Harvard Health Experts and Contributors

Howard D. Sesso, ScD, MPH, FAHA

Contributor

Dr. Howard D. Sesso is an associate epidemiologist in the division of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and associate professor of epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. He designs and conducts randomized clinical trials and epidemiologic studies, focusing on dietary supplements, nutrition, and lifestyle factors to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD), hypertension, and other aging-related outcomes. Dr. Sesso is the associate director of the division of preventive medicine and director of nutrition and supplement research at the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine. Dr. Sesso helps lead the Physicians’ Health Study, consisting of two trials testing aspirin, beta-carotene, vitamin E, vitamin C, and a multivitamin on aging-related outcomes in 29,000 men. Dr. Sesso is also examining vitamin D and fish oil supplements on blood pressure, hypertension, and other outcomes in the VITamin D and OmegA-3 TriaL (VITAL). Finally, Dr. Sesso is co-principal investigator of the COcoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study (COSMOS), a recently completed trial testing cocoa extract and multivitamin supplements in the prevention of CVD and cancer in 21,442 older women and men. He has published more than 350 papers, teaches courses on clinical trials and epidemiology, and enjoys mentoring students and junior faculty.

Brittany Seymour, DDS, MPH

Contributor

Dr. Brittany Seymour is a dentist, public health expert, and national consumer spokesperson for the American Dental Association. She serves as associate dean for faculty affairs and associate professor at Harvard School of Dental Medicine. With training in both dentistry and public health, she has spent her career caring for communities, educating health professionals, and leading health improvement initiatives in the US and around the world. Her work focuses on prevention, healthy aging, and improving health through better oral care across the lifespan.

Catherine Ullman Shade, PhD, MEd

Contributor

Catherine Ullman Shade, Ph.D. M.Ed. is the Director of Education at Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH)’s Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Program, where she coordinates educational and outreach services for children with complex congenital heart disease. Prior to her current position, Dr. Ullman Shade worked in BCH’s Developmental Medicine Center, and as a teacher, instructional coach, professional development trainer, educational researcher, and curriculum designer, in settings including K-12 schools and nonprofit organizations.

Howard J. Shaffer, PhD, CAS

Contributor

Dr. Howard Jeffrey Shaffer is the Morris E. Chafetz Associate Professor of Psychiatry in the Field of Behavioral Sciences at Harvard Medical School; in addition, he is the Director of the Division on Addiction at the Cambridge Health Alliance, a Harvard Medical School teaching hospital. Dr. Shaffer has served as principal or co-principal investigator on many government, foundation, and industry sponsored research projects around the world. Dr. Shaffer is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association. He served on the National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council, Committee on the Social and Economic Impacts of Pathological Gambling. His professional appointments have included consultation to many national and international organizations, including consultation to the National Institutes of Health, The National Cancer Institute, The National Council on Marijuana and Health, The Icelandic Ministry of Health and Social Security, The Massachusetts Council on Compulsive Gambling, the Tung Wah Hospital Group in Hong Kong, and The Massachusetts Departments of Mental and Public Health. Dr. Shaffer is the author/editor of approximately 275 peer-reviewed journal articles and more than 20 books or monographs, including the 2012 Choice Award for the APA Addiction Syndrome Handbook, with Drs. LaPlante and Nelson, and the 2012 Change Your Gambling, Change Your Life, with co-authors Ryan Martin, John Kleschinsky, and Liz Neporent. Dr. Shaffer is the past editor of The Psychology of Addictive Behaviors and The Journal of Gambling Studies. Also, he is a founder and past associate editor of The Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment. Dr. Shaffer serves as a member of many editorial boards and is as an ad hoc reviewer for many other scholarly journals. Dr. Shaffer has received many awards, including the 2010 American Psychological Association, Division 50, award for “Outstanding Contributions to Advancing the Understanding of Addictions.” During 2015, he received the Lifetime Research Award from the National Council on Problem Gambling. Dr. Shaffer’s research, writing, and teaching have influenced how the health care field conceptualizes and treats the full range of addictive behaviors. His Syndrome Model of Addiction has gained broad acceptance, influencing how we think about both behavioral and substance-related addiction.

