Yao Tian, M.P.H., M.S., Ph.D. Titles and Appointments Associate Professor Schools School of Public Health Departments Public Health Biography Dr. Tian is an Associate Professor in the Department of Health Economics, Systems, and Policy at the Peter O’Donnell Jr. School of Public Health at UT Southwestern Medical Center. She is a health services researcher whose work integrates health economics, epidemiology, and advanced quantitative methods to evaluate healthcare delivery, quality, outcomes, and value. Her research focuses on understanding how evolving healthcare delivery models and health policies influence patient outcomes, healthcare utilization, quality measurement, and affordability. Dr. Tian leverages large-scale healthcare databases, including administrative claims and electronic health records, to generate real-world evidence that informs healthcare policy and clinical practice. Her methodological expertise includes causal inference, quasi-experimental study designs, and advanced statistical methods for observational research. She also designs and evaluates pragmatic clinical trials and implementation studies to assess the effectiveness, implementation, and economic value of healthcare interventions. Through rigorous study designs and interdisciplinary collaborations, her work aims to improve healthcare delivery and advance high-value, patient-centered care. Before joining UT Southwestern, Dr. Tian was a faculty member in the Department of Surgery at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. She earned her PhD in Health Services Research, with a concentration in health economics, and an MS in Statistics from Texas A&M University, as well as an MPH in Epidemiology from Emory University. Dr. Tian serves as a Principal Investigator of an R01 research grant funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), examining the outcomes and affordability of observation status among pediatric patients. She also serves as a Co-Investigator on federally funded studies evaluating healthcare interventions, including initiatives to improve cardiovascular care and preventive services in community-based settings, such as workplace health centers. Her research spans healthcare policy evaluation, health economics, outcomes research, and implementation science, with applications across diverse patient populations and clinical settings. Drawing on her expertise in quantitative methods, economic evaluation, and real-world healthcare data, Dr. Tian collaborates with multidisciplinary research teams to address important questions in healthcare delivery and population health. She is also committed to mentoring students, clinical fellows, and early-career investigators in rigorous health services research. Publications Featured Publications Association of Postoperative Fever and Antibiotic Use with Surgical Site Infection in Children with Complicated Appendicitis: A Retrospective Cohort Study. Borst JM, Highet A, Schäfer W, Dodd AC, Tian Y, Kim K, Goldstein SD, Holl JL, Campbell BT, Rangel SJ, Raval MV, J Am Coll Surg 2026 Nov 243 5 1209-1218 Use of 2 National Registries to Identify Opioid Stewardship Opportunities in Children's Surgery. Moturu A, Perez M, Schäfer W, Tian Y, Knapp L, Grant C, Ko CY, Saito JM, Raval MV, J Am Coll Surg 2026 Oct 243 4 781-790 Impact of Omitting Observation-Status Data on Hospital Readmission Metric for Pediatric Care. Tian Y, Macy ML, Berry JG, Hall M, Hockenberry JM, Ackermann RT, Sabbatini AK, Kan K, Huang L, Holl JL, Raval MV, Hosp Pediatr 2026 Sep Rising Use of Observation Status for Pediatric Populations in Six States, 2012-2019. Tian Y, Macy ML, Hockenberry JM, Ackermann RT, Sabbatini AK, Kan K, Huang L, Holl JL, Raval MV, Acad Pediatr 2026 Jul 26 5 103335 Implementation of an Enhanced Recovery Protocol Attenuates Disparities in Pediatric Surgical Care. Borst JM, Highet A, Dodd AC, Schäfer WLA, Holl JL, Tian Y, Raval MV, Ann Surg 2026 Jul Implementation and Effectiveness of an Enhanced Recovery Protocol for Children Undergoing Surgery: The ENRICH-US Stepped-Wedge Cluster-Randomized Trial. Raval MV, Tian Y, Schäfer W, Balbale SN, Perez MN, Ingram ME, Lehane A, Smith CJ, Sullivan GA, Reiter AJ, Hu A, Borst JM, Blake SC, Close S, Davis TL, Essner BS, Heiss KF, Huang LW, Wymore E, Paniagua-Perez D, Engelhardt KM, Graffy PM, Johnson JK, Lillehei CW, Gray BW, Goldstein SD, Short SS, Pandya SR, Taylor JA, Gayer C, Goldin AB, Boelig MM, Rialon KL, Jancelewicz T, Lipskar AM, Jafri M, Tracy ET, Harting MT, Sulkowski JP, Ham PB, Vali K, Cina RA, Schindel DT, Islam S, Teeple EA, Shah SR, Gosain A, Rothstein DH, Brockel MA, Chown J, Holl JL, JAMA Surg 2026 May Hospital variation in postoperative mortality among preterm infants. Mehl SC, Portuondo JI, Tian Y, Raval MV, King A, Rialon KL, Vogel AM, Massarweh NN, J Pediatr Surg 2026 Apr 61 4 162924 Adaptation of a cardiovascular quality improvement initiative for worksite health centers: application of the ADAPT-ITT framework. Jiang H, Bannon J, An LC, Holl JL, Maechling CR, Tian Y, French DD, Chagnon R, Walunas TL, Burch C, Musci A, Latsis D, Carey D, McHugh M, Implement Sci Commun 2026 Jan Pediatric Firearm-Related Hospital Encounters by Child Opportunity Index Level. Sullivan GA, Sincavage J, Tian Y, Zhou X, Shan Y, Shilati JT, Zeineddin S, Reddy S, Raval MV, Stey AM, Pediatrics 2025 Aug Slow Down Fluids to Speed Up the Intestine - Exploring Postoperative Ileus in Pediatric Gastrointestinal Surgery. Lehane A, Perez M, Smith C, Tian Y, Holl JL, Raval MV, J Pediatr Surg 2025 Jun 60 6 162153 Results 1-10 of 57 1 2 3 4 5 Next Last Honors & Awards Best of the 2025 ARM Poster (Child and Family Health Theme)This award recognizes an outstanding research poster presented in the Child and Family Health theme at AcademyHealth's Annual Research Meeting, a leading national conference in health services and health policy research. Professional Associations/Affiliations AcademyHealth American Public Health Association American Statistical Association
