Polina V. Kukhareva

Polina V. Kukhareva, PhD, MPH, FAMIA

Languages spoken: Russian, English

Academic Information

Departments Primary - Biomedical Informatics

Dr. Kukhareva is a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Utah. She earned her Ph.D. in Biomedical Informatics at the University of Utah and her M.P.H in Biostatistics at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Her research interests include evaluating innovative digital health solutions to enhance healthcare outcomes and reduce costs. Her research, grounded in rigorous evidence-based methods, explores both the clinical benefits of these solutions and their impact on health equity. With expertise in analyzing large-scale real-world electronic health record (EHR) data, Dr. Kukhareva has overseen the evaluation of over 20 digital health solutions catering to both healthcare providers and patients. These solutions address a broad range of healthcare topics including lung cancer screening, neonatal bilirubin management, sepsis, diabetes pharmacotherapy, diabetic ketoacidosis, weight management, opioid overuse, telemetry overutilization, laboratory test ordering, and others. Further, she developed a theoretical framework designed to guide the evaluation of digital health interventions known as Evaluation in Life Cycle of Health information Technology (ELICIT). Her contributions not only illuminate the transformative potential of digital health but also underscore the critical importance of rigorous evaluation.

Education History

Undergraduate Saint Petersburg State University
 BS
Graduate Training Saint Petersburg State University
 MSc
Graduate Training University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
 MPH
Graduate Training University of Utah School of Medicine
 PhD