Neel Shah, MD, MPP, FACOG

Contributor

Dr. Shah, MD, MPP, FACOG, is an assistant professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive biology at Harvard Medical School, and director of the Delivery Decisions Initiative at Harvard’s Ariadne Labs. As an obstetrician-gynecologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Dr. Shah cares for patients at critical life moments that range from childbirth to primary care to surgery. As a scientist and social entrepreneur, he is a globally recognized expert in designing, testing, and spreading solutions that improve healthcare. Dr. Shah is listed among the “40 smartest people in health care” by the Becker’s Hospital Review, and has been profiled by the New York Times, CNN, and other outlets. He is senior author of the book Understanding Value-Based Healthcare (McGraw-Hill), which Don Berwick has called “an instant classic” and Atul Gawande called “a masterful primer for all clinicians.” Prior to joining the Harvard faculty, Dr. Shah founded Costs of Care, a global NGO that curates insights from clinicians to help delivery systems provide better care. In 2017, Dr. Shah co-founded the March for Moms Association, a coalition of 20 leading organizations, to increase public and private investment in the wellbeing of mothers.

Pinak B. Shah, MD

Contributor

Dr. Pinak B. Shah is the director of interventional cardiology for Mass General Brigham. His clinical interests include catheter-based therapies for the treatment of valvular and structural heart disease. He directs the interventional arm of the Brigham and Women’s Structural Heart Team, and is a high-volume operator in the areas of trans-catheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), Mitra-Clip, and a variety of other procedures. He is the site principal investigator for numerous clinical trials evaluating novel devices for the treatment of structural heart conditions, and he has authored and co-authored numerous publications in this area.

Scott Shainker, DO, MS

Contributor

Scott Shainker, D.O, M.S., is a maternal-fetal medicine specialist in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC). He is also a member of the faculty in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology at Harvard Medical School (HMS). Dr. Shainker is the co-founder and director of the New England Center for Placental Disorders, an international referral center for women with invasive placentation and other complex placental disorders. At BIDMC, he serves as the associate medical director of Labor and Delivery. Dr. Shainker’s research focuses on process improvement and clinical outcomes in the management of invasive placentation. His clinical interests are in abnormal placentation, complex maternal disease, critical care obstetrics and medical education. Dr. Shainker has lectured around the world focusing his efforts on reducing maternal morbidity / mortality, as well as placental disorders. Dr. Shainker is a national expert in critical care obstetrics and serves as faculty at both national and regional meetings. In addition, he was awarded the prestigious Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics Faculty Teaching Prize at HMS.

Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH

Contributor

Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH, is a physician-writer with expertise in performance improvement in health care. She is the co-author of the recently published book, Preventing Physician Burnout: Curing the Chaos and Returning Joy to the Practice of Medicine, and can be reached at www.mdwriter.com.

Jo Shapiro, MD, FACS

Contributor

Jo Shapiro, MD, FACS, is an associate professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Harvard Medical School, part time. She is Principal Faculty for the Center for Medical Simulation in Boston and a Consultant for the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Anesthesia, Pain and Critical Care. In 2008, she founded the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Center for Professionalism and Peer Support where she served as the director for over 10 years.

John Sharp, MD

Contributor

Dr. John Sharp is a board-certified psychiatrist on the faculty at Harvard Medical School and the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He is renowned for clearly conveying evidenced-based messages regarding health and well-being. Dr. Sharp is a member of the American College of Psychiatrists and a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. He has been voted by his peers for inclusion in Best Doctors in America for the past 10 years. His first book, The Emotional Calendar: Understanding Seasonal Influences and Milestones to Become Happier, More Fulfilled, and in Control of your Life, was published in 2011 by Times Books and translated into five languages. His second book, The Insight Cure: Change Your Story, Transform Your Life, was published in 2018 by Hay House. Website: johnsharpmd.com Twitter: @JohnSharpMD

David A. Shaye, MD, MPH

Contributor

David A. Shaye, MD, MPH, is a dual board-certified facial plastic & reconstructive surgeon at Massachusetts Eye and Ear and an instructor at Harvard Medical School. His practice includes rhinoplasty, aging face surgery, skin cancer reconstruction, and facial reconstruction after trauma. Dr. Shaye is active in the field of global surgery, which focuses on delivering surgical services to areas with limited resources. He is a volunteer with Doctors Without Borders, where he performs pediatric facial reconstruction.

Scott Sheehan, PT, DPT, OCS

Contributor

Scott Sheehan obtained his bachelor’s degree in exercise science and doctorate of physical therapy from Sacred Heart University. He is a board-certified clinical specialist in orthopedic physical therapy, and co-authored APTA-accredited Clinical Hip/Knee and Clinical Shoulder courses. Scott also co-instructs the Spinal Manipulation and Mobilization course series. Proficient in interpreting shoulder, spine, and knee MRI studies, he specializes in managing various spinal conditions, advancing his expertise in diagnostic imaging, and practicing manual therapy at the Spaulding outpatient facility in Salem, MA.

