Inside Health Care #68: Dr. Lisa Cooper & Bridging Equity Gaps with Better Listening

December 1, 2021 · David J. Smolar

This episode of “Inside Health Care” features Dr. Lisa A. Cooper, a pioneer in closing the gaps that still persist in health care equity.

Dr. Lisa A. Cooper is an internist, a health services researcher, and a social epidemiologist. A recipient of a MacArthur “genius” grant in 2007, Dr. Cooper pioneered methods of measuring racial and ethnic disparities in the quality of communication and relationships between doctors and patients and of implementing community-engaged interventions to overcome disparities in health and health care.

A faculty member at Johns Hopkins University since 1994, Dr. Cooper founded the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Equity, bringing together scientific minds from many areas of research with the goal of ENDING health disparities everywhere. It is her social activism, coupled with her clinical and scientific expertise in bridging the gaps in health equity, that led to Dr. Cooper’s appointment in 2021 to President Biden’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

In our discussion with Dr. Cooper, we cover a lot of ground: her incredible research into doctor/patient relationships; how the pandemic exposed long-standing issues in equitable treatment; and a bit about her contributions so far as a newly-appointed science advisor to President Biden.

Later on, we hear some insights from NCQA President Peggy O’Kane on the health care model known as “Hospital at Home.” Following that, an update on NCQA’s newest product, our Health Equity Accreditation program.