Selected Publications

Journal Article

  1. Kawamoto K, Kukhareva PV, Weir C, Flynn MC, Nanjo CJ, Martin DK, Warner PB, Shields DE, Rodriguez-Loya S, Bradshaw RL, Cornia RC, Reese TJ, Kramer HS, Taft T, Curran RL, Morgan KL, Borbolla D, Hightower M, Turnbull WJ, Strong MB, Chapman WW, Gregory T, Stipelman CH, Shakib JH, Hess R, Boltax JP, Habboushe JP, Sakaguchi F, Turner KM, Narus SP, Tarumi S, Takeuchi W, Ban H, Wetter DW, Lam C, Caverly TJ, Fagerlin A, Norlin C, Malone DC, Kaphingst KA, Kohlmann WK, Brooke BS, Del Fiol G (2021). Establishing a multidisciplinary initiative for interoperable electronic health record innovations at an academic medical center. JAMIA Open, 4(3), ooab041.
  2. Horton DJ, Graves KK, Kukhareva PV, Johnson SA, Cedillo M, Sanford M, Dunson WA Jr, White M, Roach D, Arego JJ, Kawamoto K (2020). Modified early warning score-based clinical decision support: cost impact and clinical outcomes in sepsis. JAMIA Open, 3(2), 261-268.
  3. Curran RL, Kukhareva PV, Taft T, Weir CR, Reese TJ, Nanjo C, Rodriguez-Loya S, Martin DK, Warner PB, Shields DE, Flynn MC, Boltax JP, Kawamoto K (2020). Integrated displays to improve chronic disease management in ambulatory care: A SMART on FHIR application informed by mixed-methods user testing. J Am Med Inform Assoc, 27(8), 1225-1234.
  4. Ciarkowski CE, Timbrook TT, Kukhareva PV, Edholm KM, Hatton ND, Hopkins CL, Thomas F, Sanford MN, Igumnova E, Benefield RJ, Kawamoto K, Spivak ES (2020). A Pathway for Community-Acquired Pneumonia With Rapid Conversion to Oral Therapy Improves Health Care Value. Open Forum Infect Dis, 7(11), ofaa497.
  5. Horton DJ, Yarbrough PM, Wanner N, Murphy RD, Kukhareva PV, Kawamoto K (2017). Improving Physician Communication With Patients as Measured by HCAHPS Using a Standardized Communication Model. Am J Med Qual, 32(6), 617-624.
  6. Yarbrough PM, Kukhareva PV, Horton D, Edholm K, Kawamoto K (2016). Multifaceted intervention including education, rounding checklist implementation, cost feedback, and financial incentives reduces inpatient laboratory costs. J Hosp Med, 11(5), 348-54.
  7. Yarbrough PM, Kukhareva PV, Spivak ES, Hopkins C, Kawamoto K (2015). Evidence-based care pathway for cellulitis improves process, clinical, and cost outcomes. J Hosp Med, 10(12), 780-6.
  8. Hoffman IF, Latkin CA, Kukhareva PV, Malov SV, Batluk JV, Shaboltas AV, Skochilov RV, Sokolov NV, Verevochkin SV, Hudgens MG, Kozlov A (2013). A peer-educator network HIV prevention intervention among injection drug users: results of a randomized controlled trial in St. Petersburg, Russia. AIDS and behavior, 17(7), 2510-20.
  9. Tarumi S, Takeuchi W, Chalkidis G, Rodriguez-Loya S, Kuwata J, Flynn M, Turner KM, Sakaguchi FH, Weir C, Kramer H, Shields DE, Warner PB, Kukhareva P, Ban H, Kawamoto (2021). Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Improve Chronic Disease Care: Methods and Application to Pharmacotherapy Decision Support for Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus. Methods of information in medicine, 60(S 01), e32-e43.
  10. Edholm K, Lappé K, Kukhareva P, Hopkins C, Hatton ND, Gebhart B, Nyman H, Signor E, Davis M, Kawamoto K, Johnson S (2020). Reducing Diabetic Ketoacidosis Intensive Care Unit Admissions Through an Electronic Health Record-Driven, Standardized Care Pathway. Journal for healthcare quality, 42(5), e66-e74.
  11. Bradley S, Harwell C, Kukhareva P, Yarbrough P, Hall S (2021). Osteoporosis Care Following Incidental Vertebral Fractures: a Retrospective Cohort Study. Journal of general internal medicine, 36(6), 1797-1798.
  12. Reese TJ, Del Fiol G, Tonna JE, Kawamoto K, Segall N, Weir C, Macpherson BC, Kukhareva P, Wright M (2020). Impact of integrated graphical display on expert and novice diagnostic performance in critical care. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 27(8), 1287-1292.
  13. Kawamoto K, Kukhareva P, Shakib JH, Kramer H, Rodriguez S, Warner PB, Shields D, Weir C, Del Fiol G, Taft T, Stipelman C (2019). Association of an Electronic Health Record Add-on App for Neonatal Bilirubin Management With Physician Efficiency and Care Quality. JAMA network open, 2(11), e1915343.
