Sara Handley, MD, MSCE
Locations: Main Building
About Sara Handley, MD, MSCE
Sara Handley, MD, MSCE, is an epidemiologist and health services researcher focused on evaluating the impact of the perinatal health care system, including structure, culture, and process, on perinatal outcomes and outcome variation. Perinatal health system factors in her research include perinatal regionalization (i.e. levels of care, risk-appropriate care delivery, geographic differences), organizational culture (i.e. culture of dyad-centered care, or resuscitation teams), and neonatal care processes (i.e. delivery room and in unit resuscitation, moderate and late preterm infant care). Dr. Handley is interested in the interrelated health of the infant and birth parent and the impact of discordance in health system factors between obstetric and neonatal care on outcomes for the birth parent-infant dyad as a whole. Her research is funded by the NIH and conducted in collaboration with colleagues and experts in neonatology, maternal-fetal medicine, biostatistics, organizational behavior, and health care management.
Dr. Handley received her Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota and graduated from the University of Minnesota Medical School. She was a pediatric resident at the University of California San Francisco, where she participated in the Clinical and Translational Research Pathway. While a fellow at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia she was supported by a training grant from the National Institute of Health and received her Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology from the University of Pennsylvania.
Titles
Attending Neonatologist
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Certifications
Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine – American Board of Pediatrics
Pediatrics – American Board of Pediatrics
Awards and Honors
2024, Joan Hodgman State-of-the-Art Lecture, Western Society for Pediatric Research
2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Early Career Faculty Honor Roll, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
2021, Young Investigator Award, Neonatal Resuscitation Program
2017, National Institutes of Health Training Grant
2013-2014, Resident Research Funding, Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, University of California San Francisco
2012, Medical Student Achievement Award, University of Minnesota
2012, Alpha Epsilon Iota Foundation Award, University of Minnesota
2011, Gold Humanism Honor Society
Leadership and Memberships
2021-present, AcademyHealth
2017-present, Society for Pediatric Research 2015-present, American Academy of Pediatrics, Section on Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine
2012-present, American Academy of Pediatrics
- Academic and Institutional Committees
2023-present, Fellowship Scholarship Oversight Committee
2019-present, Clinical Research Committee
2018-2020, 2021-present, Fellowship Recruitment Committee
2018-2020, Fellowship Teaching Initiative Committee 2016-2020, NICU Interprofessional Education Steering Committee
Editorial and Academic Positions
Academic and Institutional Committees
2018-2020, Fellowship Teaching Initiative Committee
2016-2020, NICU Interprofessional Education Steering Committee
2015-present, NICU Codes Committee
Research Interests
- Perinatal/neonatal epidemiology
- Outcome variation
- Organizational culture
Education & training
Graduate Degree
MSCE - Clinical Epidemiology - University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Medical Degree
MD - University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN
Internship
Pediatrics - University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
Residency
Pediatrics - University of California, San Francisco, CA
Fellowship
Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine - Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, PA (Chief Fellow)
Publications
PubMed
Publications
2024
Salazar EG, Passarella M, Formanwoski B, Phibbs CS, Lorch SA, Handley SC: The Impact of Volume and Neonatal Level of Care on Outcomes of Moderate and Late Preterm Infants. Journal of Perinatology February 2024.
Handley SC, Salazar EG, Kunz SN, Lorch SA, Edwards EM: Transfer patterns among infants born at 28 to 34 weeks' gestation. Pediatrics January 2024.
2023
Salazar EG*, Handley SC*, Greenberg LT, Edwards EM, Lorch SA: Association Between Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Type and Quality of Care in Moderate and Late Preterm Infants. JAMA Pediatrics March 2023 Notes: * Indicates co-first authorship.
Kozhimannil KB, Leonard SA, Handley SC, Passarella M, Main EK, Lorch SA, Phibbs CS: Obstetric Volume and Severe Maternal Morbidity Among Low-risk and Higher-risk Patients Giving Birth at Rural and Urban US Hospitals. JAMA Health Forum June 2023.
Handley SC, Formanowski B, Passarella M, Kozhimannil KB, Leonard SA, Main EK, Phibbs CS, Lorch SA: Perinatal Care Measures Are Incomplete If They Do Not Assess The Birth Parent-Infant Dyad As A Whole. Health Affairs September 2023.
Salazar EG, Montoya-Williams D, Passarella M, McGann C, Paul K, Murosko D, Pena MM, Ortiz R, Burris HH, Lorch SA, Handley SC. County-level Maternal Vulnerability and Preterm Birth in the United States. JAMA Network Open May 2023.
