Equity Collaborative Group (ECG).

ECG is Dr. Romesh P. Nalliah's public health research lab.

Dr. Romesh P. Nalliah dental career began in the chair of a Dental Therapist in Melbourne, Australia. Nalliah was a refugee from Sri Lanka and it was his first dental check-up in memory. He required eight pulpotomies and was terrified, but he knew he had to cooperate. As a refugee, the young Dr. Nalliah lacked many things – trendy clothes, the latest sneakers and money for the tuckshop. But there was one thing that he could access that was exactly the same as everyone else in Australia – access to healthcare.

The health system in Australia was a blessing to Dr. Nalliah and his family. “From an early age I knew I owed that system and I intended to pay it back” said Nalliah. That is why he became a dentist and served in public health. Throughout his career, there is a thread of public health, service and the pursuit of equity that begins with his first job for SADS. All of his research relates to his values in equity, transparency and public health. Public health is not just an interest of his – it is his life’s work. Dr. Nalliah has pursued experiences, skills, and formal training in this field from the day he entered dental school.

Public health is not just the delivery of care to the underserved – it is any population level initiative that improves health and includes quality, patient safety, education and numerous other matters. At its core, effective public health is richly interdisciplinary, sustainable, involves complex negotiations and continuous improvement. Dr. Nalliah is the Dean for Patient Services at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry which is currently ranked as the number one dental school in the United States. There is great alignment with the discipline of public health and his role as Dean for Patient Services.

Dr. Nalliah leads the clinical program at the School of Dentistry which boasts 16 unique clinics including a community health center, a special care dentistry clinic, several undergraduate and graduate teaching clinics, and private dental offices. Each year, these clinics collectively deliver over 200,000 patient visits. He is the Chair of the COVID-19 response taskforce for the School of Dentistry and, along with the Dean, has overseen the school’s response in areas of Patient Care, Human Resources, Building Management, Education and Research.

Dr. Romesh P. Nalliah is also a health services researcher and his focus is process improvement and optimizing resource utilization in healthcare. Dr. Nalliah’s lab, ECG, has published well over 100 papers in peer reviewed journals on public health topics as diverse as firearm injuries, motor vehicle accidents, child abuse, opioid overprescribing and sports injuries. Dr. Nalliah is a practicing dentist and his career began in Australia delivering care in a rural hospital which was the gateway to the Outback. This experience included using a mobile dental van to deliver care to rural-dwelling Aboriginal Australians.

After eight years practicing dentistry full-time (with half a day of teaching per week) Dr. Nalliah was hired as faculty at Harvard University’s School of Dental Medicine in 2008. At Harvard, Dr. Nalliah developed expertise in health services research, curriculum management, and leadership. Dr. Nalliah also completed a Fellowship in Medical Education at Harvard Medical School and a Masters in Healthcare Management at Harvard School of Public Health.

Dr. Nalliah is also a nationally recognized expert in access to care and opioid prescribing. He has been interviewed by numerous news organizations including National Public Radio (NPR), Voices of America, WebMD and Reuters. Dr. Nalliah currently also serves as the Associate Editor for the Journal of Dental Education.

Over the years numerous fellows, research assistants, and volunteers have served in ECG. Overall, we have had the pleasure and privilege to collaborate with 116 unique individuals from 22 different dental schools, 9 different hospitals, 3 different medical schools, 5 other healthcare schools and 5 other organizations. At ECG, we want our research to influence healthcare policy and it's been our privilege to co-author the Dental Opioid prescribing guidelines for Michigan along with Michigan OPEN. Our passion in research is improving healthcare delivery systems and we're interested in improving processes, minimizing inefficiencies, reducing healthcare bottlenecks, increasing quality, and patient safety which will lead to a person-centered, coherent healthcare system.

Finally, we are proud of our track record of mentorship. "Some of my most enjoyable experiences have been giving opportunities to beginner scientists" said Dr. Nalliah. To date, ECG has mentored 45 junior faculty, residents, staff and students on their first scientific publications. At ECG, we want our mentees and team members to be the leaders of tomorrow.