  14. Edholm K, Kukhareva P, Ciarkowski C, Carr J, Gill D, Rupp A, Morshedzadeh J, Wanner N, Kawamoto (2018). Decrease in Inpatient Telemetry Utilization Through a System-Wide Electronic Health Record Change and a Multifaceted Hospitalist Intervention. Journal of hospital medicine, 13(8), 531-536.
  15. Kukhareva P, Staes C, Noonan KW, Mueller HL, Warner P, Shields DE, Weeks H, Kawamoto (2017). Single-reviewer electronic phenotyping validation in operational settings: Comparison of strategies and recommendations. Journal of biomedical informatics, 66, 1-10.
  16. Idrisov B, Sun P, Akhmadeeva L, Arpawong TE, Kukhareva P, Sussman (2013). Immediate and six-month effects of Project EX Russia: a smoking cessation intervention pilot program. Addictive behaviors, 38(8), 2402-8.
  17. Kukhareva P, Weir CR, Staes C, Borbolla D, Slager S, Kawamoto (2018). Integration of Clinical Decision Support and Electronic Clinical Quality Measurement: Domain Expert Insights and Implications for Future Direction. AMIA ... Annual Symposium proceedings. AMIA Symposium, 2018, 700-709.
  18. Reese TJ, Schlechter CR, Kramer H, Kukhareva P, Weir CR, Del Fiol G, Caverly T, Hess R, Flynn MC, Taft T, Kawamoto (2021). Implementing lung cancer screening in primary care: needs assessment and implementation strategy design. Translational behavioral medicine, 12, 187-197.
  19. Kukhareva PV, Caverly TJ, Li H, Katki HA, Cheung LC, Reese TJ, Del Fiol G, Hess R, Wetter DW, Zhang Y, Taft TY, Flynn MC, Kawamoto (2022). Inaccuracies in electronic health records smoking data and a potential approach to address resulting underestimation in determining lung cancer screening eligibility. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 29(5), 779-788.
  20. Kukhareva PV, Weir C, Del Fiol G, Aarons GA, Taft TY, Schlechter CR, Reese TJ, Curran RL, Nanjo C, Borbolla D, Staes CJ, Morgan KL, Kramer HS, Stipelman CH, Shakib JH, Flynn MC, Kawamoto (2022). Evaluation in Life Cycle of Information Technology (ELICIT) framework: Supporting the innovation life cycle from business case assessment to summative evaluation. Journal of biomedical informatics, 127, 104014.
  21. Wei DH, Kukhareva PV, Tao D, Sordo M, Pandita D, Dua P, Banerjee I, Abraham (2022). Assessing perceived effectiveness of career development efforts led by the women in American Medical Informatics Association Initiative. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 29(9), 1593-1606.
  22. Balch H, Gradick C, Kukhareva PV, Wanner (2022). Association of Mobile Workstations and Rounding-in-Flow with Resident Efficiency: A Controlled Study at an Academic Internal Medicine Department. Journal of general internal medicine, 37(14), 3700-3706.
  23. Morgan KL, Kukhareva PV, Warner PB, Wilkof J, Snyder M, Horton D, Madsen T, Habboushe J, Kawamoto (2022). Using CDS Hooks to increase SMART on FHIR app utilization: a cluster-randomized trial. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 29(9), 1461-1470.
  24. Kukhareva PV, Li H, Caverly TJ, Del Fiol G, Fagerlin A, Butler JM, Hess R, Zhang Y, Taft T, Flynn MC, Reddy C, Martin DK, Warner IA, Rodriguez-Loya S, Warner PB, Kawamoto (2023). Implementation of Lung Cancer Screening in Primary Care and Pulmonary Clinics: Pragmatic Clinical Trial of Electronic Health Record-Integrated Everyday Shared Decision-Making Tool and Clinician-Facing Prompts. Chest, 164(5), 1325-1338.
  25. Stevens ER, Caverly T, Butler JM, Kukhareva P, Richardson S, Mann DM, Kawamoto (2023). Considerations for using predictive models that include race as an input variable: The case study of lung cancer screening. Journal of biomedical informatics, 147, 104525.
  26. Cresswell K, Rigby M, Magrabi F, Scott P, Brender J, Craven CK, Wong ZS, Kukhareva P, Ammenwerth E, Georgiou A, Medlock S, De Keizer NF, Nykänen P, Prgomet M, Williams (2023). The need to strengthen the evaluation of the impact of Artificial Intelligence-based decision support systems on healthcare provision. Health policy (Amsterdam, Netherlands), 136, 104889.
