a physician advancing the arts:
researcher modeling decision analyses, creative writer, flutist
Dr. Kate Lee investigates how we make decisions in medicine. Her research and creative work are intertwined, as her conceptual models and frameworks of thinking stem from her training in decision analysis, medicine, history of science, and creative writing.
Dr. Lee is a physician, creative writer in poetry and prose, and grant-funded researcher in outcomes & cost-effectiveness analyses in colorectal cancer and inflammatory bowel disease at Duke University. She is also an upcoming clinical/external advisor for an undergraduate course, BME 473/474 - Medical Device Design in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Duke University, 2024-2025, to build creative device and process innovations in GI that can then be modeled for how they impact quality and cost of care.
She received her MD and MS at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians & Surgeons, and her bachelor's in History of Science with a secondary concentration in Global Health & Health Policy at Harvard University. As former Editor in Chief of Harvard Health Policy Review, a biannual EBSCO-certified academic journal, she has experience curating, commissioning, editing, and publishing. Dr. Lee thrives on discussion, and has facilitated various workshops on poetry, professionalism, and the Hippocratic Oath, for medical school education or Interprofessional Education Days at Columbia. She enjoys performing flute, and during high school performed a solo at the Kennedy Center as a result of winning a competition, and solos with orchestra at Carnegie Hall. She still occasionally performs for her patients. Her other hobbies include cooking, baking, yoga, working out, and swimming. She is fluent in Korean and comfortable speaking conversationally in Spanish.
contact for writing/speaking or relevant opportunities: kate.lee@duke.edu
selected creative works
"Death Exam," Journal of General Internal Medicine, 2024 [Poem, link]
"hour 28," Anesthesiology, 2024 [Poem, link]
"Notes From a Student," Annals of Internal Medicine, 2021 [Poem, link]
"Benign," JAMA Oncology, 2021 [Poem, link]
"Window," Family Medicine, 2022 [Poem, link]
"The Path of Minimal Pain," Anesthesiology, 2021 [Poem, link]
"In light of anti-Asian attacks, medicine needs to listen to Asian American trainees," STAT, 2021 [OpEd, link]
"Parable shows use of scapegoat: The child in classic tale of ‘Omelas’ feels Asian-American, today," New York Daily News, 2021 [OpEd, link]
"Stop Dehumanizing Asian Americans," Newsday, 2021 [OpEd, link]
"Attacking Asians won't kill the virus," Newsday, 2020 [OpEd, link]
"Five years ago", Neurology, 2021 [Poem, link | full text PDF]
"In Their Shoes," Academic Medicine, 2021 [Essay including poetry, link]
Faye AS, Lee KE, Hudesman D, Dervieux T. Older Adults With Inflammatory Bowel Disease Are at Higher Risk of Developing Antibodies to Infliximab. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2024. [link]
Lee KE, Sizemore JA, Kim G, Shen B, Sands BE. Impact of Biologics and Small Molecule Agents on Postoperative Complications in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Systematic Review. Dis Colon Rectum. 2024.
Faye AS, Lee KE, Dodson J, et al. Increasing rates of venous thromboembolism among hospitalised patients with inflammatory bowel disease: a nationwide analysis. APT. 2022.
Featured In “Q&A: Adam S. Faye, MD, MS, and Kate E. Lee, MD, MS on VTE in IBD” MedpageToday, 10/28/2022 [link]
Lee KE, Lim F, Faye AS, Shen B, Hur C. Endoscopic Balloon Dilation Is Cost-Effective for Crohn's Disease Strictures. Dig Dis Sci. 2022. [link]
Lee KE, Bender DA, Koutcher LD, Hyde B, Hur C, Faye AS, Cheng SK. Risk of corticosteroid treatment and hospitalization after checkpoint inhibitor and radiation therapy in patients with cancer. Cancer. 2022. [link]
Park J, Artin MG, Lee KE, et al. Structured deep embedding model to generate composite clinical indices from electronic health records. Patterns (N Y). 2022.
Lee KE, Cantrell S, Shen B, Faye AS. Post-operative prevention and monitoring of Crohn's disease recurrence. Gastroenterol Rep (Oxf). 2022.
