Heather Kitzman

Dr. Heather Kitzman is an Associate Professor at the Peter J. O’Donnell Jr. School of Public Health, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, and Director of the CTSA Program’s Office of Community Health and Research Engagement. Her work focuses on community-engaged translational research targeting chronic diseases in lower-income and minority populations. She leads initiatives to address health disparities through culturally tailored interventions, including dietary programs for kidney disease management and faith-based weight loss trials like the Better Me Within program.

Her research emphasizes improving clinical trial diversity, telehealth equity, and community trust-building through projects like Healthstreet. Dr. Kitzman holds a PhD and has conducted federally funded studies on topics ranging from metabolic syndrome reduction to the impact of neighborhood socioeconomic status on cardiovascular risk. She collaborates across disciplines to design interventions addressing obesity, diabetes, and kidney disease in underserved communities.

Key contributions include the Families Improving Together (FIT) trial for adolescent weight loss and the Fruit and Veggies for Kidney Health randomized study. She advocates for integrating social determinants of health into clinical care through population health models that reduce emergency department utilization in uninsured populations.