Martha E. Shenton, PhD

Contributor

Dr. Martha Shenton is professor of psychiatry and radiology at Harvard Medical School, and director of the Psychiatry Neuroimaging Laboratory at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. She and her team have pioneered in developing neuroimaging tools to understand brain and behavior alterations in neuropsychiatric disorders, including severe mental illness, post-traumatic stress disorder, and individuals at risk for psychosis. She has extensive experience in psychology, and in applying neuroimaging techniques to better understand brain and behavior associations in clinical populations.

Amy C. Sherman, MD

Contributor

Amy Sherman, MD, is an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School, associate physician in the division of infectious diseases at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and a clinician-scientist with the Precision Vaccines Program. Her research focuses on immune responses to vaccination, and she has been a co-investigator in Phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trials for the Moderna and Janssen Biotech (Johnson & Johnson) vaccines.

Eric G. Sheu, MD, PhD

Contributor

Dr. Eric Sheu is an associate professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School and chief of the section of bariatric and foregut surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH). His clinical practice focuses on bariatric, foregut, and hernia surgery. He also leads research investigating how bariatric surgery leads to resolution of type 2 diabetes via changes in the gut microbiota and the immune system. Dr. Sheu obtained his doctorate in immunology as a Marshall Scholar at Oxford University and his medical degree from Harvard Medical School. He trained in general surgery at BWH, followed by a fellowship in advanced laparoscopy and bariatric surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Jan L Shifren, MD

Contributor

Jan L Shifren, MD, MSCP, is the Vincent Trustees Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology at Harvard Medical School. She is a reproductive endocrinologist at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and director of the MGH Midlife Women’s Health Center. Dr. Shifren attained her medical degree from Harvard Medical School and completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Brigham and Women’s and Massachusetts General Hospitals. She then completed a fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Shifren currently divides her time among patient care, teaching, and research. She focuses her research on menopause, including the effects of estrogens, androgens, and alternative therapies on menopausal symptoms and sexual function. Dr. Shifren has served as principal investigator and co-investigator for several important studies related to menopause. She has published numerous articles, abstracts, and book chapters, and has delivered national and international presentations on menopausal hormone therapy, androgens for women, female sexual function, and the genitourinary syndrome of menopause. Dr. Shifren is active in numerous professional societies and is a past president of the Menopause Society.

Alison Shmerling, MD, MPH

Contributor

Alison Shmerling, MD, MPH, is a family physician practicing full-scope family medicine, including low-risk obstetrics. She completed her medical degree and master of public health at Tufts University School of Medicine. She is now affiliated with the University of Colorado Hospital, where she sees patients and teaches in the family medicine residency.

Robert H. Shmerling, MD

Senior Faculty Editor, Harvard Health Publishing; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing

Dr. Robert H. Shmerling is the former clinical chief of the division of rheumatology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), and is a current member of the corresponding faculty in medicine at Harvard Medical School. As a practicing rheumatologist for over 30 years, Dr. Shmerling engaged in a mix of patient care, teaching, and research. His research interests center on diagnostic studies in patients with musculoskeletal symptoms, and rheumatic and autoimmune diseases. He has published research regarding infectious arthritis, medical ethics, and diagnostic test performance in rheumatic disease. Having retired from patient care in 2019, Dr. Shmerling now works as a senior faculty editor for Harvard Health Publishing.

Shan Siddiqi, MD

Contributor

Dr. Shan Siddiqi is an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, and a neuropsychiatrist at the Center for Brain Circuit Therapeutics at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. His research centers on techniques to map the brain circuitry involved in neuropsychiatric disorders, with the goal of identifying treatment targets for therapeutic brain stimulation. Dr. Siddiqi received his medical degree at the University of Sydney, followed by residency in psychiatry at Washington University. He also completed two fellowships at Harvard Medical School, one at Massachusetts General/McLean Hospitals and another at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

Ronald D. Siegel, PsyD

Contributor; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing

Dr. Ronald D. Siegel is an assistant professor of psychology (part-time) at Harvard Medical School; serves on the board of directors and faculty of the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy; is author of The Mindfulness Solution: Everyday Practices for Everyday Problems, coauthor of Back Sense: A Revolutionary Approach to Halting the Cycle of Chronic Back Pain, and Sitting Together: Essential Skills for Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapy; and coeditor of Mindfulness and Psychotherapy, 2nd Edition.

