Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center

Ronald Acierno, Ph.D.   (return to top of page)   
Dr. Acierno is a Research Health Scientist in the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC whose research interests emphasize assessment and treatment of OEF-OIF Veterans with PTSD, as well patients who suffer from anxiety and mood disorders and older adults who have been victims of assault, abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Dr. Acierno is the PCT Director at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC and Clinical Psychologist.  Dr. Acierno is PI of a DoD grant to evaluate an innovative secondary prevention intervention for PTSD in OEF/OIF Veterans.

Neal Axon, MD  (return to top of page)   
Dr. Axon is a physician at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC in the Medical Service.  Dr. Axon's specific research focus includes inpatient care quality and care transitions.   Dr. Axon currently is funded as a co-investigator on a grant entitled "Aging Q3: Quality Education, Quality Care, Quality of Life", funded by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation.  Dr. Axon is also PI on HSRD Pilot project titled “Improving the Diagnosis and Treatment of Hypertension in the Inpatient Setting-Pilot.”

Clara (Libby) Dismuke, PhD    (return to top of page)    
Dr. Dismuke is a Research Health Scientist and Health Economist in the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC whose research interests emphasize health economics which specific interest in individuals with traumatic brain injury.  Dr. Dismuke is Co-I on Dr. Acierno’s DoD grant as a Health Economist.

Leonard E. Egede, MD   (return to top of page)    
Dr. Egede is the Director of the Charleston, SC Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions for Diverse Populations and the Director of the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) Center for Health Disparities Research.   He directs all aspects of the organization, including oversight of the infrastructure units, accomplishment of goals, budget oversight, and coordination of activities between the CDPHIDP, RHJ VAMC, and the affiliates.  Dr. Egede is a VA Staff Physician and a General Internist and Professor of Medicine in the Division of General of Internal Medicine and Geriatrics at Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Egede is the PI on the HSRD funded project "Telepsychology: Service Delivery for Depressed Elderly Veterans" and Co-PI on 3 VA merit proposals and 1 NIH R01 grant. 

Charles Ellis, Ph.D.  (return to top of page)      
Dr. Ellis is a Research Health Scientist in the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC whose research interests emphasize racial/ethnic differences in outcomes in stroke and other chronic diseases.   Dr. Ellis is PI on a funded CDA grant "Racial/Ethnic Differences in Post-Stroke Outcome."

Mulugeta G. Gebregziabher Ph.D.  (return to top of page)   
Dr. Gebregziabher is a biostatistician at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC. Dr. Gebregziabher has significant experience and expertise in the analysis of missing data, design and analysis of epidemiological studies, analysis of animal carcinogenicity data, health disparities, radiation and Image data analysis, and neurological disorders and associated conditions.  Dr. Gebregziabher is Co-I on Dr. Patrick Mauldin's HSRD funded grant "Ethnic Differences in Medication Adherence and Cost for Elderly Veterans with DM." 

Jan Grossman, PhD, APRN, BC, FAAN    (return to top of page)   
Dr. Grossman is a Research Health Scientist at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC whose research interests emphasize the study of suicide prevention and the development and evaluation of evidence based mental health interventions and health outcomes in family drug courts and school-based health clinics.  Dr. Grossman is Co-I on the HSRD funded grant "Patient and Provider Outcomes of e-Learning Training in CAMS."

Anouk Grubaugh, Ph.D.  (return to top of page)    
Dr. Grubaugh is a Research Health Scientist and Clinical Psychologist at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC whose research interests emphasize PTSD treatment outcomes, with particular emphasis on issues related to the assessment and treatment of patients with PTSD and severe mental illness, treatment adherence and attrition in public sector and VA settings, racial disparities in health outcomes and mental health services methodology.  She is the PI of an HSR&D funded 4-year CDA-2 - titled "Improving Mental Health Service for Diverse Veterans with PTSD and SMI."