  27. Scott P, Kuziemsky C, Zhu X, Nøhr C, Ammenwerth E, Kukhareva P, Peute L, Marcilly (2023). One Health: Insights from Organizational & Social, Technology Assessment and Human Factors Perspectives. Yearbook of medical informatics, 32(1), 76-83.
  28. Cedillo M, Kukhareva PV, Larsen SM, McTigue KM, Bryce CL, Barone Gibbs B, Hess R, Huber K, Conroy M (2023). Impact of electronic health record-coaching features in weight change: A secondary analysis from the MAINTAIN-pc randomized trial. Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.), 31(1), 31-36.
  29. Conroy MB, Cedillo M, Jordanova K, Zepeda J, Kiraly B, Flynn M, Wu C, Kukhareva PV, Butler JM, Hess R, Greene T, Kawamoto (2024). Implementing weight maintenance with existing staff and electronic health record tools in a primary care setting: Baseline results from the MAINTAIN PRIME trial. Contemporary clinical trials, 141, 107520.
  30. Kukhareva PV, Weir CR, Cedillo M, Taft T, Butler JM, Rudd EA, Zepeda J, Zheutlin E, Kiraly B, Flynn M, Conroy MB, Kawamoto (2024). Design and implementation of electronic health record-based tools to support a weight management program in primary care. JAMIA open, 7(2), ooae038.
  31. Kukhareva PV, Li H, Caverly TJ, Fagerlin A, Del Fiol G, Hess R, Zhang Y, Butler JM, Schlechter C, Flynn MC, Reddy C, Choi J, Balbin C, Warner IA, Warner PB, Nanjo C, Kawamoto (2024). Lung Cancer Screening Before and After a Multifaceted Electronic Health Record Intervention: A Nonrandomized Controlled Trial. JAMA network open, 7(6), e2415383.
  32. Cresswell K, de Keizer N, Magrabi F, Williams R, Rigby M, Prgomet M, Kukhareva P, Wong ZS, Scott P, Craven CK, Georgiou A, Medlock S, Brender McNair J, Ammenwerth (2024). Evaluating Artificial Intelligence in Clinical Settings-Let Us Not Reinvent the Wheel. Journal of medical Internet research, 26, e46407.
  33. Tiase VL, Richards G, Taft T, Stevens L, Balbin C, Kaphingst KA, Fagerlin A, Caverly T, Kukhareva P, Flynn M, Butler JM, Kawamoto (2024). Patient Perspectives on a Patient-Facing Tool for Lung Cancer Screening. Health expectations, 27(4), e14143.
  34. Cedillo M, Zepeda J, Kiraly B, Flynn M, Larios Elizalde P, Zheutlin E, Rudd EA, Kukhareva PV, Butler JM, Hess R, Kawamoto K, Estabrooks P, Conroy M (2024). Scalable and successful patient portal lifestyle coaching training for primary care clinical staff. Translational behavioral medicine, 14(11), 661-672.
  35. Kukhareva PV, Facelli JC, O'Brien MJ, Gouripeddi R, Kawamoto K, Zhang Y, Reddy D, Malone D (2024). Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Prescribing of GLP-1 Receptor Agonists in the United States: A Retrospective Cohort Analysis.
  36. Kukhareva P, Balbin C, Stevens E, Mann D, Tiase V, Butler J, Del Fiol G, Caverly T, Kaphingst K, Schlechter CR, Fagerlin A, Li H, Zhang Y, Hess R, Flynn M, Reddy C, Warner P, Choi J, Martin D, Nanjo C, Metzger Q, Kawamoto (2024). The MyLungHealth study protocol: a pragmatic patient-randomised controlled trial to evaluate a patient-centred, electronic health record-integrated intervention to enhance lung cancer screening in primary care. BMJ open, 14(12), e087056.
  37. Kukhareva PV, O'Brien MJ, Malone DC, Kawamoto K, Gouripeddi R, Reddy D, Zhang M, Deshmukh VG, Danks D, Facelli J (2025). Documentation of social determinants of health for patients with type 2 diabetes in Epic Cosmos. JAMIA open, 8(5), ooaf095.
  38. Kukhareva PV, Li H, Balbin C, Stevens ER, Mann DM, Butler JM, Caverly TJ, Del Fiol G, Kaphingst KA, Schlechter CR, Tiase VL, Fagerlin A, Zhang Y, Hess R, Flynn MC, Reddy C, Martin D, Warner PB, Nanjo C, Choi J, Ngo-Metzger Q, Kawamoto (2025). Enhancement of Patient-Centered Lung Cancer Screening: The MyLungHealth Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA oncology, 12(2), 167-176.
  39. Del Fiol G, Borsato E, Bradshaw RL, Bian J, Woodbury A, Gauchel C, Eilbeck KL, Maxwell W, Ellis K, Madeo AC, Schlechter C, Kukhareva PV, Allen CG, Kean M, Elkin EB, Sharaf R, Ahsan MD, Frey M, Davis-Rivera L, Kohlmann WK, Wetter DW, Kaphingst KA, Kawamoto (2026). GARDE-Chat: a scalable, open-source platform for building and deploying health chatbots. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association,

