Dr. Suen is a primary care physician working to improve health systems and outcomes for people living with substance use disorders. Dr. Suen graduated cum laude from Cornell University with a bachelor’s degree in Biological and Environmental Engineering and a minor in Biomedical Engineering. After graduating, she worked as an AmeriCorps VISTA for the San Francisco Department of Public Health and Tom Waddell Urban Health Clinic, developing quality improvement programs to improve the care of patients experiencing homelessness and HIV. This work sparked her interest in caring for marginalized and socially disadvantaged populations and led her to complete her medical degree at UCSF. During medical school, she was clinical director of the UCSF Student Homeless Clinic and completed research in supporting LGBTQ communities. During her residency training in internal medicine and primary care at UCSF, she solidified her interest in health disparities and health services research in hopes of improving healthcare for persons living with substance use disorders. As a current inaugural scholar of the UCSF Stimulating Access to Research in Residency (StARR) Program, she is completing advanced coursework in epidemiology and biostatistics and conducting research studying the health outcomes of patients who use cocaine and who use chronic opioids for chronic non-cancer pain.
Career Interests: Dr. Suen plans for a career that combines health services research, implementation science, and health policy to care for marginalized and socially disadvantaged patients.
Research Interests: Dr. Suen is interested in conducting mixed-methods and implementation science research to inform local and statewide policies and to improve health outcomes for patients living with substance use disorders.”