Grants per year
Personal profile
Research Interests
Dr. Simon's primary research interests are aimed at promoting health equity and eliminating health disparities among low income, medically underserved women across the lifespan. Integrating health services research with social epidemiologic models, Dr. Simon's research focuses on interventions (such as patient navigation and community health outreach workers) that aim to reduce and eliminate such disparities. Within this context, Dr. Simon prefers to leverage culture and community to achieve these goals and thereby integrates community based participatory research framework into her work. She also has a strong portfolio of workforce development programs including the world's first healthcare pipeline development free massive open online course, "Career 911: Your Future Job in Medicine and Healthcare" on the Coursera platform. She is the founding director of the Center for Health Equity Transformation and the Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative. Finally, she serves as a member of the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) and the National Academy of Medicine's Roundtable for the Promotion of Health Equity.
Certifications and Licenses
| Obstetrics & Gynecology |
Training Experience
| 2004 | Residency, Yale-New Haven Hospital |
| 2006 | Fellowship, Northwestern University, McGaw Medical Center (Northwestern Memorial Hospital) |
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Education/Academic qualification
Medicine, MD, Rush Medical College
… → 2000
Epidemiology and Biostatistics , MPH, University of Illinois at Chicago
… → 1996
Research interests keywords
- Geriatrics
- Global Health
- Health Disparities
- Health Services Research
- Public Health
- Public Policy
- Women's Health / Women's Reproductive Health
- Cancer: Female Reproductive System (ovary, cervix, uterus)
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
Recent external collaboration on country/territory level. Dive into details by clicking on the dots or
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Designing for sustainability: Co-designing and testing the efficacy of a web-based toolkit to improve cancer-related emotional distress and anxiety for rural older cancer survivors
Lewis, M. W. (PD/PI), Chen, R. (Co-Investigator), Garcia, S. F. (Co-Investigator), Kocherginsky, M. (Co-Investigator) & Simon, M. A. (Co-Investigator)
National Institute of Nursing Research
9/23/24 → 5/31/29
Project: Research project
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SDoH MULTILEVEL RESEARCH PROJECT 1
Simon, M. A. (PD/PI), Ghomrawi, H. (Co-Investigator), Jacobs, M. (Co-Investigator) & Lee, J. (Co-Investigator)
9/6/24 → 8/31/29
Project: Research project
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Advancing Cancer Control Equity Research Through Transformative Solutions in Patient Navigation (ACCERT PN) - ADMIN CORE
Simon, M. A. (PD/PI), Yanez, B. R. (PD/PI), Yanez, B. R. (Co-PD/PI), Ghomrawi, H. (Co-Investigator), Jacobs, M. (Co-Investigator), Lee, J. (Co-Investigator), Beidas, R. S. (Other) & Lewis, M. W. (Other)
9/6/24 → 8/31/29
Project: Research project
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Element B + Subcontracts
Becker, S. (PD/PI), D'Aquila, R. T. (PD/PI), Yancy, C. W. (PD/PI), Alshurafa, N. (Other), Ameer, G. A. (Other), Beidas, R. S. (Other), Blanco, I. (Other), Bradley, C. D. (Other), Brawley, C. (Other), Brown, O. E. (Other), Brown, C. H. (Other), Cameron, K. A. (Other), Carnethon, M. R. (Other), Cooper, L. A. D. (Other), Feinstein, M. J. (Other), Franklin, P. D. (Other), Helseth, S. A. (Other), Hill, V. B. (Other), Holmes, K. (Other), Kalhan, R. (Other), Khan, S. S. (Other), Kho, A. N. (Other), Li, D. H. (Other), Liebovitz, D. M. (Other), Luo, Y. (Other), Macapagal, K. (Other), O'Brien, M. J. (Other), Passman, R. S. (Other), Perreault, E. (Other), Peters, A. T. (Other), Pickens, C. I. (Other), Rasmussen-Torvik, L. J. (Other), Rivnay, J. (Other), Rosenberg, S. R. (Other), Schauer, J. M. (Other), Scott, K. (Other), Scott, E. A. (Other), Simon, M. A. (Other), Skolarus, L. E. (Other), Spring, B. (Other), Starren, J. (Other), Tandon, D. (Other), Walunas, T. L. (Other), Welty, L. J. (Other), Woitowich, N. C. (Other) & Wolf, M. (Other)
National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
9/1/24 → 7/31/31
Project: Research project
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REDUCING DISPARITIES IN URINARY CONTROL SYMPTOMS FOR MINORITY WOMEN
Griffith, J. W. (PD/PI), Griffith, J. W. (PD/PI), Griffith, J. W. (PD/PI), Simon, M. A. (PD/PI), Simon, M. A. (PD/PI), Simon, M. A. (Co-PD/PI), Simon, M. A. (Co-PD/PI), Geynisman-Tan, J. (Co-Investigator) & Geynisman-Tan, J. (Co-Investigator)
The University of Chicago, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
9/1/23 → 8/31/25
Project: Research project
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Assessment of Environmental, Sociocultural, and Physiological Influences on Women's Toileting Decisions and Behaviors Using “Where I Go”: Pilot Study of a Mobile App
