Dr. Kuo is Director of the Division of Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention in the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and the Director of the Office of Senior Health for the County of Los Angeles. He is also an associate professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with joint appointments in the David Geffen School of Medicine and the Fielding School of Public Health. In his government and academic roles, he oversees a broad scope of work, ranging from tobacco control policy development to health systems change that promotes increased access to clinical preventive services among low-income populations.
Dr. Kuo’s interest in helping to shape the healthcare and research professions is driven by his own experiences and appreciation for the training opportunities he has had, which collectively have taught him the value of integrating both scientific rigor and pragmatic decision-making in his work. As a member of the Advisory Board for the PRIME-LA program at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, Dr. Kuo shares these lessons with medical students through recruitment and mentorship. Through this and other teaching opportunities, he has sought to help professionals, early in their careers, understand the critical dynamics between individual health and the systems, environments, and social conditions that affect it.
Dr. Kuo has more than 15 years of clinical practice and research experience. His body of work reflects his interest in the nexus between policy, research, community activation, and health and public health practice. For example, as a NRSA fellow, he conducted a statewide job analysis of licensed acupuncturists, the results of which helped inform statewide dialogue that led to legislation for improving the credentialing of this profession. More recently, his work has helped to improve hypertension control and prevent diabetes in Los Angeles County and in California. This latter work utilizes implementation and improvement science methods to help facilitate increased utilization of team-based care to improve patient outcomes – e.g., use of pharmacists in comprehensive medication therapy management and community health workers for helping low-income patients navigate the healthcare system.
Dr. Kuo presently serves on a number of boards and leadership councils, including the LAC+USC Foundation and The Wellness Center at the Historic General Hospital, the American Heart Association’s Western States Affiliate Commission of the Blood Pressure Task Force, the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Diabetes Association, the California Chronic Disease Prevention Leadership Project, the Public Health Alliance of Southern California, and the Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging. He also co-leads the Population Health Program at the UCLA Clinical and Translation Science Institute. Through these roles, he has been able to disseminate scientific evidence directly to high-need communities, so they can benefit from the implementation of best practices for health and social services delivery.
Dr. Kuo recognizes the importance of having real world data inform practice and to steer resource allocation. As a result, he has authored or co-authored more than 140 peer-reviewed publications and more than 100 technical papers including book chapters, CME articles, and policy briefs. He has served as Principal Investigator, Co-Principal Investigator, Co-Investigator, or key personnel in more than 30 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, foundation (e.g., RWJF, Blue Shield of California Foundation), and California state government contracts and grants.
Dr. Kuo received his Medical Degree from the University of Utah School of Medicine and his Master’s in Health Services from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. He is boarded in Family Medicine and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians.