Description of Research Expertise
Dr. Merchant is a tenured Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and has secondary appointments in the Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Anesthesia and Critical Care, and Division of Health Policy. She is also a physician executive and serves as the Vice President and Chief Transformation Officer for Penn Medicine. Much of her research and operations work bridges new technologies in the fields of cardiovascular health, mental health, cancer care, disaster medicine, public health, health equity and resuscitation science. Dr. Merchant has been continuously funded by the NIH since 2011 and her work has been published in journals such as NEJM, JAMA, Circulation, and Health Affairs. She is a member of the editorial board of JAMA. She is an Aspen Health Innovators Fellow and was recognized by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as one of 10 investigators likely to have a significant impact on the future of health and healthcare in the US. She is a member of the National Academy of Medicine.
Selected Publications
Laurie Morrison L, Hunt E, Grunau B, Aufderheide T, Callaway C, Tonna J, Sasson C, Blewer A, McNally B, , Yannopoulos D, Belohlavek J, Bartos J, Combes A, Idris A, Merchant RM, States L, Tinsley E, Wong R, Youngquist S, Sopko G, Kern K: International Consensus on Evidence Gaps and Research Opportunities in Extracorporeal Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation for Refractory Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: A Report from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Workshop Journal of the American Heart Association : 2025.
Bakillah E, Rosenthal JW, Syvyk S, Wirtalla C, Sharpe J, Merchant RM, Mehta SJ, Guerra CE, Kelz R.: Colorectal Cancer and Quality of Life: A Medicare Advantage Study by Race, Ethnicity, and Language Journal of Surgical Oncology : 2025.
Bakillah E, Syvyk S, Wirtalla C, Sharpe J, Merchant RM, Mehta SJ, Guerra CE, Kelz R: The Burden of Colorectal Cancer Treatment on Quality of Life: A Paired Longitudinal Analysis of Medicare Advantage Enrollees Journal of Surgical Oncology : 2025.
Southwick L, Sharma M, Rai S, Beidas R, Mandell D, Curtis B, Asch DAA, Chandra Guntuku SC, Merchant RMM: Integrating Patient-Generated Digital Data into Mental Health Therapy: A mixed methods analysis of user experience JMIR Mental Health 11 : e59785,2024.
Sehgal NK, Agarwal AK, Southwick L, Pelullo A, Ungar L, Merchant RM, Chandra-Guntuku S: Disparities by race and urbanity in online health care facility reviews Journal of the American Medical Association Network Open 7 (11): e2446890,2024.
Agarwal AK, Southwick L, Pelullo A, McCalpin HJ, Gonzales RE, Asch DA, Livesey C, Bellini L, Kishton R, Beck S, Merchant RM: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Health Care Worker Mental Health and Utilization of a Digital Mental Health Platform from 2020 to 2023 British Medical Journal Quality Open Press
13 (3): 2024.
Mahoney KM, Merchant RM, Schnall MD: Build or buy? Managing the new technology decision tree Frontiers of Health Services Management 41 (1): 21-25,2024.
Muir, KJ, Merchant, RM, Lasater, KB, Brooks Carthon, JMB: Emergency nurses’ reasons for not recommending their hospital to clinicians as a good place to work: A qualitative analysis JAMA Network Open : 2024.
Agarwal AK, Southwick L, Gonzales R, Bellini L, Asch DA, Shea J, Mitra N, Yang L, Balachandran M, Wolk C, Becker-Haimes E, Merchant RM: Effect of a Digital Engagement Strategy on Healthcare Worker Mental Health and Well-being: A Randomized Controlled Trial Journal of the American Medical Association Network Open : 2024.
Agarwal AK, Gonzales RE, Sagan C, Nijim S, Asch DA, Merchant RM, South EC: Perspective of black patients on racism within emergency care Journal of the American Medical Association Health Forum 5 (3): e2400046,2024.
Academic Contact Information
PCAM, 5th floor, C-suite
Philadelphia,
PA
19104