Nicole Brandt, PharmD |  Amy Davidoff  
Thomas Shaffer, MHS | Linda Simoni-Wastila, BSPharm, PhD
Bruce Stuart, PhD | Lirong Zhao
 Ilene Zuckerman, PharmD, PhD

Lirong Zhao

Lirong Zhao Statistician, who comes to the Lamy center with a background of health services and outcome research data managements and related statistical analysis. Ms. Zhao received her bachelor degree in Biomedicine from Nankai University of China and her Master of Science degree in Biostatistics from the University of Iowa.

Before joining the Center, Ms Zhao was a statistical analyst in the Health Services Research Section, Department of Biostatistics and Applied Mathematics of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas where she was involved in various research projects, including both theoretically and application studies, functioning as assisting research data managements and statistical analysis. Managing large-scale claims and survey database was her expertise, such as SEER-Medicare and Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) database. Ms. Zhao has an interest in doing scientific research on health services research and related statistical methodologies.

She has composed and presented several papers and posters in national and local conference and has received awards, including the 2004 American Statistics Association Health Policy statistics Section student paper award; first place poster presentation award on research methods category of the 2003 Houston Health Services and Outcome Research Conference; the best research poster award of Texas Public Health Association annual educational conference and the first place poster presentation award of the 2005 Houston Health Services and Outcome Research Conference.

Ms. Zhao will be serving in Lamy Center by conducting technical statistical research and analysis and compiles and interprets statistical studies and determines variables of new or ongoing projects.

Lirong Zhao can be reached at 410-706-0178 or emailed at lzhao@rx.umaryland.edu.

Recent Publications:

Ya-Chen Tina Shih, Lirong Zhao and Linda S. Elting. Does Medicare Coverage Of Colonoscopy Reduce Racial/Ethnic Disparities In Cancer Screening Among the Elderly?  Health Affairs, 25, no. 4 (2006): 1153-1162

Ya-Chen Tina Shih, Lirong Zhao, Ying Xu. Use of Risk-Adjustment Model to Predict Future High Medical Cost Cases: Is the Model Performance Sensitive to the Time Intervals in Claims Data. (Paper presentation in JSM, 2006, Seattle, WA)

Lirong Zhao, Jeff Allan. Comparison of Fixed and Random-Effects Methods for Predicting Cancer Incidence in Iowa Counties Using SEER Data (Paper presentation in Joint Statistical Meetings, 2004, Canada)

Lirong Zhao, Ya-Chen Tina Shih. Statistical Study of Disability Days for Patients with Cancer in 1997 MEPS  (Poster presentation in Health Services Research Conference. 2003, Houston, TX)

Lirong Zhao, Catherine Cooksley, Linda S. Elting, Comparison of Modeling Methods for Hierarchical Data in the Health Services Research  (Poster presentation in Health Services Research Conference. 2003, Houston, TX)