Catarina I Kiefe

Catarina I Kiefe, PhD, MD is a Professor and the Melvin S. and Sandra L. Cutler Chair in Biomedical Research at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School. She holds multiple appointments across the institution, including in the T.H. Chan School of Medicine (Departments of Medicine and Population and Quantitative Health Sciences), Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (Departments of Masters in Clinical Investigation, MD/PhD Program, Population Health Sciences, Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program, and Translational Science), and UMass Chan Programs, Centers and Institutes (Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology).

Dr. Kiefe earned her BS in Science from the University of Porto, Portugal, followed by a PhD in Mathematics from the State University of New York at Stony Brook, and an MD from the University of California, San Francisco. She completed her residency in internal medicine at the University of Minnesota Hospitals and Clinics. As the inaugural chair of the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences from 2009 to 2019, she combined mathematical rigor with clinical medicine, and continues this work as Chief Scientific Officer of PQHS and the Cutler.

Her research spans epidemiology, population health, cardiovascular research, health services research, and social determinants of health. Dr. Kiefe's work integrates mathematical precision with medical application, focusing on improving healthcare outcomes for individuals and populations. Her research often examines health disparities, cardiovascular disease progression, social determinants of health, and aging.

Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong focus on longitudinal studies, particularly the CARDIA (Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults) study, examining cardiovascular health across the lifespan. Her work frequently addresses health disparities, social determinants of health, and the intersection of psychological factors with physical health outcomes. Recent publications show increasing attention to neighborhood effects, historical redlining, and cardiometabolic health trajectories, reflecting a life-course epidemiology approach.

• Melvin S. and Sandra L. Cutler Chair in Biomedical Research

Dr. Kiefe has been continuously funded for 25 years as Principal Investigator on projects from NIH, AHRQ, VA, and PCORI. She serves as PI on an NHLBI T32 institutional training grant and UMass' NCATS-funded KL2 career development program for junior faculty. With close to 300 peer-reviewed publications, she has served on multiple NIH study sections and advisory groups, and is co-Editor-in-Chief of Medical Care, a premier journal in health services research. Her work demonstrates a commitment to mentoring the next generation of researchers while advancing population health science.

Dr. Kiefe leads research initiatives focused on the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences, with particular emphasis on longitudinal studies examining cardiovascular health trajectories and social determinants of health. Her work often involves interdisciplinary collaborations across epidemiology, biostatistics, clinical medicine, and social sciences.