Health Management, Economics, and Policy

At Augusta University’s School of Public Health, the Department of Health Management, Economics, and Policy brings together accomplished faculty with expertise in health economics, health management, policy evaluation, global health, ethics, and the application of advanced digital technologies.

Our faculty actively conduct research aimed at advancing societal wellbeing by tackling critical public health challenges – including poor health outcomes, rural health system barriers, economic evaluation of interventions, and the reproducibility of scientific findings. We advance academic scholarship and inform policies at local, national, and international levels.

Through innovative teaching and applied research, we prepare students to tackle real-world challenges and lead transformative efforts in public health. We also play a key role in mentoring students through capstone projects and building strong partnerships with public health agencies.

Contact Us

Health Management, Economics, and Policy

Summerville Campus

Science Hall

706-721-1104

sph@augusta.edu

Recent Faculty Publications

Publication
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A multidimensional research productivity dataset of 21st-century Nobel Laureates in physiology or medicine

Burnett, W. J. & Balas, E. A., Dec 2025, In: Scientific Data. 12, 1, 1014.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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The Moral Difficulty of Embryo-Friendly IVF

Colgrove, N. & Blackshaw, B. P., Dec 2025, In: Philosophy and Technology. 38, 4, 169.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review

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Role of Child Marriage and Adolescent Childbearing on Hysterectomy Among Married Women in India: A Cross-Sectional and Time-to-Event Analysis

Datta, B. K. & Tiwari, A., Dec 2025, In: BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. 132, 13, p. 2042-2051 10 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Addressing health literacy gaps in adjuvant endocrine therapy adherence: Post hoc insights from a randomized remote monitoring trial

Graetz, I., Hernandez, S., Hu, X., Krukowski, R. A., Anderson, J. N., Waters, T. M., Stepanski, E., Vidal, G. A. & Schwartzberg, L. S., Oct 2025, In: Breast. 83, 104552.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Disparities in Preventive Care Utilization at the Intersection of Socioeconomic and Demographic Characteristics: A Survival Analysis of COVID-19 Vaccination Uptake in the United States

Datta, B. K., Ghosh, S., Jaremski, J. E., Ansa, B. E., Islam, K. M. M. & Johnson, J. A., Sep 1 2025, In: Journal of Public Health Management and Practice. 31, 5, p. 726-736 11 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Interprofessional Education in Allied Health Programs: Opportunity or Superfluous Effort?

Okrah, A. K., Tracy, J. D., Onyango, J., Eubanks, A., Coleman, T. & De Leo, G., Sep 2025, In: Journal of allied health. 54, 3, p. e257-e263

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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PRIDE-FTG advances academic careers of underrepresented early-stage investigators performing blood disorders research

Pace, B. S., Onwuemene, O. A., Starlard-Davenport, A., Markowitz, R. B., Heboyan, V., Datsov, P. & Rice, T., Aug 12 2025, In: Blood Advances. 9, 15, p. 3919-3928 10 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Systematic Review of Surveys Used to Evaluate Patient and Provider Perspectives on Teleophthalmology

Fowler, T. E. & De Leo, G., Aug 1 2025, In: Telemedicine Reports. 6, 1, p. 195-215 21 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Assessing Factors that Influence the Satisfaction of Community-Based Faculty with Precepting Health Professions Students in the State of Georgia

Odo, N., Ruffa, A., Gillies, R. A., Ballance, D., Kornegay, D. & Heboyan, V., Aug 2025, In: Journal of Community Health. 50, 4, p. 742-749 8 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Patients and Provider Experiences with Telemedicine for Follow-up Care in Military Settings

Heboyan, V. & De Leo, G., Aug 1 2025, In: Telemedicine Reports. 6, 1, p. 220-227 8 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Body mass index and colorectal cancer screening among cancer survivors: the role of sociodemographic characteristics

Meng-Han, T., Elinita, P., Marlo, V. & Chen, J., Jul 2025, In: Cancer Causes and Control. 36, 7, p. 641-651 11 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Medical debt is associated with higher sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among U.S. adults

