Biography

Lori Pbert, Ph.D., is an Professor of Medicine, Director of the Center for Tobacco Treatment Research and Training, and Associate Chief of the Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.  Her primary research focus is the design and evaluation of clinic-based intervention protocols to facilitate health risk behavior modification within health care settings, particularly interventions for adolescents in pediatric primary care settings. 

Dr. Pbert is nationally recognized as an expert in adolescent tobacco treatment.  She has conducted research to evaluate smoking prevention and cessation interventions for adolescents in pediatric practice and school health settings.  Dr. Pbert serves as a founding member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Center for Child Health Research Tobacco Consortium, which translates the results of tobacco prevention and treatment research into practice-based interventions for children and adolescents.  Her NIH-funded research also has included the development and evaluation of tobacco treatment interventions with adults and special populations, evaluation of the effect of statewide policies on the provision of tobacco treatment within healthcare settings in Massachusetts, and four clinical trials investigating the efficacy of pharmacological treatments for nicotine dependence.  She directs the nationally recognized Tobacco Treatment Specialist Training and Certification Program. 

Dr. Pbert and colleagues developed and tested smoking measures now incorporated into the HEDIS (Health Plan Employer Data and Information Set) measures, aimed at encouraging health plans and providers to offer a full range of evidence-based tobacco treatment during the course of routine care.  Additional research interests include the prevention and treatment of obesity, and the management of chronic diseases including asthma. 

Dr. Pbert is currently Principal investigator of three NIH-funded grants, one a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate a school nurse-delivered smoking cessation intervention for adolescents, a second study to design and evaluate an obesity prevention and treatment intervention for adolescents within the school health setting, and the third a RCT to evaluate the effect of mindfulness-based stress reduction on the physiological functioning and quality of life of asthmatics.

Dr. Pbert has published her work extensively and is frequently invited to speak at nationaand international meetings.  She is a fellow in the Society of Behavioral Medicine.

Other Affiliation(s):
     Center for Tobacco Treatment Research and Training
    Clinical and Population Health Research (CPHR) Doctoral Program

Lori Pbert, Ph.D. is a Professor of Medicine, Director of the Center for Tobacco Treatment Research and Training, and Associate Chief of the Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.  Her research interests include the evaluation of clinic-based interventions for health promotion and disease prevention, tobacco treatment in adolescents and adults, training and certification programs for Tobacco Treatment Specialists, obesity prevention and treatment, and asthma management.

Education

West Virginia University, M.A., Clinical Psychology, 1985
West Virginia University, Ph.D., Clinical Psychology, 1988
University of Massachusetts, Fellow, Preventive and Behavioral Medicine, 1990

On Going Projects/Grants

Principal Investigator, School Worksite Weight Gain Prevention Intervention Study, National Institutes of Health/National cancer Institute, 2009-2013.

The major goal of this site-level randomized trial is to test the effectiveness of a worksite intervention based on an ecological framework at preventing weight gain among high school employees.

Principal Investigator, Boston Communities Putting Prevention to Work, Boston Publid Health Commission, 2010-2012.

The major goal of this project is to provide traiing services to the Boston Public Health Commission to support the Communities Putting Prevention to Work Initiative.

Principal Investigator, A School Nurse-delivered Intervention for Overweight and At Risk Adolescents, National Institutes of Health/National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2008–2011. 

The purpose of this study is to adapt a theory-based school nurse-delivered intervention and test its feasibility and potential efficacy in reducing BMI, improving diet, increasing physical activity and decreasing sedentary behavior among adolescents.

Principal Investigator, School Nurse-delivered Smoking Cessation Intervention, National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute, 2006–2011. 

This randomized controlled school-based trial will evaluate the effectiveness of a four-session school nurse-delivered smoking cessation intervention in increasing abstinence rates among high school students who smoke.

Principal Investigator, A Community Partnership for Prevention of Type-2 Diabetes in Youth at High Risk, Univerity of Massachusetts Life Sciences Moment Fund, 2009-2011.

This two year pilot study will test the feasibility and potential effeicacy of an intensive 5-month weekly weight management program for obese low-income middle school youth conducted in a local youth center in collaboratin with the CHC in decreasing fasting insulin and outcomes assoicated with metabolic risk, and improving adherence to weight-related self-managment behaviors.

Subcontract Principal Investigator, Adolescent Smoking Cessation in Pediatric Primary Care, American Academy of Pediatrics/National Institutes of Health, 2010-2015.

The major goal of this project is to demonstrate providers' fidelity to guidelines for tobacco counseling and delivery of cessation interventions, including systematic screening using charting tools and linkages to adjunct materials, including web resources.

Principal Investigator, Training and Technical Assistance for Massachusetts Smoking Cessation Efforts, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, June 2005 – May 2009. 

The purpose of this project is to design and implement tobacco treatment training and technical assistance initiatives to support smoking cessation activities statewide.

Teaching

Primary Care Block, Internal Medicine Residency Program                                                            Mentoring and Dissertation Chari, Clinical and Population Health Research (CPHR) PhD Program, PhD Candidates                                                                                                                                        Mentor, Junior Faculty Development (JFDP)                                                                              Lecturer, Masters in Clinical Investigation (MSCI) Seminar Series                                                        

University of Massachusetts Medical School

Council of Equal Opportunity and Diversity
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Task Force, subcommittee to the Council of Equal Opportunity and Diversity
Senior Advisory Group, Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine
Scientific Council (Co-Chair)
Planning Group, Schwartz Center Rounds Program, UMass Memorial Health Care
Financial Services Committee
Integrating Clinical Translational Science in the Education Program, subcommittee of the LCME Accreditation Task Force
Dean's Appeal Committee

Massachusetts Department of Public Health

Steering Committee, Massachusetts Tobacco Control Program

National

American Academy of Pediatrics Center for Child Health Research Tobacco Consortium (Founding Member)
American Academy of Pediatric Tobacco Consortium Nomination Committee (Member)
National Institutes for Health Scientific Reviewer
Society of Behavioral Medicine Public Policy Leadership group (Member)
Society of Behavioral Medicine Education and Training Council (Member)
Society of Behavioral Medicine, Reviewer, Abstracts for Annual Meeting
Society of Behavioral Medicine, Reviewer, Distinguished Research Mentor Award and Distinguished Clinical Mentor Award
Peer Reviewer for multiple journals