Stephen Patrick

Stephen W. Patrick, MD, MPH, MS, FAAP, is Chair and O. Wayne Rollins Distinguished Professor of the Department of Health Policy and Management at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health. He also serves as Co-Director of the Emory Health Services Research Center, a practicing neonatologist at Children’s Hospital of Atlanta, and an Adjunct Physician Policy Researcher at the RAND Corporation.

Dr. Patrick’s NIH-funded research focuses on improving outcomes for pregnant women with opioid use disorder and their infants, as well as families involved in the U.S. child welfare system. His work integrates clinical care, public health, and policy with the goal of translating research into action. In addition to his academic and clinical work, he leads policy analysis and public polling efforts designed to inform child health policy at both the state and national levels.

He previously served as Senior Policy Advisor to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, where he led the development of a national interagency action plan to improve outcomes for families affected by substance use. During his time at the White House, he also contributed to the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health, and the White House Blueprint for Addressing the Maternal Health Crisis.

Dr. Patrick formerly led Firefly, a multidisciplinary treatment program in Nashville, Tennessee, for pregnant women with opioid use disorder and their infants, supported by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. He has testified before both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate on the impact of the opioid crisis on pregnant women and infants.

He currently serves as a standing member of the NIH’s Organization and Delivery of Health Services Study Section, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Federal Government Affairs, and a member of the National Academy of Medicine’s Board on Children, Youth, and Families. He has also served as a Guest Researcher at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and as a voting member on multiple FDA advisory boards focused on pediatric opioid use.

Dr. Patrick has authored more than 140 peer-reviewed articles in leading journals including The New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, Pediatrics, and Health Affairs. His work has been featured in national media outlets such as PBS News Hour, New York Times, NBC News, BBC, USA Today, and The Washington Post. His honors include the American Medical Association Foundation Excellence in Medicine Leadership Award, the Nemours Child Health Services Research Award, the Society for Pediatric Research Young Investigator Award, and the Gale and Ira Drukier Prize in Children’s Health Research.

He earned his degrees from the University of Florida, Florida State University College of Medicine, and Harvard School of Public Health, and completed training in pediatrics, neonatology, and health services research as a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar at the University of Michigan.