Utibe Essien MD, MPH

Dr. Utibe R. Essien is a physician-scientist and Assistant Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He is also a Core Investigator in the Center for the Study of Healthcare Innovation, Implementation, and Policy at the Los Angeles VA.

Dr. Utibe received an MPH at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, developing methodological expertise and skills in large dataset analysis, health policy, and implementation science research. His research focuses on racial and socioeconomic health disparities in the use of novel therapeutics and technologies in the management of chronic and cardiovascular diseases. In 2021, he coined the term “pharmacoequity” to describe the goal of ensuring all patients have access to life-saving medications. He has recently used this framework to become a nationally recognized expert examining the inequities exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic along with other common chronic diseases.

Dr. Utibe is passionate about leading antiracist healthcare systems by eliminating racism in the tripartite mission of academic medicine: patient care, medical education, and biomedical research. He is an Associate Vice Chair for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Department of Medicine at UCLA and is a 2019 National Minority Quality Forum 40 under 40 Leaders in Minority Health awardee. In 2020 he was recognized by Business Insider as a 30 Under 40 Leader Transforming Healthcare and by Medscape as one of the 20 Top Black Physician Social Media Influencers.