Social Determinants of Health in Surgery
Research Methods and Clinical Review
- 1st Edition - March 1, 2026
- Editors: Steven A. Toms, Paris D. Butler, Marielle H. Collins, Krissia M. Rivera Perla, Oliver Y. Tang
- Language: English
- Paperback ISBN:9 7 8 - 0 - 4 4 3 - 1 3 9 5 5 - 0
- eBook ISBN:9 7 8 - 0 - 4 4 3 - 1 3 9 5 6 - 7
Social Determinants of Health in Surgery: Research Methods and Clinical Review is the first book to focus on social determinants of health in a surgery-specific setting. This b… Read more
Social Determinants of Health in Surgery: Research Methods and Clinical Review is the first book to focus on social determinants of health in a surgery-specific setting. This book provides a comprehensive overview of social determinants of health within surgery to trainees, health care providers, and researchers working in any surgical discipline as well as policy and health care administration stakeholders overseeing macroscopic clinical changes. To emphasize the scope of the term “social determinants of health,” this book performs a deep dive on eleven different domains related to social determinants of health and discusses specialized topics, including big data methodologies and best practices, ethical and global implications, pediatric care, and clinical applications for research. This book serves as a practicum and methodological tutorial for social determinants of health research, including methodological pearls and pitfalls, that can be picked up by a reader at any level of training and in any surgical discipline. Second, it serves as an exhaustive summary of decades of social determinants of health research for ten surgical specialties to highlight salient big picture trends, landmark studies, and existing areas of knowledge deficiencies. This book also incorporates relevant case studies and reflective interviews from the contributors’ own clinical practices.
- Reviews best practices, pitfalls, and existing areas of future research needed to improve the breadth and quality of social determinants of health research within surgical disciplines
- Presents decades of social determinants of health research conducted across ten surgical specialties
- Provides an approachable conceptual introduction to social determinants of health for providers, researchers, and stakeholders in any surgical specialty
- Focuses on translating theory and research into practice
trainees of all levels in surgical disciplines (medical students, residents, fellows, attendings), associated researchers working within these specialties (health services researchers, statisticians, etc.), public health and health services researchers of all levels, both in non-clinical (ex. MPH or PhD) and clinical (ex. MD) training programs and institutions, broad spectrum of providers working in surgical care settings, including surgeons, nurses, advanced practice providers, anesthetists, physical and occupational therapists, social workers, and case managers, policymakers, physician leaders of national surgical specialty organization, and hospital administrators
Section 1:
1. An Introduction to Social Determinants of Health
2. An Overview of Statistical Methodology for Research in Social Determinants of Health
3. An Overview of Datasets for Research in Social Determinants of Health
4. Theoretical Frameworks for Conceptualizing Social Determinants of Health
5. Looking Upstream: The Role of Structural Inequality and Power Structures in Health Disparities
6. Ethical and Global Considerations for Social Determinants of Health Research
Section 2:
7. Gender: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
8. Insurance Status: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
9. Household Income and Neighborhood Resources: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
10. Race and Ethnicity: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
11. Education and Health Literacy: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
12. Language and Citizenship Status: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
13. LGBTQ+ Patients: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
14. Military Personnel and Families: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
15. Aging and Frailty: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
16. Disability: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
17. Urban vs. Rural Care Settings: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
18. Healthcare Systems: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
19. At the Dawn of Life: Special Considerations for Pediatric Neurosurgery and Plastic Surgery
20. Translational Considerations
Section 3:
21. Translating Knowledge to Practice: Clinical Applications for Surgical Research in Social Determinants of Health
22. Codifying Change: The Role of Public Policy in Social Determinants of Health and Surgical Outcomes
23. Where We Go from Here: Future Directions and Gaps in Knowledge in Social Determinants of Health and Surgery
1. An Introduction to Social Determinants of Health
2. An Overview of Statistical Methodology for Research in Social Determinants of Health
3. An Overview of Datasets for Research in Social Determinants of Health
4. Theoretical Frameworks for Conceptualizing Social Determinants of Health
5. Looking Upstream: The Role of Structural Inequality and Power Structures in Health Disparities
6. Ethical and Global Considerations for Social Determinants of Health Research
Section 2:
7. Gender: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
8. Insurance Status: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
9. Household Income and Neighborhood Resources: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
10. Race and Ethnicity: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
11. Education and Health Literacy: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
12. Language and Citizenship Status: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
13. LGBTQ+ Patients: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
14. Military Personnel and Families: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
15. Aging and Frailty: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
16. Disability: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
17. Urban vs. Rural Care Settings: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
18. Healthcare Systems: Research Methods and Surgical Outcomes†
19. At the Dawn of Life: Special Considerations for Pediatric Neurosurgery and Plastic Surgery
20. Translational Considerations
Section 3:
21. Translating Knowledge to Practice: Clinical Applications for Surgical Research in Social Determinants of Health
22. Codifying Change: The Role of Public Policy in Social Determinants of Health and Surgical Outcomes
23. Where We Go from Here: Future Directions and Gaps in Knowledge in Social Determinants of Health and Surgery
- Edition: 1
- Published: March 1, 2026
- Language: English
ST
Steven A. Toms
Steven A. Toms, MD, MPH: Dr. Steven A. Toms is the Vice Chair and Director of the Brain Tumor and Stereotactic Radiosurgery Program at the Rhode Island Hospital Department of Neurosurgery. He has held several nationwide and institutional leadership positions in health policy and management, including as the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Liaison to Council of State Neurosurgical Societies and the Associate Chief Medical Officer and Co-Director of the Neuroscience Institute at the Geisinger Health System. He has been the principal investigator of basic and clinical research studies, such as the use of tumor-treating fields for glioblastoma, and has published in over eighty medical journals. As a Professor of Health Services, Policy and Practice at Brown, Dr. Toms also has a research and educational interest in social determinants of health, health policy, and disparities. He has previously edited the textbook Nanoproteomics: Methods in Molecular Biology and serves on the editorial board for several journals.
