Researcher | Research Overview
Dr. Christy L. Cummings’ research and scholarly activities focus broadly on medical ethics and humanism and their intersection with medical education in pediatrics and neonatology, as well as counseling and communication. She is passionate about research that cultivates the moral, human aspect of medicine. Recent work has involved the ethics of parental counseling surrounding emerging technologies in pediatric medicine. Dr. Cummings is currently researching the acquisition of ethical principles and knowledge during training, including interpersonal competence and professionalism, via simulation and enacted role-play. She is developing a global curriculum in Ethics and Professionalism in Neonatology through OPENPediatricsTM. She is also conducting research on optimizing prenatal counseling for families facing extremely premature delivery. Recent work has appeared in Pediatrics, Hastings Center Report, J Perinatology, J Pediatrics, AJOB and Journal of Medical Ethics. Dr. Cummings is the mother of 4 young children, and enjoys time with her family, running, swimming, reading and playing the ‘cello.
Researcher | Research Background
A graduate of Colby College, Dr. Cummings received her medical degree from the University of Rochester, and training in pediatrics, neonatology and ethics at Yale. She participated in Yale’s Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics Program in Bioethics (2011) and completed the Fellowship Program in Medical Ethics through the Division of Medical Ethics at Harvard Medical School (2012-2013). Dr. Cummings is currently an Assistant Professor in Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and an attending neonatologist in the Division of Newborn Medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. As an Ethics Associate, she is a member of the Ethics Advisory Committee at Boston Children’s Hospital, and is Director of Medical Ethics & Humanities for the Division of Newborn Medicine. Dr. Cummings also serves on the hospital’s Institutional Review Board.