Raina M Merchant, MD MSHP FAHA

Professor of Emergency Medicine
Senior Fellow, Penn Center for Public Health Initiatives
Associate Vice President/Digital Health, University of Pennsylvania Health System
Co-Director, National Clinician Scholars Program , University of Pennsylvania
Director, Center for Digital Health
Senior Fellow, Institute for Biomedical Informatics
Affiliated faculty, Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics
Chief Transformation Officer and Vice President, University of Pennsylvania Health System
Department: Emergency Medicine
Contact information
PCAM, 3400 Civic Center Blvd, 14th floor, Innovation Suite
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Education:
BA (Psychobiology)
Yale University, 1998.
MD
University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine, 2003.
MS (Master of Science in Health Policy Research)
University of Pennsylvania, 2009.
BA (Psychobiology)
Yale University, 1998.
MD
University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine, 2003.
MS (Master of Science in Health Policy Research)
University of Pennsylvania, 2009.
Post-Graduate Training
Resident in Emergency Medicine , University of Chicago , 2003-2007.
Philips Resuscitation Fellowship, University of Chicago, 2006-2007.
Chief Resident, Emergency Medicine, University of Chicago, 2006-2007.
Fellow, Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , 2007-2010.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, 2007-2010.
Fellow, Center for Resuscitation Science, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , 2007-2010.
Resident in Emergency Medicine , University of Chicago , 2003-2007.
Philips Resuscitation Fellowship, University of Chicago, 2006-2007.
Chief Resident, Emergency Medicine, University of Chicago, 2006-2007.
Fellow, Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , 2007-2010.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, 2007-2010.
Fellow, Center for Resuscitation Science, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , 2007-2010.
Certifications
Board certified, American Board of Emergency Medicine, 2009.
Permanent linkBoard certified, American Board of Emergency Medicine, 2009.
Description of Research Expertise
Dr. Merchant is a tenured Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and has a secondary appointment in the Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, and Division of Health Policy. She is the Penn Medicine Associate Vice President/Digital Health. She is a Co-Director of the National Clinician Scholars Program at the University of Pennsylvania and the Director of the Penn Center for Digital Health. Her research is at the intersection of digital media and health. She has specifically conducted projects evaluating health behaviors and communication using digital platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Yelp, Instagram, Reddit, and Google. One of her projects involves “banking language” through the development of a unique longitudinal database of social media data merged with health record data. Much of her work also bridges new technologies in the fields of cardiovascular health, mental health, cancer care, disaster medicine, public health, and resuscitation science. Dr. Merchant has been continuously funded by the NIH since 2011 and her work has been published in journals such as NEJM, JAMA, Circulation, and Health Affairs. She is a member of the editorial board of JAMA. She is an Aspen Health Innovators Fellow and was recognized by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as one of 10 young investigators likely to have a significant impact on the future of health and healthcare in the US. She is a member of the National Academy of Medicine.Selected Publications
Abrams MP, Pelullo A, Merchant RM, Purtle J, Meisel Z, Agarwal AK: State and Federal Legislators’ Response to the Mental Health and Burnout of Health Care Workers Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic: Natural Language Processing and Sentiment Analysis. Journal of Medical Internet Research: Infodemiology 2023 Notes: in press.Gupta R, Sharma M, Cannuscio C, Mitra N, Merchant RM, Asch DA, Grande D: Consumer Confidence in Public and Private Organizations to Use Their Digital Health Data Responsibly. Journal of General Internal Medicine Nov 2022 Notes: epub.
Senapati S, Asch DA, Merchant RM, Seltzer E, Mancheno C, Dokras A: Rapid Cycle Innovation: Increasing Access to Fertility Care, for publication in NEJM Catalyst Innovations in Care Delivery: Vol. 3 Issue 10 | October 2022, New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst 3(10), Oct 2022.
Kilaru AS, Illenberger N, Meisel ZF, Groeneveld PW, Liu M, Mondal A, Mitra N, Merchant RM: Incidence of timely outpatient follow-up care after emergency department encounters for acute heart failure. Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes 8, Sep 2022.
Dixon EL, Joshi SM, Ferrell W, Volpp KG, Merchant RM, Guntuku SC: COVID-19 contact tracing app reviews reveal concerns and motivations around adoption. PLoS One 17(9), Sep 2022.
Gudobba C, Mollanazar N, Akiyama K, Vittorio C, MD, Leri D, Gitelman Y, O’Malley C, Merchant, RM, Asch DA, Rosin R, Balachandran M, Khan N, Snider C, Lee, K Kovarik C: Teledermatology Transformed Through an Automated Previsit Engagement Strategy. New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst 3(9), Sep 2022.
Southwick L, Suh R, Kranzler E, Bradley M, Merchant RM: Perspectives of Patients and Therapists on Social Media and Digital Data Use in Mental Health Therapy: Thematic Analysis. JMIR Formative Research 6(7), Jul 2022.
Valbuena VSM, Merchant RM, Hough CL: Racial and Ethnic Bias in Pulse Oximetry and Clinical Outcomes. Journal of American Medical Association Internal Medicine May 2022 Notes: epub.
Seltzer EK, Guntuku SC, Lanza AL, Tufts C, Srinivas SK, Klinger EV, Asch DA, Fausti N, Ungar L, Merchant RM: Patient experience and satisfaction in online reviews of obstetric care: observational study. Journal of Medical Internet Research Formative Research 6(3): e28379, Mar 2022.
Brooks SC, Clegg GR, Bray J, Deakin CD, Perkins GD, Ringh M, Smith CM, Link MS, Merchant RM, Pezo-Morales J, Parr M, Morrison LJ, Wang TL, Koster RW, Ong MEH: Optimizing outcomes after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with innovative approaches to public-access defibrillation: A scientific statement from the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation. Resuscitation 172: 204-228, Mar 2022.