Affiliations and expertise
Brown University, Rhode Island Hospital Dept. of Neurosurgery, USAPB
Paris D. Butler
Paris D. Butler, MD, MPH: Dr. Paris D. Butler is the incoming inaugural Vice Chair for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Yale Surgery as well as the outgoing Director of Underrepresented in Medicine (UIM) Affairs, Plastic Surgery Clerkship Director, and Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania. As a plastic and reconstructive surgeon, his research interests include keloid pathophysiology and treatment, surgical health care disparities, health care policy, and provision of care to the underserved. Most recently, he was appointed to the ten-member Committee on Surgical Health Care Disparities of the American College of Surgeons. Dr. Butler has previously served as a policy fellow in the US Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Minority Health as well as on the Accreditation Council for Graduation Medical Education’s Surgical Residency Review Committee responsible for the oversight of all surgical training programs in the country.
Affiliations and expertise
Yale University Dept. of Plastic Surgery, USAMC
Marielle H. Collins
Marielle Collins, PhD, is a clinical health psychologist at Cleveland Clinic in the Center for Adult Behavioral Health. She specializes in consultation-liaison psychology with a focus on caring for patients recovering from significant medical illness within the inpatient hospital setting and providing expert psychological services through consultation with patients and members of interdisciplinary teams. Dr. Collins earned her doctorate in clinical psychology at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and then completed fellowship in clinical health psychology at Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Collins’ research focuses on developing mindfulness interventions that can be integrated into medical settings to address pain, mood disorders, and psychological factors affecting medical conditions. Dr. Collins has led mindfulness workshops, education groups and training programs for medical students, residents, faculty, and community organizations. She is a member of the American Psychological Association, the Society for Health Psychology, and the Ohio Psychological Association.
Affiliations and expertise
Clinical Health Psychologist - Consultation Liaison Psychology Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine Cleveland Clinic, Center for Adult Behavioral Health Cleveland, Ohio, USAKR
Krissia M. Rivera Perla
Krissia M. Rivera Perla, MD, MPH, MS: Krissia Rivera Perla is a Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery resident at Johns Hopkins University. Krissia’s long withstanding interest in the intersection of public health, quantitative analyses, and surgery has led her to author several manuscripts on the topic from Neurosurgery to Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. She completed her Master’s in Public Health in Quantitative Methods at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research interests include healthcare delivery and surgical outcomes.
Affiliations and expertise
Johns Hopkins University Dept. of Plastic Surgery ,Brown University ,Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, USAOT
Oliver Y. Tang
Oliver Y. Tang, BS: Oliver Y. Tang is a medical student at Brown University (MD ’23 – will complete degree prior to publication of book). He has authored over 40 peer-reviewed articles — with his primary focus being social determinants of health in surgical care — and has won national conference awards for his socioeconomics research from physician organizations including the AANS and CNS. Other research topics Oliver has focused on include the use of big data for clinical applications like risk stratification, education-oriented manuscripts on good practices for big data research, cost variation and drivers in the US health care system, medical education, and global surgery. Oliver has also previously worked in health policy in the form of think tank work under a former US Assistant Surgeon General and co-leadership of a public health lecture series course (with speakers from the AMA, NIH, IHI) serving as the most widely attended preclinical elective among Brown medical students.
Affiliations and expertise
Medical student, Brown University, USA