives
Clinical Care
Practicing pediatric ENT surgeon caring for children and families.
Research
Studying clinical conversations, shared decision-making, and drivers of surgical care variation.
Health Systems
Working across clinical operations, revenue cycle management, quality, and healthcare delivery.
Public Engagement
Writing and speaking about children’s health, decision-making, and medical uncertainty. Advising on clinical communication, workflow redesign, and systems change.
Education and Training
- B.A., Fine Arts, Northwestern University
- M.D., Virginia Commonwealth University
- M.P.H., Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
- Internship: UCLA, General Surgery
- Residency: VCU Health and Hospitals, Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery
- Fellowship: Seattle Children's Hospital, Pediatric Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery
- Board Certification (ABOTO): Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery
- Board Subspecialty Certification (ABOTO): Complex Pediatric Otolaryngology