Review

  1. Stipelman CH, Kukhareva PV, Trepman E, Nguyen QT, Valdez L, Kenost C, Hightower M, Kawamoto (2022). Electronic Health Record-Integrated Clinical Decision Support for Clinicians Serving Populations Facing Health Care Disparities: Literature Review. Yearbook of medical informatics, 31(1), 184-198.
  2. Cresswell K, Rigby M, Georgiou A, Wong ZS, Kukhareva P, Medlock S, De Keizer NF, Magrabi F, Scott P, Ammenwerth (2022). The Role of Formative Evaluation in Promoting Digitally-based Health Equity and Reducing Bias for Resilient Health Systems: The Case of Patient Portals. Yearbook of medical informatics, 31(1), 33-39.
  3. Jiménez F, Kurtzman RT, Nwefo R, Kukhareva PV, Ozkaynak M, Desai PJ, CDSiC Measurement and Outcomes Workgroup, Dullabh PM, Hamlin B, Kandawamy S, Nelson Q, Owora AH, Peterson T, Schreiber R, Singh J, Sittig (2025). Measurement and Outcomes Workgroup: Considerations for Minimizing Respondent Burden in Collecting Data for Patient-Centered Clinical Decision Support. AHRQ WebM&M,

Book Chapter

  1. Kukhareva PV, Weir (2022). Health Informatics Program Evaluation – Tools and Frameworks.

Conference Proceedings

  1. Kukhareva PV, Kawamoto K, Shields DE, Barfuss DT, Halley AM, Tippetts TJ, Warner PB, Bray BE, Staes C (2014). Clinical Decision Support-based Quality Measurement (CDS-QM) Framework: Prototype Implementation, Evaluation, and Future Directions. AMIA ... Annual Symposium proceedings. AMIA Symposium, 2014, 825-34.
  2. Tippetts TJ, Warner PB, Kukhareva PV, Shields DE, Staes CJ, Kawamoto (2015). Challenges and Solutions in Optimizing Execution Performance of a Clinical Decision Support-Based Quality Measurement (CDS-QM) Framework. AMIA ... Annual Symposium proceedings. AMIA Symposium, 2015, 1194-203.
  3. Kawamanto K, Flynn MC, Kukhareva P, ElHalta D, Hess R, Gregory T, Walls C, Wigren AM, Borbolla D, Bray BE, Parsons MH, Clayson BL, Briley MS, Stipelman CH, Taylor D, King CS, Del Fiol G, Reese TJ, Weir CR, Taft T, Strong M (2018). A Pragmatic Guide to Establishing Clinical Decision Support Governance and Addressing Decision Support Fatigue: a Case Study. AMIA ... Annual Symposium proceedings. AMIA Symposium, 2018, 624-633.
  4. Kukhareva P (2017). Standardized Approaches for Analyzing Quality Improvement Interventions in Healthcare Settings. 2014,
  5. Kukhareva PV, Roggenkamp K, Carpenter (2014). Quick Analysis and Visualization of Excluded and Missing Data. 2014,
  6. Kukhareva PV, Roggenkamp (2013). Customized Comparison Tables for Clinical Studies. 2013,
  7. Kukhareva P (2013). Cox Proportional Hazard Model Evaluation in One Shot. 2013,
  8. Kukhareva PV, Warner P, Rodriguez S, Kramer H, Weir C, Nanjo C, et a (2019). Balancing Functionality versus Portability for SMART on FHIR Applications: Case Study for a Neonatal Bilirubin Management Application. 2019, 562-71.
  9. Kukhareva PV, Weir CR, Staes C, Borbolla D, Slager S, Kawamoto (2018). Integration of Clinical Decision Support and Electronic Clinical Quality Measurement: Domain Expert Insights and Implications for Future Direction. 2018, 700-709.

Letter

  1. Kukhareva P, Caverly T, Kawamoto (2022). Re: Inaccuracies in electronic health records smoking data and a potential approach to address resulting underestimation in determining lung cancer screening eligibility. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 29(9), 1655.