Vanessa Nicholson
Research/Areas of Interest
Maternal health
Health inequity
Health literacy
Reproductive health & sexual wellness
Nutrition and food injustice assessment
Health policy
Education
- Master of Public Health, Jackson State University, 2012
- DrPH, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, United States, 2017
Biography
Dr. Vanessa N. Robinson is an Assistant Professor at Tufts University's School of Medicine and Director of CREST at the Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute. She holds an academic and professional background in health policy where she creates and advises on quality improvement strategies in maternal health and nutritional science through research, advocacy, and community engagement. She has presented at Harvard Medical School and Tufts Medicine's Woman, Mother and Baby (WoMB) Research Institute, advising on equitable and innovative models of maternal care and delivery. Dr. Robinson is the Chief Editor and Lead Technical Writer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Special Commission's Report on Racial Inequities in Maternal Health, recognized as the blueprint report for the landmark Momnibus Bill (Bill H.4999- An act of Promoting Access to Midwifery Care and Out-of Hospital Birth Options). The legacy of the report and bill is on-going.
Within the realm of food and nutrition, Dr. Robinson is a Co-Investigator and Cultural Advisor of a $6M NIH-funded Food is Medicine Initiative known as Delta GREENS (Growing a Resilient, Enriching, Equitable Nourishing food System). This ongoing FIM project aims to boost the Mississippi Delta's local food economy and address chronic health disparities. Dr. Robinson and colleagues have published findings from this study in the American Journal of Public Health, with Dr. Robinson serving as first and corresponding author. She is also co-author of the 2024 Food is Medicine Research Action Plan delivered by the Aspen Institute- a nationwide action plan that communicates to readers a list of recommendations for addressing nutritional health needs for all.
Dr. Robinson is credited as co-author of the proposal for the inaugural Tufts Center for Black Maternal Health and Reproductive Justice via her advisement, arrangement, and writing of the Center's initial budget and original unit lead positions. She also served as the Center's first MOTHER Lab Unit Lead. Additional past reflections of her leadership include her former role as Public Health Advisor of the birthing app known as Birth-by-Us- a management tool used to help birthing moms navigate their reproductive experience from pre-pregnancy through post-partum. She is also the former Principal Investigator of the Black Rainbow Justice Initiative (BRJI) study. The study explored the perspectives and experiences of birthing people and their partners' desires in family planning. Dr. Robinson is also a former advisor of Vital Village's Birth Equity Coalition Governance Design Team for the Greater Boston area.
Additional media outlets for which Dr. Robinson has communicated her knowledge and expertise include features on and with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, CBS News, Boston University, the Birth Squad Podcast, Tufts Now, the Aspen Institute, Michigan State University, Massachusetts Hospital Association, and the Crossing the Chasm podcast channel.
Within the realm of food and nutrition, Dr. Robinson is a Co-Investigator and Cultural Advisor of a $6M NIH-funded Food is Medicine Initiative known as Delta GREENS (Growing a Resilient, Enriching, Equitable Nourishing food System). This ongoing FIM project aims to boost the Mississippi Delta's local food economy and address chronic health disparities. Dr. Robinson and colleagues have published findings from this study in the American Journal of Public Health, with Dr. Robinson serving as first and corresponding author. She is also co-author of the 2024 Food is Medicine Research Action Plan delivered by the Aspen Institute- a nationwide action plan that communicates to readers a list of recommendations for addressing nutritional health needs for all.
Dr. Robinson is credited as co-author of the proposal for the inaugural Tufts Center for Black Maternal Health and Reproductive Justice via her advisement, arrangement, and writing of the Center's initial budget and original unit lead positions. She also served as the Center's first MOTHER Lab Unit Lead. Additional past reflections of her leadership include her former role as Public Health Advisor of the birthing app known as Birth-by-Us- a management tool used to help birthing moms navigate their reproductive experience from pre-pregnancy through post-partum. She is also the former Principal Investigator of the Black Rainbow Justice Initiative (BRJI) study. The study explored the perspectives and experiences of birthing people and their partners' desires in family planning. Dr. Robinson is also a former advisor of Vital Village's Birth Equity Coalition Governance Design Team for the Greater Boston area.
Additional media outlets for which Dr. Robinson has communicated her knowledge and expertise include features on and with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, CBS News, Boston University, the Birth Squad Podcast, Tufts Now, the Aspen Institute, Michigan State University, Massachusetts Hospital Association, and the Crossing the Chasm podcast channel.