Susan D. Brown, PhD

People

Kaiser Permanente Division of Research
2000 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94612

(510) 891-3544 (phone)
susan.d.brown@kp.org
Kaiser Permanente Researcher Profiles

Susan D. (Moore) Brown, PhD, is a Research Scientist II and licensed clinical psychologist at the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research. Her research focuses on health behavior change for chronic disease prevention, particularly among racial and ethnic minority groups. She has directed weight management lifestyle interventions for several federally funded trials and examines patient engagement, program effectiveness, and implementation-related issues. Her interests in minority health extend to ethnic identity and minority recruitment to clinical trials. Dr. Brown has received a Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (K01) from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to examine patient engagement in diabetes prevention programs, as well as support from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities Loan Repayment Program. Dr. Brown completed her undergraduate degree at Duke University and doctorate in clinical psychology at Boston University. Prior to joining the Division of Research in 2010, she completed predoctoral clinical training at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center and a postdoctoral research fellowship in cardiovascular disease prevention at the Stanford Prevention Research Center in the Stanford University School of Medicine.

Current Position(s):

Research Scientist II, Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California
Assistant Director, Early Stage Investigator Training Program

Section Affiliations:

Primary Research Interests:

Behavior change
Chronic disease prevention
Diabetes
Obesity
Patient engagement
Ethnic minority health and health disparities
Women’s health

Studies

Motivational Determinants of Postpartum Lifestyle Behaviors, Weight Retention, and Metabolic Syndrome

The Pregnancy Environment and Lifestyle Study-2 (PETALS-2) aims to identify psychosocial influences on healthy lifestyle behaviors — such as healthy eating, self-weighing, and physical activity — and examine their relation to weight retention and cardiometabolic profile in the transition from pregnancy to postpartum. This longitudinal study leverages the original PETALS cohort of diverse pregnant women within a large health-care delivery system. The ultimate objectives of this research are to identify modifiable psychosocial factors that could be intervened upon to improve postpartum weight management and cardiometabolic outcomes during an important phase in the lifespan.
Investigator: Brown, Susan
Funder: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Optimizing a Scalable Intervention to Maximize Guideline-recommended Diabetes Testing after Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Guideline-recommended postpartum screening is a critical step toward diabetes prevention after a diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). However, patient uptake of postpartum screening remains suboptimal and uneven across racial/ethnic groups. This creates a missed opportunity for diabetes prevention or early treatment, particularly among minority women at highest risk. The goals of this project are to identify, refine, and assess the acceptability of individual components of a theory-driven outreach intervention that is feasible to implement in health system settings and designed to motivate racially/ethnically diverse women with GDM to complete postpartum screening. The results will inform future research aimed at equitably increasing screening uptake among diverse women at high risk for diabetes.
Investigator: Brown, Susan
Funder: Northern California Community Benefit Programs

Understanding Patient Engagement in Lifestyle Programs for Diabetes Prevention among Women with a Recent History of GDM

While lifestyle programs to prevent type 2 diabetes are increasingly available, the drivers of patient engagement in them remain poorly understood. This study aims to identify characteristics of patient subgroups at risk for poor engagement, providing a basis for future targeted outreach efforts among women with a history of gestational diabetes.
Investigator: Brown, Susan
Funder: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Engaging At-Risk Minority Women in Health System Diabetes Prevention Programs

The potential for efficacious lifestyle interventions to prevent type 2 diabetes hinges on patient engagement in real-world healthcare settings. Yet patient engagement strategies are suboptimal and attrition is often highparticularly concerning for ethnic minority women who bear disproportionate burdens of diabetes and diabetes risk factors and may be less likely to utilize evidence-based approaches to lifestyle change. The training objectives of this career development award are to strengthen expertise in diabetes, implementation science, health disparities, and biostatistics. The research objectives are to experimentally test feasible, theory-driven strategies to increase engagement in diabetes prevention programs among minority women at high risk for diabetes. These strategies will incorporate tailored diabetes risk information and basic psychosocial science (e.g., self-affirmation theory) to promote translation of diabetes prevention programs in a practice setting.
Investigator: Brown, Susan
Funder: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Highlighted Publications

A Randomized Study of Values Affirmation to Promote Interest in Diabetes Prevention Among Women With a History of Gestational Diabetes

Author(s): Brown SD; Fotuhi O; Grijalva CS; Tsai AL; Quesenberry CP; Ritchie JL; Cohen GL; Ferrara A

Med Care. 2019 May 15.

