Surgery

Woo Research Lab

Woo Research Lab

Lab worker testing samples in test tubes

Our mission

To optimize the patient experience of health care by developing educational materials, decision making tools and innovative techniques for supporting patients through their health care experience.

Our current research activity concerns

  • Complex decision making
  • Outcomes of hemodialysis vascular access
  • Appropriateness of care
  • Healthcare equity
  • Patient-centered care
  • Shared decision making
  • Health literacy

Funding

  • Medicare Payment Policy and Racial/Ethnic Disparities Among Elderly with ESRD (P30AG043073) Funder: USC NIH Resource Center for Minority Aging Research
  • Outcomes of Dialysis Vascular Access in the Elderly (K08DK107934) Funder: NIH NIDDK
  • Construction of the ESKD Life Plan (R03DK127131) Funder: NIH NIDDK
  • Improving the patient experience of hemodialysis vascular access decision making (R01DK129810) Funder: NIH NIDDK
  • Comparing surgical and endovascular arteriovenous fistula creation (R01DK132422) Funder: NIH NIDDK
     
DiAL-In

Dialysis Access Learning and Innovation (DiAL-In)

Dialysis Access Learning and Innovation (DiAL-In) DiAL-In is a collaborative network of physicians who create and manage hemodialysis vascular access who aim to advance the field through innovative research.

Co-Founders

Karen Woo, MD, PhD
Karen Woo, MD, PhD
Vascular Surgery
Yana Etkin
Yana Etkin, MD
Vascular and Endovascular Surgery at North Shore University Hospital

Current projects

  • Comparative Effectiveness of Endovascular vs. Open Arteriovenous Fistula Creation
  • Contribution of Central Vein Stenosis to Dialysis Access Outcomes
  • Effects of Socioeconomic Disparities on the Long-term Outcomes of Hemodialysis Access