Lee KE, Faye AS, Vermeire S, Shen B. Perioperative Management of Ulcerative Colitis: A Systematic Review. Dis Colon Rectum. 2022.
Lee KE, Faye AS. Letter: fighting the battle but losing the war-inflammatory bowel disease and venous thromboembolism. APT. 2022.
Lee KE, Faye AS. Editorial: rising rates of venous thromboembolism among hospitalised patients with inflammatory bowel disease in the USA. APT. 2022.
Lee KE, Lim F, Colombel J, Hur C, Faye AS. Cost-Effectiveness of Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis After Hospitalization in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2021. [link]
Lee KE, Lim F, Silver ER, Faye AS, Hur C. Impact of COVID-19 on Residency Choice: A Survey of New York City Medical Students. PLoS One. 2021 Oct 6;16(10):e0258088. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0258088. PMID: 34614004. [link]
Barkhodari A, Lee KE, et al. Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Focus on Enteropathic Arthritis and Therapy. RIR, 2022.
Ke J, Zhang E, Lee KE, Shih H, Hur C. Addressing Bias Among Medical Care Teams On The Wards. IJMS, 2023.
Lee KE, Shen B. Endoscopic Therapy for Pouch Leaks and Strictures: A Systematic Review. Dis Colon Rectum. 2022.
Lee KE, Lim F, Colombel J, Hur C, Faye AS. Cost-Effectiveness of Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis After Hospitalization in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2021 Sep 30:izab246. doi: 10.1093/ibd/izab246. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34591970. [link]
Lee KE, Wen T, Faye AS, Huang Y, Hur C, Friedman AM. Delivery Risks and Outcomes Associated with Grand Multiparity. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2021 Sep 1:1-9. doi: 10.1080/14767058.2021.1960972. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34470116. [link]
Park J, Artin MG, Lee KE, et al. Deep learning on time series laboratory test results from electronic health records for early detection of pancreatic cancer. J Biomed Inform. 2022.
Shoucri SM, Purpura L, DeLaurentis C, Adan MA, Theodore DA, Irace AL, Robbins-Juarez SY, Khedagi A, Letchford D, Harb AA, Zerihun LM, Lee KE, Gambina K, Lauring M, Chen N, Sperring CP, Mehta SS, Myers EL, Shih H, Argenziano MG, Bruce SL, Slater CL, Tiao JR, Natarajan K, Hripcsak G, Chen R, Yin MT, Sobieszczyk ME, Castor D, Zucker JE. Characterising the long-term clinical outcomes of 1190 hospitalised patients with COVID-19 in New York City: a retrospective case series. BMJ Open. 2021;11(6):e049488. Epub 2021/06/05. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-049488. PubMed PMID: 34083350. [link]
Wen T, Faye AS, Lee KE, Friedman AM, Wright JD, Lebwohl B, et al. Risk of Postpartum Flare Hospitalizations in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease Persists After Six Months. Dig Dis Sci. 2021. Epub 2021/05/02. doi: 10.1007/s10620-021-06999-z. PubMed PMID: 33932199. [link]
Faye AS, Lee KE, Laszkowska M, Kim J, Blackett JW, McKenney AS, et al. Risk of Adverse Outcomes in Hospitalized Patients With Autoimmune Disease and COVID-19: A Matched Cohort Study From New York City. J Rheumatol. 2020. Epub 2020/11/03. doi: 10.3899/jrheum.200989. PubMed PMID: 33132221. [link]
Srivastava K, Lee E, Owens E, Rujirojindakul P, Flegel WA. Full-length nucleotide sequence of ERMAP alleles encoding Scianna (SC) antigens. Transfusion. 2016;56(12):3047-54. Epub 2016/09/10. doi: 10.1111/trf.13801. PubMed PMID: 27612015; PubMed Central PMCID: PMCPMC5588880. [link]
Lee E, Lamart S, Little MP, Lee C. Database of normalised computed tomography dose index for retrospective CT dosimetry. J Radiol Prot. 2014;34(2):363-88. Epub 2014/04/15. doi: 10.1088/0952-4746/34/2/363. PubMed PMID: 24727361. [link]