Epidemiology
Epidemiology is the study of the etiology and burden of disease in populations, as well as the development and evaluation of novel interventions for disease prevention and treatment. The Department of Epidemiology at the Peter O’Donnell Jr. School of Public Health at UT Southwestern Medical Center has strengths in epidemiological, translational, and implementation research across cardiometabolic and brain health, maternal and child health, cancer prevention, and infectious diseases. Our faculty have expertise in multi-omics and molecular epidemiology, clinical trials, implementation science, nutritional epidemiology, geospatial analysis, and artificial intelligence. The Department is growing and maintains strong multidisciplinary collaborations with investigators at UT Southwestern Medical Center and with leading health care systems and public health agencies regionally, nationally, and internationally. We offer Ph.D. programs in Applied Epidemiology and Clinical Investigation, as well as an M.P.H. in Applied Epidemiology.
Academic Programs
- Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) – Concentration in Applied Epidemiology
- Ph.D. – Concentration in Applied Epidemiology
- Ph.D. – Concentration in Clinical Investigation
Who We Are
Jiang He, M.D., M.S., Ph.D.
Professor & Chair
Dr. Jiang He is Professor and Chair of Epidemiology at the UT Southwestern O'Donnell School of Public Health, as well as Professor of Internal Medicine and Neurology at the UT Southwestern Medical School. He is a globally recognized leader in epidemiological, clinical, and translational research focused on cardiometabolic and brain health. Dr. He has served as principal investigator or co-investigator on over 50 major NIH research grants and authored over 800 scientific articles, including high-impact papers in N Engl J Med, JAMA, and The Lancet.
Dr. He's research focuses on the epidemiology and prevention of cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, stroke, and dementia. He has led several landmark epidemiological studies documenting the global epidemic and disparities in obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. Dr. He has also led several large-scale, multicenter clinical trials demonstrating that a lower blood pressure treatment goal further reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and dementia. Furthermore, he has developed and tested effective, adoptable, and scalable implementation strategies to improve hypertension control in low-income populations.
As a dedicated educator, Dr. He has mentored numerous master's and doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty members. Many of his mentees have gone on to build successful research careers and become leaders in their fields.
Among his many honors are the Abraham Lilienfeld Award from the American College of Epidemiology and the Distinguished Scientist Award from the American Heart Association. In 2023, he was elected to the National Academy of Medicine.