The Prevention of Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (PLUS) Research Consortium, 2025, In: JMIR mHealth and uHealth. 13, e56533.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Associations of financial strain and unmet social needs with women's bladder health
Prevention of Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (PLUS) Research Consortium, Feb 2025, In: American journal of obstetrics and gynecology. 232, 2, p. 200.e1-200.e20Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2 Scopus citations -
Bladder health in US women: population-based estimates from the RISE FOR HEALTH study
Prevention of Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (PLUS) Research Consortium, Jun 2025, In: American journal of obstetrics and gynecology. 232, 6, p. 538.e1-538.e13Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Exploring women's bladder self-care practices: A qualitative secondary analysis
The Prevention of Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (PLUS) Research Consortium, Feb 2025, In: Journal of Advanced Nursing. 81, 2, p. 909-925 17 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
1 Scopus citations -
Immigration-Related Factors and Depression Help-Seeking Behaviors Among Older Chinese Americans
Kong, D., Guo, M., Simon, M. & Dong, X., 2025, In: Clinical Gerontologist. 48, 2, p. 270-279 10 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access1 Scopus citations
Datasets
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HIV status, age at cervical Cancer screening and cervical cytology outcomes in an opportunistic screening setting in Nigeria: a 10-year Cross sectional data analysis
Musa, J. (Creator), Achenbach, C. J. (Creator), Evans, C. T. (Contributor), Jordan, N. (Creator), Daru, P. H. (Creator), Silas, O. (Contributor), Sagay, A. S. (Contributor), Anorlu, R. (Creator), Mehta, S. D. (Contributor), Wehbe, F. (Creator), Simon, M. A. (Creator), Adewole, I. F. (Creator), Hou, L. (Contributor) & Murphy, R. L. (Creator), figshare, 2019
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.4764293.v1, https://springernature.figshare.com/collections/HIV_status_age_at_cervical_Cancer_screening_and_cervical_cytology_outcomes_in_an_opportunistic_screening_setting_in_Nigeria_a_10-year_Cross_sectional_data_analysis/4764293/1 and one more link, https://springernature.figshare.com/collections/HIV_status_age_at_cervical_Cancer_screening_and_cervical_cytology_outcomes_in_an_opportunistic_screening_setting_in_Nigeria_a_10-year_Cross_sectional_data_analysis/4764293 (show fewer)
Dataset
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Association between patient-reported HIV status and provider recommendation for screening in an opportunistic cervical Cancer screening setting in Jos, Nigeria
Musa, J. (Creator), Achenbach, C. J. (Creator), Evans, C. T. (Contributor), Jordan, N. (Creator), Daru, P. H. (Creator), Hou, L. (Contributor), Murphy, R. L. (Creator), Adewole, I. F. (Creator) & Simon, M. A. (Creator), figshare, 2018
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.4311218.v1, https://figshare.com/collections/Association_between_patient-reported_HIV_status_and_provider_recommendation_for_screening_in_an_opportunistic_cervical_Cancer_screening_setting_in_Jos_Nigeria/4311218/1 and one more link, https://figshare.com/collections/Association_between_patient-reported_HIV_status_and_provider_recommendation_for_screening_in_an_opportunistic_cervical_Cancer_screening_setting_in_Jos_Nigeria/4311218 (show fewer)
Dataset
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Structural racism and COVID-19 response: higher risk of exposure drives disparate COVID-19 deaths among Black and Hispanic/Latinx residents of Illinois, USA
Holden, T. M. (Creator), Simon, M. A. (Creator), Arnold, D. T. (Creator), Halloway, V. (Creator) & Gerardin, J. (Creator), figshare, 2022
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.5856664, https://springernature.figshare.com/collections/Structural_racism_and_COVID-19_response_higher_risk_of_exposure_drives_disparate_COVID-19_deaths_among_Black_and_Hispanic_Latinx_residents_of_Illinois_USA/5856664
Dataset
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Gestational weight gain and group prenatal care: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Kominiarek, M. A. (Creator), Lewkowitz, A. K. (Creator), Carter, E. (Creator), Fowler, S. A. (Creator) & Simon, M. (Creator), figshare, 2019
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.4361627, https://springernature.figshare.com/collections/Gestational_weight_gain_and_group_prenatal_care_a_systematic_review_and_meta-analysis/4361627
Dataset
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Cultural attributes of suicidal ideation among older immigrants: a qualitative study
Li, M. (Creator), Bergren, S. (Creator), Simon, M. (Creator) & Dong, X. (Creator), figshare, 2022
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.5846243, https://springernature.figshare.com/collections/Cultural_attributes_of_suicidal_ideation_among_older_immigrants_a_qualitative_study/5846243
Dataset