Julie Silver, MD

Chief Editor of Books, Harvard Health Publishing

Julie Silver, M.D., is the Chief Editor of Books at Harvard Health Publishing and an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. She is an award-winning writer who has written many books that focus on healing including After Cancer Treatment: Heal Faster, Better, Stronger and What Helped Get Me Through: Cancer Survivors Share Wisdom and Hope. Her work has been featured in hundreds of media outlets including The CBS Early Show, The Today Show, Parade, NPR, USA Today, The Boston Globe and Prevention Magazine. Dr. Silver is also the director of an annual 3-day Harvard course that is open to all healthcare providers and others, titled “Publishing Books, Memoirs and Other Creative Nonfiction”. To learn more about Dr. Silver’s work, visit her website at JulieSilverMD.com.

Deborah Simmons, OT

Contributor

Deborah Simmons is a clinical specialist at Spaulding Cape Cod, an inpatient rehabilitation hospital, where she provides occupational therapy to patients recovering from injuries and illness. She holds a master’s degree in occupational therapy from Boston University and an advanced practice certificate in upper quarter and upper extremity rehabilitation from Drexel University. As a certified aging-in-place specialist (CAPS), she brings specialized knowledge in helping individuals maintain and maximize independence and safety in their homes. Deborah combines clinical expertise with advanced training to deliver evidence-based, client-centered therapy and consultation services that optimize functional outcomes and quality of life.

David K. Simon, MD, PhD

Contributor

Dr. David K. Simon is a professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and chief of the movement disorders division at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), as well as director of the Parkinson’s Foundation Center of Excellence at BIDMC. He earned MD and PhD degrees from Washington University in St. Louis in 1993, and completed the Harvard-Longwood Neurology Residency in Boston, followed by a movement disorders fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. In addition to providing clinical care for people with Parkinson’s, Dr. Simon also is involved in clinical studies, as well as laboratory research to test potential strategies to slow progression of Parkinson’s disease.

Harvey B. Simon, MD

Editor, Harvard Health

Harvey Simon founded the Harvard Men’s Health Watch in August 1996 and was its editor in chief until retiring in May 2012. Dr. Simon is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and a member of the Health Sciences Technology Faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A graduate of Yale College and Harvard Medical School, Dr. Simon completed his post-graduate training at the National Institutes of Health and the Massachusetts General Hospital, where he provided primary medical care to patients for more than 30 years. Dr. Simon was a founding member of the Harvard Cardiovascular Health Center. He also served on the Massachusetts Governor’s Committee on Physical Fitness and Sports and was elected to Fellowship in the American College of Physicians. As author of more than 100 scientific articles and medical textbook chapters, including many on diet and exercise, Dr. Simon has been an active contributor to medical research. He is also committed to medical education, and he was honored to receive the London Prize for Excellence in Teaching from Harvard and MIT. As the author of many consumer health publications, Dr. Simon is dedicated to informing people about health and medicine. He has written scores of articles for newspapers and magazines ranging from the Boston Globe and Washington Post to Scientific American and Newsweek. He has also authored six health books, including The Harvard Medical School Guide to Men’s Health, Staying Well, Conquering Heart Disease, and The No Sweat Exercise Plan. Dr. Simon has received many national awards for his consumer health writing.

David A. Sinclair, AO, PhD

Contributor

David A. Sinclair is a tenured professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School. His pioneering work in genetics and aging biology has shaped understanding of the mechanisms of aging and age-related diseases, including research on sirtuins, NAD+ metabolism, and epigenetic reprogramming. His Information Theory of Aging is now a leading hypothesis for why we age. Professor Sinclair served as founding director of the Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research at Harvard Medical School from 2005 to 2023. He is an Officer of the Order of Australia, inventor on more than 50 patents, has co-founded numerous successful companies, and is the author of the New York Times bestselling book Lifespan.

Harvard Health Experts and Contributors

List of Experts

Howard D. Sesso, ScD, MPH, FAHA

Brittany Seymour, DDS, MPH

Catherine Ullman Shade, PhD, MEd

Howard J. Shaffer, PhD, CAS

Neel Shah, MD, MPP, FACOG

Pinak B. Shah, MD

Scott Shainker, DO, MS

Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH

Jo Shapiro, MD, FACS

John Sharp, MD

David A. Shaye, MD, MPH

Scott Sheehan, PT, DPT, OCS

Martha E. Shenton, PhD

Amy C. Sherman, MD

Eric G. Sheu, MD, PhD

Jan L Shifren, MD

Alison Shmerling, MD, MPH

Robert H. Shmerling, MD

Shan Siddiqi, MD

Ronald D. Siegel, PsyD

Julie Silver, MD

Deborah Simmons, OT

David K. Simon, MD, PhD

Harvey B. Simon, MD

David A. Sinclair, AO, PhD