2022
Handley SC, Passarella M, Interrante JD, Kozhimannil KB, Lorch SA: Perinatal Outcomes for Rural Obstetric Patients and Neonates in Rural-Located and Metropolitan-Located Hospitals. Journal of Perinatology Page: doi: 10.1038, December 2022 Notes: epub.
Handley SC, Gallagher K, Breden A, Lindgren E, Lo JY, Son M, Murosko D, Dysart K, Lorch SA, Greenspan J, Culhane JF, Burris HH: Birth hospital length of stay and rehospitalization during COVID-19. Pediatrics 149(1): e2021053498, January 2022.
Handley SC, Passarella M, Martin AE, Lorch SA, Srinivas SK, Nembhard IM: Development and testing of a survey measure of organizational perinatal patient-centered care culture. Health Services Research 57(4): 806-819, August 2022.
Salazar E, Handley SC, Greenberg LT, Edwards EM, Lorch SA. “Measuring Quality of Care in Moderate and Late Preterm Infants.” J Perinatology. 2022. Mar 30. doi: 10.1038/s41372-022-01377-7. PMID: 35354940.
Handley SC, Salazar EG, Greenberg LT, Foglia EE, Lorch SA, Edwards EM. “Variation and temporal trends in delivery room management of moderate and late preterm infants.” Pediatrics.2022. Jul 19; e2021055994. doi: 10.1542/peds.2021-055994. PMID 35851607.
Handley SC, Salazar EG, Greenberg LT, Foglia EE, Lorch SA, Edwards EM. Variation and Temporal Trends in Delivery Room Management of Moderate and Late Preterm Infants. Pediatrics. 2022 Aug 1;150(2):e2021055994. doi: 10.1542/peds.2021-055994. PMID: 35851607; PMCID: PMC9721105.
Bamat NA, Orians CM, Abbasi S, Morley CJ, Ross Russell R, Panitch HB, Handley SC, Foglia EE, Posencheg MA, Kirpalani H. Use of ventilation/perfusion mismatch to guide individualised CPAP level selection in preterm infants: a feasibility trial. Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed. 2022 Sep 14;. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2022-324474. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 36104165.
Handley SC, Kumbhat N, Eggleston B, Foglia EE, Davis AS, Van Meurs K, Lakshminrusimha S, Walsh M, Watterberg KL, Wyckoff MH, Das A, DeMauro SB. Exposure to umbilical cord management approaches and death or neurodevelopmental impairment at 22-26 months' corrected age after extremely preterm birth. Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed. 2022 Oct 17:fetalneonatal-2022-324565. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2022-324565. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36253076.
2021
Handley SC, Passarella M, Herrick HM, Interrante JD, Lorch SA, Kozhimannil KB, Phibbs CS, Foglia EE: Birth Volume and Geographic Distribution of US Hospitals with Obstetric Services from 2010 to 2018. JAMA Network Open 4(10): e2125373, October 2021.
Handley SC, Passarella M, Srinivas SK, Lorch SA: Identifying Individual Hospital Levels of Maternal Care using Administrative Data. BMC Health Services Research 2(21): 538, June 2021.
Montoya-Williams D, Mullin AM, Handley SC, Flannery DD, Lorch SA, Elovitz MA, Burris HH. Disparities in SARS-CoV-2 positivity among pregnant patients with limited English proficiency. J Perinatol. 2021 Oct;41(10):2564-2565. PubMed PMID: 34497337; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8425017.
Handley SC, Passarella M, Srinivas SK, Lorch SA. Identifying Individual Hospital Levels of Maternal Care using Administrative Data. BMC Health Serv Res. 2021 Jun 2;21(1):538. doi: 10.1186/s12913-021-06516-y.PMID: 34074286
Burris HH, Passarella M, Handley SC, Srinivas SK, Lorch SA. Black-White disparities in maternal in-hospital mortality according to teaching and Black-serving hospital status. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2021 Jan 13:S0002-9378(21)00027-2. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2021.01.004. Online ahead of print. PMID: 33453183
Kumbhat N, Eggleston B, Davis AS, DeMauro SB, Van Meurs KP, Foglia EE, Lakshminrusimha S, Walsh MC, Watterberg KL, Wyckoff MH, Das A, Handley SC, and the Generic Database Subcommittee of the NICHD Neonatal Research Network: Umbilical Cord Milking vs Delayed Cord Clamping and Associations with In-Hospital Outcomes among Extremely Premature Infants. Journal of Pediatrics(232), 87-94, May 2021.
Handley SC, Bell S, Nembhard IM: A Systematic Review of Surveys for Measuring Patient-centered Care in the Hospital Setting. Medical Care 59(3): 228-237, March 2021.
