Meet Our Research Team

Investigators

Anne Thorndike, MD, MPH
*Principal Investigator*
(617) 724-4608

Anne Thorndike, MD, MPH is the Principal Investigator for the LiveWell/ViveBien study. She is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and the director of the Metabolic Syndrome Clinic at the Massachusetts General Hospital Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Center. Her clinical and research interests are the prevention and treatment of obesity and related diseases. Much of her work focuses on promoting healthy food choices in diverse populations and understanding how problems such as food insecurity and housing instability influence dietary intake. Dr. Thorndike serves as the chair of the American Heart Association’s Nutrition Committee and is a member of the expert panel for the U.S. News and World Report Best Diets Rankings.

Jessica Cheng, PhD, MPH

Jessica Cheng, PhD, MPH is a trained epidemiologist currently completing a postdoctoral fellowship with joint appointments in the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health and Department of General Internal Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital. Her research interests center around designing and evaluating multicomponent behavioral lifestyle interventions for the prevention of chronic disease as well as methodological complexities of measuring behavior. Her work has made extensive use of the Healthy Eating Index and data from weight loss trials. Dr. Cheng’s current work focuses on dietary changes in low-income populations. She is a trained coach for the Diabetes Prevention Program Group Lifestyle Balance (DPP-GLB) and is certified in public health (CPH).

Jessica McCurley, PhD, MPH
*Co-Investigator*

Jessica McCurley, PhD, MPH, is a clinical psychologist with specialization in health psychology and behavioral medicine. Her research focuses on reducing socioeconomic and racial/ethnic disparities in chronic cardiometabolic diseases (e.g., type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity) and mental health conditions (e.g., depression). Previously a Postdoctoral Fellow under the mentorship of Dr. Anne Thorndike, Dr. McCurley is now an Assistant Professor of Psychology at San Diego State University. Dr. McCurley maintains a non-paid affiliation in the Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital and is a co-investigator of the LiveWell/ViveBien study (RO1DK124145, PI: Thorndike). **Dra. McCurley habla español.**

Kristine Gu, MD, MPH

Kristine completed her undergraduate studies and a combined MD/MPH degree at Tulane University. Her interest in health disparities grew during her internal medicine residency training at Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center where she was part of the Health Equities and Disparities track. She is now a second-year endocrinology fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital, where her research interests include examining the impact of social determinants of health on diabetes management.

Doug+4.jpg — Doug Levy, PhD
*Co-Investigator*

Doug Levy, PhD is an Associate Professor of Medicine at the Mongan Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. As a health services researcher, his work focuses on how public health, health care finance, and health services can improve prevention and population health. His research topics have included tobacco use, healthy eating, social influence, and cost-effectiveness in studies taking place in both clinical and community settings.

Cheryl Clark, MD, ScD
*Co-Investigator*

Cheryl Clark MD, ScD, is a hospitalist and researcher in the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Division of General Medicine and Primary Care, and director of Health Equity Research & Intervention in the Center for Community Health and Health Equity (CCHHE). Clark has devoted her research to understanding the ways social determinants of health influence equity and the risks and resiliency factors underlying cardiometabolic diseases and cancer.

Vicki Fung, PhD

Co-Investigator

Vicki Fung, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Mongan Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. As a health services researcher, she studies U.S. health care financing and policy, with a focus on insurance coverage and access for disadvantaged populations. Her research aims to identify effective approaches to improve outcomes for complex populations that face greater financial and non-financial barriers to medical care.

Clinical Research Coordinators

Ashlie Malone, BA

*(617) 724-6930*

Ashlie graduated from Harvard College in May 2021 with a degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology and a minor in Psychology. She joined the MGH Division of General Internal Medicine in July 2022. Having both volunteered and worked as an AmeriCorps member with underserved populations in health care settings in Boston, Ashlie is excited to learn more about social determinants of health and addressing health inequities. She plans to become a physician in the future. In her free time, she enjoys running, reading, and crocheting.
**Ashlie habla español.**

Oldy Bejarano
(*617) 726-4800*

Oldy is originally from Santa Cruz, Bolivia, and moved to Providence, Rhode Island at the age of one. She is a current fourth-year student at Northeastern University majoring in Health Science with minors in Spanish and in Nutrition. Being a first-generation student, Oldy is passionate about social equity and reducing health disparities impacting the city of Boston. In her free time, Oldy enjoys watching anime, exercising, and attending to her cat Momo.
**Oldy habla español.**

Peyton Williams
*(617) 643 - 3738*

Originally from Dallas, Texas, Peyton is a current fourth-year student at Harvard College. She is majoring in Human Evolutionary Biology: Mind, Brain, Behavior while earning her minor in Economics. Peyton joined the MGH Division of General Internal Medicine in August 2020. She is passionate about reducing health inequities and intends to become a physician in the future. In her free time, she enjoys running, hiking, writing poetry, and spending time with family and friends.

Catherine is originally from southeastern Massachusetts, and recently graduated from Emory University with a bachelor's of science in Biology. She joined the MGH Division of General Internal Medicine in October 2024, and hopes to become a physician-researcher in the future. Having previously conducted public health research in Atlanta, Catherine is passionate about understanding how to improve healthcare outcomes for underserved communities. Outside of work, Catherine enjoys singing, hiking, and trying to befriend local animals.

Noah graduated from Brown University in May 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and joined MGH’s Division of General Internal Medicine in October 2024. During his time at Brown, he developed a love of the biochemical lens of medicine through his coursework and research on breast and ovarian cancers. He is eager now to develop the interpersonal lens of medicine through his work at MGH. He is a strong believer in using an interdisciplinary and community-based approach in healthcare and is excited to see this approach in practice through his work. In his free time, he enjoys cooking, playing ultimate Frisbee, and watching baseball.

Katherine Faulkner , BS *(617) 643 - 4810*
Katherine Faulkner graduated from Bates College in May 2022 with a bachelor’s degree in science and joined the MGH Division of General Internal Medicine in June 2022. Majoring in Biochemistry, with a minor in Spanish and concentration in Public Health, Katherine is excited to pursue her interests in both medicine and public health and eventually hopes to receive an MD/MPH. Through academics and extracurricular experiences, Katherine hopes to develop stronger definitions of health and wellness, specifically in the context of improving access to quality and effective health care for underserved communities. Other interests of Katherine are reflective of her time in Maine, enjoying both outdoor activities and spending time with friends.

Pamela graduated from Cornell University in May 2024 with a B.S. in Global and Public Health Sciences. She joined the MGH Division of General Internal Medicine in June 2024. Pamela has worked in public health research targeting food insecurity with underserved populations in Dallas, TX. She is excited to work on projects that target food insecurity and reduce health inequities to further prepare her for a future career as a physician. Pamela looks forward to her work in community engagement in the Boston area. In her free time, she enjoys playing tennis, running, hiking, and spending time with her dog.

Pamela habla español.

Database Manager

Sydney Howard, MS

Sydney is a database manager and analyst for the departments of General Internal Medicine and Psychiatry within the Massachusetts Genera Hospital. She has a BS in Computer Science from Rhodes College and a MS in Epidemiology from Tulane University. She enjoys hiking, pressure cooking, and successfully debugging obscure compiling errors.