Jennifer A Reidy

Jennifer A. Reidy, MD serves as Associate Professor and Joy McCann Professor for Women in Medicine at UMass Chan Medical School within the T.H. Chan School of Medicine. Her academic appointments span multiple departments including Family Medicine and Community Health, Medicine Division Palliative Care, and the Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing, reflecting her interdisciplinary approach to medical education and palliative care.

Dr. Reidy earned her BS in Biology from Villanova University, MS in Journalism from Columbia University, and MD from the University of Vermont College of Medicine. Her educational background uniquely combines scientific training with communication expertise, which informs her research in serious illness communication.

Her research focuses on improving serious illness communication through innovative educational approaches, particularly in palliative care settings. She has led significant curriculum development initiatives across Massachusetts medical schools to standardize and enhance serious illness communication training for medical students and residents. Her work addresses critical gaps in goals-of-care documentation, especially during public health emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic.

Analysis of Dr. Reidy's publication history reveals a strong emphasis on practical, system-wide implementation of communication skills training. Her research spans medical education innovation, palliative care integration, healthcare system response during crises, and interventions to support healthcare worker well-being. The interdisciplinary nature of her work is evident in collaborations across neurology, family medicine, and palliative care specialties.

Dr. Reidy has been actively involved in medical education reform, leading multi-institutional collaborations to advance serious illness communication training in undergraduate medical education. Her work with the Massachusetts Medical Schools' Collaborative demonstrates her commitment to creating standardized, effective communication training that prepares future physicians for complex end-of-life discussions.

She has contributed to innovative interventions addressing healthcare worker well-being during the pandemic, including the "Buddy System" to reduce compassion fatigue and PPE Portraits to humanize healthcare providers wearing personal protective equipment. Her research also explores non-pharmacological approaches to palliative care, such as music therapy applications in hospital settings.