Jennifer Taylor received her Ph.D. from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, in 2007. She obtained her MPH in Health Services from the Boston University School of Public Health in 1999. She has been trained in the field of injury prevention and control, and uses its principles to address healthcare safety and quality issues in both patient and provider populations. Her dissertation research focused on system design for patient safety surveillance and the association between organizational culture and injuries to patients and nurses.
In an effort to comprehensively study patient safety, Dr. Taylor’s research unites the fields of injury prevention and control, quality improvement, and occupational safety. She employs an integrated public health approach to these issues through the study of patients, healthcare workers, and the policy environment. As an epidemiologist, she asks, "Does the association between organizational culture and nurse injury extend to patients?" As a policy analyst, she asks, "What non-punitive policy alternatives to quality improvement might be possible to address growing patient and provider patient safety concerns?" As an injury professional, she asks, "How will the United States conduct the surveillance of patient safety events so we can assure the public of accurate statistics?"
Dr. Taylor is also fascinated by the analysis of policy solutions such as pay-for-performance and other non-punitive improvement incentives. As such, she is interested in evaluating alternatives to medical malpractice, including arbitration and mediation.
In addition to her scientific training, Dr. Taylor has 15 years of experience in state government, hospital quality management, and the basic sciences. She welcomes queries from, and extends mentoring to, students who are considering careers in these environments. Examples of past positions include: the Chief of Health Statistics and Data Management for the State of New Hampshire, and director of a CDC-funded program to establish emergency department data systems for injury surveillance at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
Research Interests: Patient safety; injury prevention and control; organizational culture; occupational workforce (esp. nursing); healthcare quality; health policy and law; health information and data privacy.
:: Curriculum Vitae (PDF)
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