Ricardo Cruz, MD

Biography

Ricardo Cruz, MD, MPH, MA, is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine and Boston Medical Center. He is primary care physician at Boston Medical Center in the Department of Medicine, Section of General Internal Medicine. He is a graduate of Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine (BUSM) and the Boston University School of Public Health earning his MPH in Epidemiology and Biostatistics. He completed his clinical training at BUSM/Boston Medical Center (BMC) Internal Medicine Residency Primary Care Training Program. Dr. Cruz joined BUSM faculty in 2014 and his clinical work focuses on care primary care and treatment of substance use disorders and viral hepatitis for vulnerable populations including racial and ethnic minority communities and individuals with history of criminal justice involvement. He is also a physician in the Faster Paths to Treatment, Boston Medical Center’s innovative, low-barrier substance use disorder bridge clinic.

His research interests include clinical innovations to address health and treatment disparities among people with substance use disorder. He was the Principal Investigator of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health funded Project RECOVER (Referral, Engagement, Coaching, Overdose preVention Education in Recovery), a project that utilizes peer recovery coaches to assist with engagement and retention of individuals with opioid use disorder into treatment and primary care services after completion of acute treatment services (detoxification). He has been a co-investigator on NIAAA and NIDA-funded randomized clinical trials testing medications for alcohol and cocaine use disorders.

In addition, he is a Clinician Educator and is Core Faculty of the Internal Medicine Primary Care Training Program at BUSM/BMC. He is in the BUSM Academy of Medical Educators where he teaches medical students during the pre-clinical doctoring courses with a focus on development of communication, physical exam, and clinical reasoning skills.