Assistant Professor
University of Maryland
Dr Smith’s previous work focused on COVID-19 surveillance and contact tracing for acute care hospitals. More specifically, she led a team of contact tracers to help identify clusters of infections among employees and analyzed the data to describe the risk factors associated with COVID-19 transmission. In addition, she conducted exposure investigations on COVID-19 positive patients in the hospital and helped used genomic sequencing to clarify transmission pathways among various individuals. She is also a member of the Maryland Statewide Prevention and Reduction Collaborative (SPARC) helping to organize weekly seminars to facilitate learning about COVID-19 and other emerging pathogens between different hospitals in the state, the state health department, and local academic institutions. Her current research interests include infection control in long term care settings and health equity. Dr Smith’s goal is to continue to use clinical knowledge and applied epidemiology skills to work with different public health partners.