Current Position(s):

Section Affiliations:

Primary Research Interests:

Studies

Motivational Determinants of Postpartum Lifestyle Behaviors, Weight Retention, and Metabolic Syndrome

Optimizing a Scalable Intervention to Maximize Guideline-recommended Diabetes Testing after Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Understanding Patient Engagement in Lifestyle Programs for Diabetes Prevention among Women with a Recent History of GDM

Engaging At-Risk Minority Women in Health System Diabetes Prevention Programs

Highlighted Publications

A Randomized Study of Values Affirmation to Promote Interest in Diabetes Prevention Among Women With a History of Gestational Diabetes

Publications

Behavioural and psychosocial factors associated with 5-year weight trajectories within the PORTAL Overweight/Obesity Cohort

Opportunities to encourage mail order pharmacy delivery service use for diabetes prescriptions: a qualitative study

A Randomized Study of Values Affirmation to Promote Interest in Diabetes Prevention Among Women With a History of Gestational Diabetes

Gestational weight gain and optimal wellness (GLOW): rationale and methods for a randomized controlled trial of a lifestyle intervention among pregnant women with overweight or obesity

A Seat at the Table: Strategic Engagement in Service Activities for Early Career Faculty From Underrepresented Groups in the Academy

Dietary Quality and Glycemic Control Among Women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

A Tailored Letter Based on Electronic Health Record Data Improves Gestational Weight Gain Among Women With Gestational Diabetes: The Gestational Diabetes' Effects on Moms (GEM) Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial

Leveraging EHRs for patient engagement: perspectives on tailored program outreach

Perceived psychosocial stress and gestational weight gain among women with gestational diabetes

Lifestyle behaviors and ethnic identity among diverse women at high risk for type 2 diabetes

​The Comparative Effectiveness of Diabetes Prevention Strategies to Reduce Postpartum Weight Retention in Women With Gestational Diabetes Mellitus; The Gestational Diabetes' Effects on Moms (GEM) Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

Wellness Coaching for People With Prediabetes: A Randomized Encouragement Trial to Evaluate Outreach Methods at Kaiser Permanente, Northern California, 2013

Telephone-Based Coaching: A Comparison of Tobacco Cessation Programs in an Integrated Health Care System

Outreach to diversify clinical trial participation: A randomized recruitment study

Post-partum weight loss and glucose metabolism in women with gestational diabetes: the DEBI Study

The Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure-Revised: Measurement Invariance Across Racial and Ethnic Groups

Patient Satisfaction and Perceived Success with a Telephonic Health Coaching Program: The Natural Experiments for Translation in Diabetes (NEXT-D) Study, Northern California, 2011

Risk of Large-for-Gestational-Age Newborns in Women With Gestational Diabetes by Race and Ethnicity and Body Mass Index Categories

The Stanford Leisure-Time Activity Categorical Item (L-Cat): a single categorical item sensitive to physical activity changes in overweight/obese women

Health-Plan and Employer-Based Wellness Programs to Reduce Diabetes Risk; The Kaiser Permanente Northern California NEXT-D Study

Promoting healthy weight with 'stability skills first': A randomized trial

Social support for healthy behaviors: scale psychometrics and prediction of weight loss among women in a behavioral program

Minority recruitment into clinical trials: experimental findings and practical implications

Outcome expectations and realizations as predictors of weight regain among dieters

Mindfulness and experiential avoidance as predictors and outcomes of the narrative emotional disclosure task

The Comparative Effectiveness of Diabetes Prevention Strategies to Reduce Postpartum Weight Retention in Women With Gestational Diabetes Mellitus; The Gestational Diabetes' Effects on Moms (GEM) Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.