Raina M Merchant, MD MSHP FAHA

Professor of Emergency Medicine
Senior Fellow, Penn Center for Public Health Initiatives
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, 5th floor, C-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.
Chief Resident, Emergency Medicine, University of Chicago, 2006-2007.
Philips Resuscitation Fellowship, University of Chicago, 2006-2007.
Fellow, Center for Resuscitation Science, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , 2007-2010.
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.
Resident in Emergency Medicine , University of Chicago , 2003-2007.
Chief Resident, Emergency Medicine, University of Chicago, 2006-2007.
Philips Resuscitation Fellowship, University of Chicago, 2006-2007.
Fellow, Center for Resuscitation Science, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , 2007-2010.
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.
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 secondary appointments in the Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, and Division of Health Policy. She is also a physician executive and serves as the Vice President and Chief Transformation Officer for Penn Medicine. Much of her research and operations work bridges new technologies in the fields of cardiovascular health, mental health, cancer care, disaster medicine, public health, health equity 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 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
Agarwal AK, Mittal J, Tran A, Merchant R, Guntuku SC: Investigating Social Media to Evaluate Emergency Medicine Physicians' Emotional Well-being During COVID-19. Journal of the American Medical Association Network Open 6(5): e2312708, May 2023.Friedman AB, Merchant RM, Maley A, Farhat K, Smith K, Felkins J, Gonzales RE, Bauer L, McCoy MS: Widespread Third-Party Tracking On Hospital Websites Poses Privacy Risks For Patients And Legal Liability For Hospitals. Health Affairs (Millwoood) 42: 508-515, Apr 2023.
Gupta R, Iyengar R, Sharma M, Cannuscio CC, Merchant RM, Asch DA, Mitra N, Grande D: Consumer Views on Privacy Protections and Sharing of Personal Digital Health Information. Journal of the American Medical Association Network Open 6(3): e231305, Mar 2023.
Naik A, Syvyk S, Tong J, Wirtalla C, Barg FK, Guerra CE, Mehta SJ, Wender R, Merchant RM, Kelz RR: Factors Associated With Primary Care Physician Decision-making When Making Medication Recommendations vs Surgical Referrals. Journal of the American Medical Association Network Open 6(2): e2256086, Feb 2023.
Wanchoo K, Abrams M, Merchant RM, Ungar L, Guntuku SC: Reddit language indicates changes associated with diet, physical activity, substance use, and smoking during COVID-19. PLoS One 18(2): e0280337, Feb 2023.
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 24(3), Feb 2023.
Azizi Z, Adedinsewo, Rodriguez F, Lewey J, Merchant RM, Brewer LP.: Leveraging digital health to improve the cardiovascular health of women Zahra Azizi MD, MSc1,2, Demilade Adedinsewo, MD, MPH3, Fatima Rodriguez, MD, MPH2, Jennifer Lewey, MD, MPH4, Raina M. Merchant, MD, MSHP5, LaPrincess C. Brewer, MD, MPH6,7. Current Cardiovascular Risk Reports 2023 Notes: in press.
Merchant RM,Becker LB, Brooks SC, Chan PS, Del Rios M, McBride ME, Neumar RW, Previdi JK, Uzendu A, Sasson C.: The American Heart Association Emergency Cardiovascular Care 2030 Impact Goals and Call to Action to Improve Cardiac Arrest Outcomes. Circulation 2023 Notes: (in press).
Merchant RM, Southwick L, Beidas R, Mandell D, Guntuki SC, Pelullo A, Yang L, Mitra N, Curtis B, Ungar L, McCalpin HJ, Bradley M, Asch DA: Effect of integrating patient generated electronic communication in mental health therapy sessions on health-reported quality of life: a randomized controlled trial. Psychiatric Services Dec 2022.
Agarwal AK, Sagan C, Gonzales R, Nijim S, Merchant RM, Asch DA, South EC: Assessing experiences of racism among Black and White patients in the emergency department. Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians Open 3(6): e12870, Dec 2022.