Maria T. Chao, DrPH, MPA

Interim Director of Research, UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Health
Associate Director for Health Equity and Diversity, UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Health
Associate Director of Clinical Research and Analytics, UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Health
Professor, Department of Medicine

Areas of Interest

Advancing the science of integrative healthy equity
Investigating non-pharmacologic approaches to improve quality of life among diverse and underserved populations living with chronic conditions

Experience and Current Work

Dr. Maria Chao’s recent studies aim to: (1) rigorously test integrative approaches to address the under-treatment of pain in diverse patient populations; and (2) apply research to broaden access to evidence-based integrative medicine. This includes:

Piloting an integrative pain management program at the Tom Waddell Urban Health Clinic in the Tenderloin, the San Francisco neighborhood with the greatest concentration of deaths related to prescription pain medications;
Designing, implementing, and evaluating group-based acupuncture for low-income, racially and linguistically diverse patients with painful diabetic neuropathy;
Conducting a pilot cluster randomized trial of culturally sensitive nutritional counseling that leverages Chinese medical food principles with medically sound nutrition recommendations for type 2 diabetes;
Testing non-pharmacologic approaches to pain and symptom distress for hospitalized cancer patients.

Her research bridging public health and integrative medicine is nationally recognized. Her work has received funding support through the NIH National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, numerous foundations, and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute.

She currently serves on the steering committee for the Bravenet Practice-Based Research Network in Integrative Medicine. She is on the advisory board of Integrative Medicine for the Underserved, a national multi-disciplinary organization committed to affordable, accessible integrative health care for all. She is affiliate faculty at the UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations and the Multiethnic Health Equity Research Center.

Education and Training

DrPH, Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
Research Fellow, UCSF
MPA, Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs
BA, Women’s Studies, UC Santa Cruz