Sengupta, S., Datta, B. K. & Coughlin, S. S., Jun 2025, In: Journal of epidemiology and population health. 73, 3, 203123.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Considering Relative Rurality inTobacco Regulatory Science

Appalachian Tobacco Regulatory Science Team (AppalTRUST), Jun 1 2025, In: Nicotine and Tobacco Research. 27, 6, p. 1147-1150 4 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review

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Depressive disorder among gynecologic cancer survivors in the US: Evidence from the 2020 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey

Vernon, M. M., Datta, B. & Coughlin, S. S., Jun 2025, In: Cancer Epidemiology. 96, 102795.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on vaccinations in United States primary care practices

Ataç, Ö., Peterson, L. E. & Waters, T. M., Jun 2025, In: PloS one. 20, 6 June, e0325934.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Psychosocial wellbeing and short sleep duration among U.S. adults

Datta, B. K., Jaremski, J. E., Chang, A. & Sengupta, S., May 2025, In: Sleep and Breathing. 29, 2, 135.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Vaccine Hesitancy Through a Global Lens: Cross-Cultural Evidence from a Special Issue

Shah, G. H. & Nguyen, T. H., May 2025, In: Vaccines. 13, 5, 529.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Editorial › peer-review

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Long COVID and financial hardship: A disaggregated analysis at income and education levels

Datta, B. K., Fazlul, I. & Khan, M. M., Apr 2025, In: Health Services Research. 60, 2, e14413.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Design and development of a Telemedicine Assessment Toolkit (TAT) for the assessment of audiovisual telemedicine encounters

Agbali, R., Andrew Balas, E., Heboyan, V., Silva, J., Coughlin, S., Beltrame, F. & De Leo, G., Apr 2025, In: Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare. 31, 3, p. 437-445 9 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Defining ‘Abortion’: a call for clarity

Colgrove, N., Apr 2025, In: Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics. 46, 2, p. 137-175 39 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Rurality Status and Cardiovascular Events/Survival in Older Men With Prostate Cancer

Jiang, S., Patel, V., Stabellini, N., Datta, B., Nain, P., Seth, L., Kunhiraman, H. H., Nettles, D., Malik, S., Patel, S. A., Rupji, M., Ward, K., Switchenko, J. M., Moore, J. X., Weintraub, N. L. & Guha, A., Apr 2025, In: JNCCN Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. 23, 4, :e247094.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Long COVID and the Higher Risk of Food Insecurity Among Participants and Nonparticipants of Food Assistance Programs in the United States

Datta, B. K. & Phillips, S., Apr 2025, In: Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. 125, 4, p. 555-566 12 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Demographic variation in continuous glucose monitoring utilisation among patients with type 1 diabetes from a US regional academic medical centre: a retrospective cohort study, 2018-2021

Atac, O., Heier, K. R., Moga, D., Fowlkes, J., Sohn, M. W., Kruse-Diehr, A. J., Waters, T. M. & Lacy, M. E., Mar 13 2025, In: BMJ Open. 15, 3, e088785.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Association Between Abdominal Obesity, Body Mass Index, and Hypertension in India: Evidence From a Large Nationally Representative Data

Gupta, R. D., Haider, M. R., Roy, S., Hashan, M. R., Baral, A., Tamanna, N., Mazumder, A., Haider, S. S. & Datta, B., Mar 2025, In: Journal of Clinical Hypertension. 27, 3, e70034.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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A Survival Analysis of Rural-Urban Disparities in COVID-19 Vaccination Uptake in the United States

Datta, B. K., Jaremski, J. E., Ansa, B. E., Odhiambo, L., Clary, C., Islam, K. M. M. & Johnson, J. A., Mar 2025, In: American Journal of Health Promotion. 39, 3, p. 405-416 12 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Screening Colonoscopy Uptake Among Adult Stroke Survivors: Findings from the 2022 BRFSS Data

Ansa, B. E., Head, A., Johnson, Z., Hatekah, W. K. S., Ansa, B. & Nettles, D., Mar 2025, In: Gastroenterology Insights. 16, 1, 2.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Self-Management Practices Among Adults With Diabetes in the United States: An Analysis of the 2017-2020 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)