Handley SC, Mullin AM, Elovitz MA, Gerson KD, Montoya-Williams D, Lorch SA, Burris HH: Changes in Preterm Birth Phenotypes and Stillbirth at 2 Philadelphia Hospitals During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic, March-June 2020. JAMA 325(1): 87-89, January 2021.
2020
Handley SC, Mullin AM, Elovitz MA, Gerson KD, Montoya-Williams D, Lorch SA, Burris HH. Changes in Preterm Birth Phenotypes and Stillbirth at 2 Philadelphia Hospitals During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic, March-June 2020. JAMA. 2020 Dec 7. doi: 10.1001/jama.2020.20991. Online ahead of print. PMID: 33284323 No abstract available.
Handley SC, Pouppirt N, Zucker E, Coughlin KA, Ades A: Improving the Resident Experience in a Level IV Neonatal/Infant Intensive Care Unit through Goal Identification and Feedback. Pediatric Quality & Safety 5(6): e352, Oct 2020.
Placental transfusion and short-term outcomes among extremely preterm infants. Kumbhat N, Eggleston B, Davis AS, Van Meurs KP, DeMauro SB, Foglia EE, Lakshminrusimha S, Walsh MC, Watterberg KL, Wyckoff MH, Das A, Handley SC; Generic Database Subcommittee of the NICHD Neonatal Research Network; undefined. Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed. 2021 Jan;106(1):62-68. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2019-318710. Epub 2020 Jul 30.
PMID: 32732380
Bamat NA, Ekhaguere OA, Zhang L, Flannery DD, Handley SC, Herrick HM, Ellenberg SS: Protocol adherence rates in superiority and noninferiority randomized clinical trials published in high impact medical journals. Clinical Trials 17(5): 552-559, Oct 2020.
Handley SC and Nembhard IM: Measuring patient-centered care for specific populations: A necessity for improvement. Patient Experience Journal 7(1): 10-12, April 2020.
2019
Handley SC, Srinivas SK, Lorch SA. Regionalization of Care and the Maternal-Infant Dyad Disconnect. JAMA. 2019 Aug 13;322(6):503-504. doi: 10.1001/jama.2019.6403.PMID: 31282951
Sillers L, Handley SC, James JR, Foglia EE. Pulseless Electrical Activity Complicating Neonatal Resuscitation. Neonatology. 2019;115(2):95-98. doi: 10.1159/000493357. Epub 2018 Oct 23.PMID: 30352434
2018
Handley SC, Passarella M, Lee HC, Lorch SA. Incidence Trends and Risk Factor Variation in Severe Intraventricular Hemorrhage across a Population Based Cohort. J Pediatr. 2018 May 10. pii: S0022-3476(18)30510-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2018.04.020. [Epub ahead of print].
2017
Handley SC, Ebbert RP, Edwards TM, Flibotte J. A Newborn Infant with Giant Omphalocele and Peeling Skin. NeoReviews. 2017 Apr; 18(4):e253-e257.
Quanbeck AE, Russell JA, Handley SC, Quanbeck DS. Kinematic analysis of hip and knee rotation and other contributors to ballet turnout. J Sports Sci. 2017 Feb;35(4):331-338. Epub 2016 Mar 25. PubMed PMID: 27015006.
2016
Handley SC, Steinhorn RH, Hopper AO, Govindaswami B, Bhatt DR, Van Meurs KP, Ariagno RL, Gould JB, Lee HC. Inhaled nitric oxide use in preterm infants in California neonatal intensive care units. J Perinatol. 2016 Aug;36(8):635-9. doi: 10.1038/jp.2016.49. Epub 2016 Mar 31. PubMed PMID: 27031320; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4963282.
2015
Handley SC, Sun Y, Wyckoff MH, Lee HC. Outcomes of extremely preterm infants after delivery room cardiopulmonary resuscitation in a population-based cohort. J Perinatol. 2015 May;35(5):379-83. doi: 10.1038/jp.2014.222. Epub 2014 Dec 18. PubMed PMID: 25521563; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4414658.
2013
Handley SC, Mader NS, Sidman JD, Scott AR. Predicting surgical intervention for airway obstruction in micrognathic infants. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2013 May;148(5):847-51. doi: 10.1177/0194599813478801. Epub 2013 Feb 20. PubMed PMID: 23426711.
2012
Tonsager SC, Mader NS, Sidman JD, Scott AR. Determining risk factors for early airway intervention in newborns with micrognathia.Laryngoscope. 2012 Dec;122 Suppl 4:S103-4. doi: 10.1002/lary.23788. PubMed PMID: 23254599.