Richard M. Fairbanks
School of Public Health

Phone:

(317) 274-2918

Email:

yw54@iu.edu

Departments:

Environmental Health Science

Additional Appointments:

Adjunct Associate Professor of Epidemiology

Degrees:

Postdoctoral Fellowship, Epidemiology, Brown University

PhD, Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan

MS, Environmental Toxicology, University of California, Irvine

BS, Biopharmaceutical Sciences, Shenyang College of Pharmacy

Biography

Rooted in his training in biomedical bench research, pharmacy and public health statistics, Dr. Wang approaches healthcare issues through both the individual and population lens. He conducts epidemiological research that examines how neighborhood-level factors (e.g. air pollution, urban environment) influence health (e.g. asthma, depression, cardiovascular diseases). He actively partners with multi-sectorial stakeholders on research projects that generate positive community and social impact. Trained in pharmacy, he is also interested in the biological mechanisms behind statistical inference drawn in daily epidemiological research.

Dr. Wang has strong expertise in digital health and pharmaceuticals. He received postdoctoral training in epidemiology from Brown University after obtaining his PhD in Environmental Epidemiology from University of Michigan School of Public Health. Prior to becoming a public health scientist, he spent two years doing bench science in toxicology and worked in pharmaceutical industry as a business development associate after his undergraduate training in pharmaceutical engineering.

Research Interests

Dr. Wang currently conducts epidemiological research that examines how neighborhood-level factors (e.g. air pollution, urban environment, and climate change) influence non-communicable diseases (e.g. asthma, depression, cardiovascular diseases). He actively partners with multi-sectorial stakeholders on research projects that generate positive community and social impact.

Selected Publications

1. Wang Y., Goodrich JM., Werner, RA., Gillespie BW., Basu N., Franzblau A. 2011. Agreement between clinical screening procedures for neuropathy in the feet. Muscle & Nerve. 45 (5): 653-658
2. Wang Y., Goodrich JM., Gillespie BW., Werner, RA., Basu N., Franzblau A. 2012. An investigation of modifying effects of metallothionein single nucleotide polymorphisms on the association between mercury exposure and biomarker levels. Environmental Health Perspective 120(4): 530-534
3. Wang Y., Eliot M., Koutrakis P., Gryparis A., Schwartz J., Coull BA., Mittleman MA., Milberg WP., Lipsitz LA., Wellenius GA. 2014. Ambient air pollution and prevalence of depressive symptoms in older adults. Environmental Health Perspective. 122:553-558
4. Wang Y., Eliot M., Wellenius GA. 2014. Short-term Changes in ambient particulate matter and risk of stroke: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of American Heart Association. 3:e000983
5. Wang Y., Wellenius GA., Hickson DA., Gjelsvik A., Eaton CB., Wyatt, SB. 2016. Residential Proximity to Traffic-related Pollution and Atherosclerosis in Four Vascular Beds among African American Adults: Results from the Jackson Heart Study (JHS), American Journal of Epidemiology, 184 (10): 732-743.doi: 10.1093/aje/kww080