Elizabeth Nesoff, PhD, MPH

Dr. Nesoff is a social epidemiologist focused on the intersection of substance use, the neighborhood environment, injury prevention, and health disparities. Her current research uses spatial analysis methods to investigate the relationship between modifiable neighborhood features and opioid overdose risk. Her research has been funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Her current projects, funded by NIH/NIDA, use mixed quantitative and qualitative methods to investigate how the neighborhood- built environment impacts mental health and opioid overdose risk. The first phase of this research combines GIS, spatial analysis, and systematic social observation methods to explore changing patterns in drug use, including types of drugs used, locations where drugs are used, and associated overdose risk. The second phase involves in-depth interviews with people who use drugs to better understand how place impacts how, where, and why people use drugs and implications for overdose prevention. Other recently-funded projects include an investigation of the impact of community infrastructure reinvestment programs on opioid misuse and opioid overdose in Philadelphia.

Dr. Nesoff has received several awards for her research, including an early career investigator award from the College on Problems of Drug Dependence.