Karen E. Lasser, MD, MPH
Associate Professor (pending appointment)
Education:
MD, Cornell University Medical School, New York, NY
MPH, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA
General field of research:
Health Disparities
Affiliations other than medicine:
Section of General Internal Medicine
Cambridge Health Alliance/Harvard Medical School
Contact information:
Office
801 Massachusetts Avenue, Crosstown #2091, Boston, MA 02118
Phone: (617)-414 6688
Fax: (617)-638 8026
Keywords:
Disparities; Patient navigation.
Summary of research interest:
Dr. Karen Lasser is a primary care physician-researcher in the Section of General Internal Medicine at Boston Medical Center/Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Lasser has worked as a primary care physician in community health centers and safety-net hospital clinics since 1995. With an overarching interest in quality of care in primary care for underserved populations, she has published in the areas of cancer prevention (mammography rates in women with mental illness, barriers to colorectal cancer screening in patients served by community health centers), tobacco control (smoking rates in persons with mental illness), and access to care.
Dr. Lasser has served as the P.I. on grants from the American Heart Association, the Harvard Medical School Center for Excellence in Women’s Health, AHRQ, Partners Information Systems, and the Harvard Risk Management Foundation. She also is the recipient of a mentored research scientist award from the American Cancer Society to support her work exploring barriers to colorectal cancer detection in community health centers. She is currently conducting a randomized controlled trial of a patient navigation intervention to improve colorectal cancer screening rates in community health centers.
Recent publications:
Lasser K, Boyd JW, Woolhandler S, Himmelstein D, McCormick D, Bor D. 2000. Smoking and Mental Illness: a Population-based Prevalence Study. JAMA; 284:2606-2610.
Lasser KE, Zeytinoglu H, Miller E, Becker AE, Hermann RC, Bor DH. 2003. Do Women Who Screen Positive for Mental Disorders in Primary Care Have Lower Mammography Rates? General Hospital Psychiatry; 25:214-6.
Lasser KE, Mintzer IL, Lambert A, Cabral H, Bor DH. 2005. Missed Appointment Rates in Primary Care: The Importance of Site of Care. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved; 16:475-486.
Lasser KE, Himmelstein DU, Woolhandler S. 2006. Access to Care, Health Status, and Health Disparities in the US and Canada: Results of a Cross-National Population-Based Survey. American Journal of Public Health; 96:1300-1307.
Lasser KE, Ayanian JZ, Fletcher RH, Good MD. 2008. Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening in Community Health Centers: a Qualitative Study. BMC Family Practice, 9:15.
Lasser KE, Woolhandler SJ, Himmelstein DU. 2008. Sources of Physician Income in the U.S: The Contribution of Public Funding to the Specialist-Generalist Income Gap. Journal of General Internal Medicine; 23(9):1477-1481.
Lasser KE, Maier J, Bandel K et al. 2008. Discussions about Preventive Services: a Qualitative Study. BMC Family Practice; 9:48.
Lasser KE, Murillo J, Medlin E, Lisboa S, Valley-Shah L, Fletcher RH, Emmons KE, Ayanian JZ. In press. Patient Navigation to Promote Colorectal Cancer Screening among Community Health Center Patients: Results of a Pilot Study. BMC Family Practice.
