Population Studies and Training Center

Michael Silverstein, M.D., is the Director of the Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute and a George Hazard Crocker University Professor of Health Services, Policy, and Practice at Brown University School of Public Health. The primary work of the Hassenfeld Institute is to understand population trends in mental health for children and families, and to develop and test interventions to improve population health. Prior to joining Brown University in the Fall of 2021, Dr. Silverstein was Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Director of the Division of General Academic Pediatrics, and Vice Chair of Research for the Department of Pediatrics at the Boston University School of Medicine. He also worked as a pediatrician at Boston Medical Center, New England’s largest safety net hospital.

Since 2016, Dr. Silverstein has served as a member of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which develops guidelines for clinical preventive services in the United States (for example, screening for breast cancer with mammography) based on their population level impact, and was appointed Vice Chair in 2023. He is particularly interested in the hazards posed by the 'medicalization' of social phenomena, and the benefits and limitations of the healthcare system's ability to deal with health related social needs.