Nguyen, T. H., Barefield, A., Chandler, L. & De Leo, G., Feb 2025, In: Science of Diabetes Self-Management and Care. 51, 1, p. 9-23 15 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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COVID-19-Related Financial Hardship and Adherence to Adjuvant Endocrine Therapy Among Women With Early-Stage Breast Cancer

Arshad, S., Hu, X., Krukowski, R. A., Waters, T. M., Vidal, G. A., Schwartzberg, L., Lipscomb, J. & Graetz, I., 2025, (Accepted/In press) In: Health Services Research.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Strategic policy options to improve quality and productivity of biomedical research

Balas, E. A., De Leo, G. & Shaw, K. B., 2025, In: Politics and the Life Sciences. 44, 1, p. 108-119 12 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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A thematic analysis of prognostic, diagnostic, and therapeutic of circulating miRNA biomarkers in bortezomib-resistant multiple myeloma

Bamfield-Cummings, S., Silva, J. & Karim, Z. A., Jan 1 2025, In: SAGE Open Medicine. 13

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

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Knowledge, Readiness, Willingness-to-Use, and Willingness-to-Pay for Telehealth in Nonlife-Threatening Emergency Department Visits

Heboyan, V., Coule, P., Mariotti, D. & De Leo, G., Jan 1 2025, In: Telemedicine Reports. 6, 1, p. 34-43 10 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Wired for Wellness: A Difference-In-Differences Assessment of Health and Healthcare Use Outcomes From China's Internet Speedup Initiative

Gao, M., Luo, T., Heboyan, V. & De Leo, G., 2025, (Accepted/In press) In: Review of Development Economics.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Access to health care among gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender persons in the United States

Coughlin, S. S. & Datta, B. K., Dec 30 2024, In: Journal of Hospital Management and Health Policy. 8, 22.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review

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The XpressCard Point-of-Care Test for Human Neutrophil Gelatinase-Associated Lipocalin Enhances the Prediction of Acute Kidney Injury

Bufkin, K. B. & Silva, J., Dec 2024, In: Journal of Clinical Medicine. 13, 24, 7564.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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The intersection of melanoma survival and social determinants of health in the United States: A systematic review

Maloney, M. E., Bacak, C., Tjioe, K., Davis, L. S., Balas, E. A., Agrawal, G., Cortes, J. E. & Miranda-Galvis, M., Dec 2024, In: JAAD International. 17, p. 126-138 13 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Association between child marriage and high blood glucose level in women: A birth cohort analysis

Datta, B. K., Tiwari, A. & Glenn, L., Dec 2024, In: Public Health in Practice. 8, 100556.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Health disparity at the intersection of religion and caste: Evidence from India

Datta, B. K. & Thakkar, S., Dec 2024, In: Dialogues in Health. 5, 100186.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Spousal age difference and risk of hypertension in women: evidence from India

Datta, B. K., Tiwari, A., Jahan, M., Torres, N. & Attari, S., Dec 2024, In: Journal of Human Hypertension. 38, 12, p. 851-859 9 p., e030765.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Hysterectomy and medical financial hardship among U.S. women

Datta, B. K., Tiwari, A., Abdelgawad, Y. H. & Wasata, R., Dec 2024, In: Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare. 42, 101019.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Comprehensiveness of the Telemedicine Assessment Toolkit for the Assessment of Audiovisual Telemedicine Encounters

Hilane, S., Agbali, R. A., Tracy, J. D., Bonacina, S. & De Leo, G., Nov 1 2024, In: Telemedicine Reports. 5, 1, p. 357-372 16 p.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

View All Publications.

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AU researchers use library checkouts to check in on cardiovascular health

AU researchers use library checkouts to check in on cardiovascular health
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Leaders share insights of AU, Wellstar partnership at Health Connect South

Leaders share insights of AU, Wellstar partnership at Health Connect South
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Public Health program fosters small business ventures for those in recovery

Public Health program fosters small business ventures for those in recovery

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