Skinner named Chair of Clinical Sciences
This story was originally posted on Center Times Plus on November 5, 2018.
Dr. Celette Sugg Skinner, an expert in health care delivery research who has been serving as Interim Chair of the Department of Clinical Sciences, has been appointed as Chair of the Department.
She is also currently Associate Director of Population Research and Cancer Control for the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center and serves as an active member of the Clinical Psychology Graduate training program.
An expert in health disparities research, Dr. Skinner has a particular focus on cancer prevention and control in underserved populations.
“We are greatly appreciative of Dr. Skinner’s service as Interim Chair of the Department for the past three and a half years,” said Dr. Dwain Thiele, Interim Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, and Dean of UT Southwestern Medical School. “Under Dr. Skinner’s continuing leadership, the Department will expand its research in population and data sciences, with a focus on generating discoveries that can translate back into improved clinical practice.
“The Department will also continue to support the campuswide population research enterprise by providing UT Southwestern investigators with collaboration and expertise in biostatistics, data analytics, electronic health record informatics, and project management.”
Dr. Skinner’s research focuses on communications interventions to promote health behavior change, especially using computer-tailored interventions (CTIs). She chairs the Board of Directors of the University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health Foundation and is a regular invited adviser to the National Institutes of Health and academic institutions on cancer control and screening science.
“With our vibrant and diverse geographic reach and health systems, and building on our demonstrated success, we are now positioned to grow our faculty in new areas such as molecular epidemiology and health economics, as well as expanding clinical informatics, and geospatial and implementation science,” Dr. Skinner said.
Prior to joining UT Southwestern in 2007, Dr. Skinner served as Associate Director for Population Research and Interim Director of Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Research Program in Cancer Prevention, Detection, and Control.
Dr. Skinner received her master’s in communications research from the Wheaton Graduate School and Ph.D. in health behavior from UNC.
Dr. Skinner delivered the President’s Lecture on Oct. 18. Her presentation touched on patient-, provider-, and system-level factors influencing cancer screening.