Faculty
Judith Fifield, Ph.D., Director
Judith Fifield, PhD, is a Professor in Family Medicine at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and a Clinical Professor of Nursing at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing. In addition to being the Director of the Ethel Donaghue Center for Translating Research into Practice and Policy at UCHC, she is the Director of Research in the Department of Family Medicine. Dr. Fifield is a Medical Sociologist whose research is focused on practice and community oriented translational research (T2), and minority and women’s health. Recently, she has been the PI on an Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)-funded study to improve pediatric asthma outcomes in low resource environments using web-based decision support. She is also the PI on a study of SisterTalk Hartford, a faith based weight control program delivered through the Black and African American Church, funded by the Donaghue Medical Research Foundation and the Connecticut Health Foundation. She is currently the Co-PI of the University of Connecticut’s Clinical and Translational Science Award Planning Grant and is Co-PI of the developing Clinical and Translational Science Institute at UCHC. Dr. Fifield has served on AHRQ’s Health Research Information and Dissemination study section and chaired AHRQ’s TRIP-II intervention subcommittee. She is a member of the Saint Francis Hospital IRB, and the SOM Research Council as well as the Scientific Advisory Committee of the GCRC.
Victor Villagra, M.D., F.A.C.P., Health Policy Scholar
Dr. Villagra is currently the president of Health & Technology Vector, Inc. The company’s mission is to decrease, postpone, or eliminate the physical, emotional and financial burden of illness among all peoples. His extensive background includes his responsibilities as the National Medical Director & VP Quality and Medical Strategy for CIGNA HealthCare. As well as Medical Director Continuous Health Improvement Program for Geisinger Health Plan.
Dr. Villagra’s position involves investigating and recommending a plan for the UCHC Clinical and Translational Science Institute, Community Consortium (Area III) to be the region’s Center for Innovation in Disease Management (IDM). He will also be investigating and recommending a plan for collaboration with local industry, state agencies and the Center for IDM.
Staff
Melanie Peele, M.A., Director of Evaluation Unit
Melanie Peele, MA, is the Director of the Evaluation and Center Services Unit, and is also a Research Associate II in the Department of Family Medicine. She has worked in health services research for over seven years, specializing in research design and implementation, using both qualitative and quantitative methods. In her current position she is responsible for developing the evaluation services of the Center, and managing the research services provided to TRIPP Center collaborators. She also currently serves as the Project Manager for the UConn Clinical and Translation Science Institute Planning Grant. She has a Master’s degree in Sociology and Women’s Studies from the University of Connecticut.
Rebecca Crowell, Ph.D., Post-doctoral Fellow
Rebecca Crowell is a postdoctoral fellow at the Ethel Donaghue TRIPP Center, having received her doctorate in nutritional sciences from the University of Connecticut. Her research interests include early childhood nutrition, family-based interventions, nutrition in primary care, and nutritional health in low-income and minority communities. She currently coordinates Safety.Net, a collaborative of safety net providers (community health centers, federally qualified health centers) formed to develop health information technology as a means to improve access to care and health care quality for Connecticut’s low-income, uninsured, and publicly insured individuals. Her postdoctoral research will address childhood obesity at community and health service-delivery levels.
Matthew J. Cook, M.P.H., Research Associate
Matthew J. Cook is a Research Associate I at the TRIPP Center and also holds a faculty appointment in the Department of Community Medicine & Health Care in the School of Medicine. Mr. Cook has worked in the area of community-based health services research particularly in substance abuse prevention and socio-behavioral health for over 10 years as a data analyst, data manager, epidemiologist, and project coordinator. Currently, Mr. Cook is the project manager of the Safety.Net Health Information Technology (HIT) project, a collaborative of seven community-based health centers and the university, formed to plan for the adoption of HIT to improve the quality and efficiency of health care for Connecticut’s poor and uninsured patients. In addition to his duties within the Ethel Donaghue Center for Translating Research Into Practice and Policy, he operates a website design firm and consults with community organizations on data management, information infrastructure, and technology. He earned a bachelors degree in Psychology from Fairfield University and a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Connecticut. His research interests lie in the areas of substance use prevention and policy, the nexus of technology and health care, and the evaluation of public health and social service programs.
Cheryl A. Smith, M.A., Research Assistant II
Cheryl A. Smith is a Research Assistant II for the Ethel Donaghue Center for Translating Research into Practice and Policy. She has five years of research experience, specializing in quantitative methods. In her current position she is responsible for data management and analysis for the evaluation unit as well as core projects such as SisterTalk Hartford. Cheryl earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan with a concentration in Psychology and Sociology. She has a Master’s degree in Sociology from the University of Akron. Ms. Smith is currently working toward her doctorate in Sociology from the University of Connecticut. She is interested in health care organizations and translational research.
Jeanette Goyzueta, M.P.H., Research Assistant II
Jeanette Goyzueta, MPH, is a Research Assistant II and her work ranges from Project Manager, to Database Administrator, to Qualitative Analyst. She has worked in healthcare for five years in areas such as diabetes, HIV, prenatal care, fibromyalgia, occupational medicine, and oral health. She has a Master’s degree in Public Health from the University of Connecticut and is part of the MPH Advisory Committee. Ms. Goyzueta is originally from Lima, Peru and a fluent Spanish speaker. She also translates documents to and from Spanish and works as an interpreter for patients seen at John Dempsey Hospital.
Dominique Diadoo, Research Assistant I
Dominique Diadoo is a Research Assistant I at the Ethel Donaghue TRIPP Center. The nature of her position consists of work with data entry and management, survey design and data collection, as well as performance on literature reviews for various research projects. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Connecticut. She would like to pursue her Master's degree sometime in the near future. Dominique grew up in Minnesota, but is originally from the Seychelles Islands and is a proficient speaker in French and Creole.
Nella Field, Program Coordinator
Nella Field has been with the University of Connecticut for 6 years in various capacities. Her current responsibilities range from collaborating with Health Center Management and staff to coordinating seminar series. In addition, her position involves developing and maintaining the Center budget, tracking grant procedures and various activities associated with the daily operation of the Ethel Donaghue TRIPP Center.
Kathy Donnald, Support Staff
Kathy Donnald is a Support Worker at the Ethel Donaghue TRIPP Center. Her responsibilities involve assisting the Director and Project Coordinator in an administrative capacity as well as, working with Grant Recipients and Guest Speakers to provide any necessary support in relation to their involvement with the TRIPP Center. Kathy has a Bachelor of Science Degree from Hood College in Frederick, Maryland and has extensive experience working in the sales and hospitality industry.
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