Bio

Lisa Patel received her undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences from Stanford University. After college, she worked in Egypt, Brazil, and India on international development projects with community-based organizations and non-profits, focusing on conservation and development efforts. She then obtained her Master's in Environmental Sciences from the Yale School of the Environment and went on to be a Presidential Management Fellow for the Environmental Protection Agency, coordinating the US Government's efforts on clean air and safe drinking water projects in South Asia in collaboration with the World Health Organization. Realizing the critical and inextricable links between children's health and environmental issues, she obtained her medical degree from Johns Hopkins University and completed her residency in pediatrics at UCSF. For the last several years, she has used her extensive experience working for government, community organizations, and non-profits to advocate for children's health priorities in the US. She is previously the co-chair for the American Academy of Pediatrics Advocacy Committee, California Chapter 1 (AAP-CA1) and in her time helped launch the inaugural Advocating for Children Together conference for Northern California that is now a yearly occurrence. She co-founded the Climate and Health task force for AAP-CA1, and sits on the Executive Committee for the AAP's national Council on Environmental Health and Climate Change. She is formerly the rotation director for the pediatric resident's Community Pediatrics and Child Advocacy Rotation. She is currently the Executive Director for the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health and maintains a clinical practice as a pediatric hospitalist caring for newborns, premature infants, and children requiring hospitalization. She also sits on the Board of Our Children's Trust, the legal organization that represented youth in Held v. Montana.

Her work has appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine, the New York Times, the LA Times, Bloomberg News, and multiple state and local outlets. She is interviewed regularly for her expertise on climate, health, and equity for major national media outlets like the Washington Post, US News and World Report, CNN, among others.

Clinical Focus

  • Pediatric Hospital Medicine

Academic Appointments

Administrative Appointments

  • Executive Director, Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health (2023 - Present)
  • Deputy Executive Director, Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health (2022 - 2022)
  • Co-Director of the Climate, Health, and Equity Task Force, Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy and Asthma Research (2021 - 2023)
  • Director of the Community Pediatrics and Child Advocacy Rotation, Stanford (2019 - 2021)

Honors & Awards

  • Trudy A. Specinar Award, national honor for significant contributions by new employees to the EPA, Environmental Protection Agency (2007)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations

  • Member, Board of Directors, Our Children's Trust (2021 - Present)
  • Executive Committee Member, Council on Environmental Health, American Academy of Pediatrics (2020 - Present)
  • Faculty Fellow, Center for Innovation in Global Health (CIGH) (2020 - Present)
  • Co-Chair of the Climate and Health Task Force, American Academy of Pediatrics, California Chapter 1 (2019 - 2022)
  • Co-Chair, Advocacy Committee, American Academy of Pediatrics, California Chapter 1 (2017 - 2019)

Professional Education

  • Board Certification: American Board of Pediatrics, Pediatrics (2014)
  • Residency: UCSF Pediatric Residency (2014) CA
  • Medical Education: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (2011) MD
  • MESc, Yale School of the Environment, CT (2005)

Contact

  • Academic
    University - Academic staff Department: Peds/Hospital Medicine Position: Clinical Associate Professor
    • 5555 W. LAS POSITAS BLVD
    • PLEASANTON,  California  94588 
  • Clinical (Primary)  Stanford Healthcare Tri-Valley Hospital 5555 W Las Positas Blvd Pleasanton, CA 94588 (925) 416-3539 (fax)

Additional Clinical Info

Additional Info

  • Mail Code: 6019

Links

2023-24 Courses

All Publications

  • A model for comprehensive climate and medical education Lancet Planetary Health Jowell, A., Lachenauer, A., Lu, J., Maines, B., Patel, L., et al 2023
  • Characterization and regulation of microplastic pollution for protecting planetary and human health. Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987) Jung, Y. S., Sampath, V., Prunicki, M., Aguilera, J., Allen, H., LaBeaud, D., Veidis, E., Barry, M., Erny, B., Patel, L., Akdis, C., Akdis, M., Nadeau, K. 2022: 120442

    Abstract

    Microplastics are plastic particles <5 mm in diameter. Since the 1950s, there has been an exponential increase in the production of plastics. As of 2015, it is estimated that approximately 6300 million metric tons of plastic waste had been generated of which 79% has accumulated in landfills or the natural environment. Further, it is estimated that if current trends continue, roughly 12,000 million metric tons of plastic waste will accumulate by 2050. Plastics and microplastics are now found ubiquitously-in the air, water, and soil. Microplastics are small enough to enter the tissues of plants and animals and have been detected in human lungs, stools, placentas, and blood. Their presence in human tissues and the food chain is a cause for concern. While direct clinical evidence or epidemiological studies on the adverse effects of microplastic on human health are lacking, in vitro cellular and tissue studies and in vivo animal studies suggest potential adverse effects. With the ever-increasing presence of plastic waste in our environment, it is critical to understand their effects on our environment and on human health. The use of plastic additives, many of which have known toxic effects are also of concern. This review provides a brief overview of microplastics and the extent of the microplastic problem. There have been a few inroads in regulating plastics but currently these are insufficient to adequately mitigate plastic pollution. We also review recent advances in microplastic testing methodologies, which should support management and regulation of plastic wastes. Significant efforts to reduce, reuse, and recycle plastics are needed at the individual, community, national, and international levels to meet the challenge. In particular, significant reductions in plastic production must occur to curb the impacts of plastic on human and worldwide health, given the fact that plastic is not truly recyclable.

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120442

    View details for PubMedID 36272609

  • How Should We Better Manage Human and Planetary Health in a Next Pandemic? AMA journal of ethics Patel, L., Lichter, K. E. 2022; 24 (10): E980-985

    Abstract

    Health care generates a lot of waste that enters landfills, oceans, and incinerators and adversely affects the health of persons and communities close to waste processing and disposal areas. This article considers the nature and scope of individuals' and organizations' disposal responsibilities and discusses personal protective equipment use and waste during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    View details for DOI 10.1001/amajethics.2022.980

    View details for PubMedID 36215190

  • Climate Change and Extreme Heat Events: How Health Systems Should Prepare New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst Patel, L., Conlon, K., et al 2022

    View details for DOI 10.1056/CAT.21.0454

  • The Inflation Reduction Act - a Historic Piece of Climate and Health Legislation Journal of Climate and Health Rudolph, L., Beyeler, N., Patel, L. 2022

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.joclim.2022.100172

  • Integrating climate change education into board certification for pediatricians: A model for other specialties Journal of Climate and Health Patel, L., Byron, L., Maher, K. 2022

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.joclim.2021.100093

  • Organizing to advance equitable climate and health solutions: The medical society consortium on climate and health Journal of Climate and health Sarfaty, M., Duritz, N., Gould, R., Mitchell, M., Patel, L., et al 2022

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.joclim.2022.100174

  • Air Pollution as a Social and Structural Determinant of Health Journal of Climate Change and Health Patel, L., et al 2021

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.joclim.2021.100035

  • COVID-19 Solutions Are Climate Solutions: Lessons From Reusable Gowns Frontiers in Public Health Baker, N. M., Bromley-Dulfano, R., Chan, J., Gupta, A., Herman, L., Jain, N., Taylor, A. L., Lu, J., Pannu, J., Patel, L., Prunicki, M. 2020

    View details for DOI 10.3389/fpubh.2020.590275