Amelia Joseph, RN, MSN   (return to top of page)   
Ms. Amy Joseph is the Associate Nurse Executive for Patient Care Services at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC.  She has interest in the impact of nursing characteristics on clinical outcomes for veterans. She is the PI of an NRI HSR&D funded grant titled "Diagnostic Accuracy of Failure-To-Rescue as a Nurse Sensitive Indicator" which was designed to validate an algorithm for the identification of Failure to Rescue based on DRGs.

Becky Knapp, PhD    (return to top of page)   
Dr. Knapp is the senior biostatistician for the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC.  Dr. Knapp has significant experience and expertise in statistical design and analysis for clinical trials and statistical methods in proteomics.  Dr. Knapp is Co-I on several HSRD funded grants.

Cheryl Lynch, M.D.    (return to top of page)   
Dr. Lynch is a Research Health Scientist at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC whose research interests emphasize obesity-related research designed to change health behaviors and health disparities with particular interest in the African American community.

Kathy Magruder, PhD   (return to top of page)   
Dr. Magruder is a VA Research Health Scientist at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC.   She was principal investigator on a VA grant to investigate PTSD in primary care. She is Co-PI on the MUSC NIDA Clinical Trials Network Cooperative Agreement and serves on a VA SMRB.  She is also the PI of a VACO HSRD Short-Term Project and serves as Co-PI on another funded HSRD Short-Term Project at VAMC Palo Alto.  Additionally, she is the local site PI for VA CSP #569.  Dr. Magruder research interests emphasize healthcare quality, the elimination of health disparities and suicide prevention.  She is PI on the HSRD funded project "Patient and Provider Outcomes of e-Learning Training in CAMS."

Patrick Mauldin, PhD  (return to top of page)   
Dr. Mauldin is a Health Economist at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC who has significant experience and expertise with the coordination and management of large research studies, and the design, management, and evaluation of economic studies in particular. Dr. Mauldin is PI on the HSRD funded grant "Ethnic Differences in Medication Adherence and Cost for Elderly Veterans with DM."

Paul Nietert, PhD  (return to top of page)   
Dr. Nietert is a biostatistician at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC.  Dr. Nietert's research interests include:  health services research, group randomized trials, rheumatic diseases, and quality of care measurement.  Dr. Nietert is Co-I on Dr. Mauldin's HSRD funded grant "Ethnic Differences in Medication Adherence and Cost for Elderly Veterans with DM."

Charlene Pope, PhD, MPH, CNM, BSN  (return to top of page)    
Dr. Pope is a Research Health Scientist at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC whose research interests emphasize provider-patient communication, preventive medicine, qualitative research and racial/ethnic variations and disparities in health services. Dr. Pope is PI on the HSRD funded grant "Racial Variations in Communication, Decision Making and Diabetes Outcomes" and also she is PI on the funded QUERI project "Communication in CHF Care Coordination in Home Telehealth Implementation"  

Kenneth J. Ruggiero, PhD   (return to top of page)    
Dr. Ruggiero is a Research Health Scientist and Clinical Psychologist at the Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC whose research interests emphasize efficacy, transport, dissemination, and effectiveness of evidence-based psychosocial interventions, design and evaluation of Web-based educational interventions for disaster, combat, violence-affected communities, and design and evaluation of Web-based training protocols for clinicians in evidence-based practice.  Dr. Ruggiero is the PI on two funded HSRD grants titled "Web Interventions for OIF/OEF Veterans with Mental Health Problems" and "PE WEB: Online Training for VA Providders in Prolonged Exposure for PTSD."

Jeremy Soule, MD   (return to top of page)   
Dr. Soule is the Chief of Endocrinology at the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC in Charleston, SC.   Dr. Soule’s research interests emphasize intensive diabetes therapy, insulin pumps and general endocrinology including thyroid and bone disease. Dr. Soule has led and is actively involved in multiple clinical trials in Veterans with diabetes. He is the local PI of the ongoing Veterans Affairs Cooperative Studies Program #465, Glycemic Control and Complications in Diabetes Mellitus type 2. He is also the local PI on two ongoing clinical trials in Veterans with diabetes.