Isha Dhingra

Isha Dhingra is an Associate Research Scientist in Public Health (Health Policy) at Yale School of Public Health (YSPH), part of Yale University. Her work bridges neuroimaging, addiction medicine, and healthcare policy. She holds an MBBS from Terna Medical College (2011) and an MD in Psychiatry from Grant Medical College (2015).

Her research focuses on: 1) Neurobiological mechanisms of addiction through fMRI studies on reward processing and craving, 2) Healthcare equity issues like diagnostic disparities and patient safety, and 3) Mental health intersections with substance use and social factors. She explores sex differences in neural responses to rewards and examines how social isolation impacts substance use behaviors.

Recent work includes analyzing cocaine addiction neurocircuitry, social determinants of alcohol use, and diagnostic equity through national patient surveys. She also investigates clinical decision-making in endometrial pathology and suicide risk in dementia populations.

Her multidisciplinary approach integrates neuroscience methods with public health policy analysis to address both biological and systemic drivers of health disparities. Current projects emphasize translating neuroimaging findings into actionable clinical practices and policy recommendations.