UCLA National Clinician Scholars Program
Advancing Health and Health Care Through Scholarship and Action
UCLA National Clinician Scholars Program (NCSP) is committed to solving the most pressing societal challenges of our time—not least among them, addressing disparities and quality of care in an ever-changing healthcare landscape.
Inspired by the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program (CSP), which for more than 40 years fostered the development of physician leaders able to transform health and healthcare, the university proudly launched the new UCLA NCSP in 2016. This post-doctoral education program builds upon the CSP legacy, with early career physicians and post-doctoral nurses participating in an intensive, highly-customized, two-year program that places them in community settings to conduct priority research directly benefiting the health of Southern California residents.
The UCLA National Clinician Scholars Program is committed to solving the most pressing societal challenges of our time while training the next generation of transformative healthcare leaders.
UCLA NCSP is joined by five other sites including the University of Pennsylvania, University of Michigan, Yale University, and most recently, Duke University and UCSF. The NCSP retains the experience and central values of the highly successful RWJF/VA Clinical Scholars Program, including a commitment to teaching rigorous research design, ensuring Scholars develop a nuanced understanding of how the health system and social determinants affect health, engagement of those who can help apply research results, and emphasizing the outcomes and impact of research. Yet the NCSP builds upon this core strength, moving in a new direction by partnering directly with institutions and agencies sponsoring individual scholar positions, with a strong focus on commitment to partnering agencies and creating generalizable lessons for improving health of patients and communities.
Charisse Ahmed, PhD, RN is a T32 Postdoctoral Trainee, Biobehavioral Research Training for Ending the HIV/AIDS Epidemic at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Lilian Bravo, PhD, RN is an Assistant Professor at the School of Nursing and Health Studies, University of Miami in Florida
Hafifa Siddiq, PhD, RN is an Assistant Professor at the Charles are Drew University College of nursing in California
Adrienne Martinez-Hollingworth, PhD, RN is the Director of Research and Evaluation for the Institute for Health Equity at AltaMed Health Services, Inc. in California
Patricia Soderlund, PhD, PMHNP, RN is a Researcher at the Memory Keepers Medical Discovery Team at the University of Minnesota, Duluth
Kristen Choi, PhD, PMHNP-BC, FAAN is an Associate Professor and the Adrienne H. Moseley Chair at the UCLA School of Nursing
Maria Yefimova, PhD, RN is the Lead Nurse Scientist at the UCSF Health Center for Nursing Excellence and Innovation
Kia Skrine-Jeffers, PhD, RN, PHN is an Assistant Professor at the UCLA School of Nursing
School of Nursing Faculty & NCSP Alumni
