Chavez Lab
The Chavez Lab, led by Laura Chavez, PhD, MPH, seeks to address population behavioral health equity and improve understanding of the social drivers of outcomes for youth. In particular, Dr. Chavez has current projects focused on understanding the role of poverty as a social determinant of adolescent behavioral health and the impacts of anti-poverty policy changes.
Dr. Chavez receives funding from the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities for her research.
Featured Research Projects
This is an NIMHD R01 study that is using a mixed methods approach to understand the drivers of differences in tonsillectomy use among pediatric Medicaid-enrolled children and adolescents. The study is using qualitative interviews with families and health care providers, as well as quantitative analyses of national Medicaid claims data to understand what is driving previously documented variations in tonsillectomy rates based on race/ethnicity or geography.
This is an NIMH R01 study that is using a mixed methods approach to understand the impact of the 2021 Child Tax Credit changes that were introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic and their effects on adolescents enrolled in Medicaid. The study is using qualitative interviews with families and large national Medicaid claims data to understand the impact of this historic shift in anti-poverty policy introduced to reduce household financial distress due to the pandemic.
