Nicole (Nicki) Bush, Ph.D., is the Lisa and John Pritzker Distinguished Professor of Developmental and Behavioral Health at UCSF, jointly appointed in the departments of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, and the Division Chief of the Division of Developmental Medicine.
A licensed clinical psychologist with postdoctoral training in biology, pediatrics, and epidemiology, Dr. Bush leverages her cross-field training and insights from community engagement to innovatively bridge disciplines and advance discovery of antiracist solutions to promote health. She is an international leader with research expertise in the social determinants of child and family health and wellbeing, including adverse childhood experiences (ACES), trauma, caregiving, individual and neighborhood-level socioeconomic disadvantage, and race-related disparities in environmental exposures. Dr. Bush leads or co-leads a broad range of epidemiological longitudinal cohort studies and clinical intervention trials focused on determining the etiology and biological mechanisms for social and chemical environment effects on maternal and pediatric mental and physical health, with a strong focus on the perinatal and early childhood periods. Advancing prevention efforts, identifying protective factors, and discovering how to promote resilience through supporting strengths or providing family- and community-level interventions are priorities of her work, which aims to shape health policies to reduce population health disparities and enable thriving across all communities.