L. Ebony Boulware, MD, MPH
​​Director
Duke CHOIR is led by Dr. Ebony Boulware, an experienced clinical epidemiologist, implementation scientist, and outcomes researcher who has garnered independent grant funding from NIH, AHRQ, PCORI, HRSA, foundations, and other funders. In a number of studies, Dr. Boulware has worked with health systems in Baltimore (Johns Hopkins Health System), California (San Francisco General Hospital), the VA health system, dialysis care organizations, and Geisinger Health System to study systems and processes of care to improve patient-centered outcomes. She has developed interventions to improve the care of patients with hypertension, cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, and patients who are transplant recipients. These include her development of new systems of care and a number of patient-centered behavioral and educational interventions to improve patient-centered outcomes. Her work is also strongly focused around understanding the contributions of the social and environmental determinants of health, including disparities in health and health care.  Dr. Boulware is the Chief of the Division of General Internal Medicine and Director of the Duke Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) as well as contact Principal Investigator for the Duke Clinical and Translational Science Award. As Division Chief, she oversees the operations of the Duke Outpatient Clinic, Duke’s primary adult safety net clinic, which sees a population with high prevalence of complex chronic illness compounded by social and environmental determinants of poor health. Under her leadership, the Duke Outpatient Clinic has built and expanded a number of innovative ambulatory care models for patients with complex chronic illness that have received local and national recognition. In her Division Chief role, Dr. Boulware is also responsible for enabling close ties between the School of Medicine and key Duke Health clinical units involved in chronic illness care, including Duke Primary Care, Duke Hospital Medicine, Duke Palliative Care, and the community PDC Internal Medicine Primary Care practices. Division of General Internal Medicine faculty members direct the Duke Primary Care Research Consortium, furthering a strong platform for successful accomplishment of the Center Aims. In her role as CTSI director, Dr. Boulware is also engaged with a number of clinical leaders across Duke Health, including the Clinical Chairs and other Duke Institute Directors, enhancing her capacity to build bridges between key Center partners/stakeholders. Dr. Boulware is devoted to mentoring the next generation of researchers and scholars in this area. She has mentored over 50 trainees at the student, resident, fellow, and faculty levels to develop their careers in academia, public health, health system leadership and health policy. She has been the primary mentor for multiple F32, T32, Diversity Supplement, and KL2, and K23 awardees. Dr. Boulware has been recognized by by multiple Universities and national organizations for her mentoring excellence.

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