Alexis L. Serra, MD

Growing up in Queens, NY, one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse counties in the US, exposed me to a wonderful mix of cultures, customs, sounds, and values that has shaped my outlook on patient care. It has provided rich context to the importance of addressing the inequities that minoritized populations encounter in healthcare.

I am a physician-scientist with experience leading study operations for single- and multi-site trials, including FDA-regulated drug and device trials from federal, foundation, and industry sponsors. My primary research focus is on the improvement of diversity and representation in critical care clinical trials. This includes the use of clinical trial design and conduct as a means to achieve health equity for critically ill patient populations. I seek to better understand existing drivers for the current lack of representation of minoritized populations in clinical trials, which perpetuates health disparities, and fails to provide the best possible treatment options.
As the Associate Director of the Acute Respiratory Failure and Sepsis Precision Interventions to Raise Health Equity (ASPIRE) Program, I am committed to ensuring equitable access to the trials our team conducts at NYU Langone Health and Bellevue Hospital. We will also share our experiences and strategies to overcome barriers to inclusion with other participating sites in multicenter trials. In this way, we will carry out our program’s mission to accelerate recovery from critical illness by leading equitable, high impact clinical trials to improve public health.