
Damara Gutnick, M.D.
- Professor, Department of Epidemiology & Population Health (Health Behavior Research & Implementation Science)
- Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
- Professor, Department of Family and Social Medicine
Area of research
- Trust in Science Health Equity Disparities Structural Racism Community Engagement Behavior Change Motivational Interviewing
Phone
Location
- Montefiore Medical Center Office of Community and Population Health 3 Executive Boulevard Yonkers, NY 10701
Professional Interests
Dr. Gutnick is a change agent passionate about providing culturally competent, high-quality, patient-centered care delivered in a way that addresses what matters most to each patient. She has championed the international spread of the “What Matters to You?” (WMTY) movement to over 30 healthcare organizations in New York's Hudson Valley and the Bronx.
As Senior Director in the Montefiore Medical Center’s Office of Community and Population Health, Dr. Gutnick is ardent about using co-design processes to incorporate the patient and community voice into health care delivery redesign, and leads, and researches diverse community engagement efforts to address structural racism and health disparities. She developed the Bridging Research, Accurate Information and Dialogue (BRAID) model, and adopted it to build trust in science and vaccine confidence in the Bronx.
Dr. Gutnick co-leads the Community Engagement core of the Albert Einstein Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (ICTR). She is also a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT), a certified PROSCITM Change Management Professional, and the immediate past President of the Westchester Board of the American Heart Association and the cochair of the AHA’s Community Impact Committee. She also completed the GNYHA and UHF Clinical Quality Fellowship.
An internist by training, Dr. Gutnick formerly served as the Medical Director or the Montefiore Hudson Valley Collaborative; one of 25 Performing Provider Systems in the New York State Delivery System Redesign Incentive Payment (DSRIP) program. In that role she guided health system and practice transformation efforts to support the transition toward Value Based Payment and also managed a diverse portfolio of innovative projects focused on improving health equity. Dr. Gutnick collaborates with multiple diverse medical and social care partners to improve the quality-of-care delivery, expand access to care, reduce costs and health disparities, address the social determinant of health needs of the population, integrate behavioral health into primary care, and improve patient and staff experience.