Sarah Arvey, PhD
Associate Principal
Health Management Associates
Austin, TX
[javascript protected email address]
(512) 473-2626
Sarah Arvey is a trained medical anthropologist and behavioral health researcher with expertise in the impacts of social determinants, cultural norms and health disparities on public health and healthcare delivery systems. She is skilled in informant interviews, focus groups, facilitation and consensus building, survey methods, and stakeholder engagement. Her research is thorough, and her analysis is actionable.
At HMA, Sarah managed a comprehensive evaluation of state behavioral health performance measures, resulting in best practice recommendations. She evaluated a collaborative effort, between a national non-profit organization and states, to increase low-income senior enrollment in the federal nutrition assistance program. She has also led statewide analyses of reproductive health policy and services.
Sarah is equally experienced in managing large-scale, complex projects, guiding the integration of the care delivery systems and the transition to value-based payment for a county-level hospital district.
Sarah joined HMA from the Livestrong Foundation, an international non-profit cancer survivorship advocacy organization. As director of research and evaluation, she supervised an annual $3 million extramural grant portfolio. She was responsible for procurement, contracting, project management, evaluation and reporting.
Sarah led a four-year grant to develop new fertility clinical practices for adolescent and young adult cancer patients. The project culminated with the launch of an interactive, online educational training program for healthcare providers. She engaged diverse stakeholders, including clinicians, health advocates, policymakers and government agencies, while facilitating a collaborative research on and implementation of survivorship best practices across seven National Cancer Institute-designated cancer centers. She also conducted a longitudinal study on the use of technology to increase cancer screening among Latinos. Her peer-reviewed findings have been published by the American Journal of Public Health, Health Education and Behavior, and Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology.
A lifelong learner and leader, Sarah is an adjunct assistant professor in health promotion and behavioral sciences at the University of Texas. She is fluent in Spanish. She earned her Ph.D. in anthropology and history from the University of Michigan, master’s degree in Latin American studies from the University of Arizona, and bachelor’s degree in English literature from the University of California-Berkeley.
Sarah lives lakeside in Austin, Texas, with her husband and two children. As often as they can, she and her family set their sights on the best bowl of ramen in town.