Office of Health Equity Research
At University of Rochester Medicine, health equity means ever better for everyone regardless of any protected classifications. Our vision is to provide fair access to high-quality healthcare and the opportunity to achieve optimal health outcomes for all who entrust us with their lives.
Research Priorities
With community partners, we have identified health challenges impacting our region to address through focused research.
Researcher Directory
Our faculty members,
healthcare providers, scientists, and trainees whose work aligns with our mission.
Spotlight
Meet Corey Nichols-Hadeed, J.D.
Corey Nichols-Hadeed co-directs both the Firearm Injury Prevention Program and the Geriatric Forensic Psychiatry Program, bringing together expertise in aging, mental health, and trauma to explore how social connection across generations can disrupt cycles of violence and improve community wellbeing. Her work emphasizes a growing consensus that community violence is not just a criminal justice issue, but a public health crisis.
Our Mission
The Office of Health Equity Research supports innovative health equity research across the University of Rochester Medicine and facilitates the translation of findings into more equitable care.
We are particularly focused on five high priority areas defined by our community:
- improving access to safe and affordable housing,
- violence prevention,
- chronic disease prevention and management,
- decreasing re-incarceration through policy,
- and promoting well-being to prevent mental health and substance use disorders.
The office is currently assessing the health equity education needs and research capacity at URochester Medicine and actively collaborating with community partners to determine the health equity research direction for URochester Medicine. The office supports researchers in multiple ways, including providing pilot funding, promoting new research partnerships, and developing training and technical resources.
Our People
OHER founding director, Edith Williams, Ph.D., has a background in epidemiology and community health with a robust research program primarily focused on disease outcomes among Black/African American women with lupus. Williams has set the strategic vision for the office and is building it as a central resource for health equity researchers across the University of Rochester.
Diane Morse, MD, was named associate director of OHER in March 2024. Morse is an internal medicine physician and associate professor of Public Health Sciences, Internal Medicine, and Psychiatry. An avid researcher with particular interest in the health care needs of individuals in the criminal legal system, domestic violence, and health equity, she also leads the WISH-TC (Wellness Initiative Supporting Health Transitions) clinic at Jordan Health.
OHER’s strength also lies in its diverse and committed community of collaborators, which is founded upon the voluntary membership of more than 130 health equity research faculty from across URochester. These faculty members represent a variety of disciplines: nursing, environmental medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, family medicine, psychiatry, oral health, immunology and rheumatology, pediatrics, and public health.
