Pablo Buitron de la Vega, MD, MSc
Pablo Buitron de la Vega, MD, MSc joined the Section of General Internal Medicine in 2016. He is an Associate Professor of Medicine and a leading expert in designing, implementing, and evaluating systems to address social drivers of health (SDOH) in healthcare settings. His signature achievement, the THRIVE program at Boston Medical Center (BMC), has been recognized by the Joint Commission as a national model for SDOH screening and referral, demonstrating his growing influence in healthcare innovation at a national level.
Dr. Buitron de la Vega developed the THRIVE program in 2017, developing innovative solutions and leveraging electronic health records to overcome hurdles. In 2019, he disseminated the findings of implementing THRIVE in the article “Implementing an EHR-based Screening and Referral System to Address Social Determinants of Health in Primary Care,” published in Medical Care. As the medical director of THRIVE, he manages diverse stakeholder agendas and community needs. He continues to innovate and expand the program, publishing several articles on SDOH screening and referral and supporting other faculty and trainees interested in SDOH scholarship projects.
In addition to directing THRIVE, Dr. Buitron de la Vega holds several administrative leadership and teaching roles that demonstrate his passion for health equity and advancing medical education. He is the program director of the Preventive Medicine Residency Program, training primary care physicians to serve as educators, investigators, and public health practitioners with a focus on topics relevant to medically underserved communities. Within the Internal Medicine Residency Program, he is the director of the Health Equity Across Populations Track. At BU Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, he is the director of the Structural and Social Drivers of Health Track for LEADS, a two-year course with an immersive health equity curriculum that supports students to design scholarly innovations.
Dr. Buitron de la Vega is passionate about mentorship and supporting international medical graduates. He is the founder and director of the International Medical Graduate Coaching and Support Program, and he has served as a mentor for numerous international medical graduates transitioning to US training programs.
Dr. Buitron de la Vega received his MD from Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador in 2009 and completed his internal medicine residency at Henry Ford Hospital in 2014. He then started a preventive medicine residency where he earned his Master of Science in Health Services and Systems Research from Boston University School of Public Health in 2016.