Quynh Nguyen, Ph.D., MSPH

Quynh Nguyen, Ph.D., MSPH is an intramural investigator at NINR and director of the HashtagHealth Lab, which employs innovative, data-driven approaches to improve health outcomes across American communities through evidence-based interventions and technologies that promote wellness and enhance health for all. Her lab investigates individual-, family-, and community level factors to inform and advance holistic, person-centered health interventions.

Dr. Nguyen's research leverages cutting-edge data science techniques, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, to analyze large-scale, multimodal datasets such as social media data, electronic health records, and other unstructured text and image data. This approach allows for examination of broad patterns affecting health outcomes and the development of precision health strategies.

Current research projects exemplify NINR's commitment to addressing critical health challenges through an innovative and holistic approach. One project, for example, includes the development and evaluation of an AI-powered question-and-answer chatbot for pregnant and parenting mothers. This randomized clinical trial, involving mothers from 49 states, aims to improve maternal and child health outcomes. Dr. Nguyen's lab also uses advanced computer vision techniques, a branch of AI that enables computers to “see” and interpret visual data like humans do, to analyze street view imagery and investigate built environment predictors of fatal motor vehicle collisions, a leading cause of death especially for young people.

Prior to joining NINR, Dr. Nguyen was on faculty at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics. She also held a faculty position at the University of Utah College of Health, Department of Health Promotion & Education. Dr. Nguyen has had a successful research career, having served as PI on a career development award (K01), two R01s, and co-investigator on many other awards where she utilized geotagged social media and Google Street View data to characterize the neighborhood social and built environment to inform strategies and programs to improve individual and population health. Dr. Nguyen received her bachelor's degree in human biology from Stanford University and master's and doctoral degrees in Epidemiology from the University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health.