Patricia L. Kavanagh, MD

Patricia L. Kavanagh, MD, is a board-certified pediatrician at Boston Medical Center (BMC) and an associate professor of pediatrics at Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine. Dr. Kavanagh has a national reputation in using systems approaches to improve the care of children and adults with sickle cell disease in the emergency department setting through guideline-based care pathways and the use of individualized pain protocols. She lectures regionally and nationally to teach providers about interventions that improve emergency department care for sickle cell-related pain and outcomes for individuals living with sickle cell disease. Dr. Kavanagh served as faculty for the 2023 Sickle Cell Disease Centers Workshop, sponsored by the American Society of Hematology. She also co-founded and serves as Chair of the Emergency Department Sickle Cell Care Coalition. Her research studies the impact of screening and referring families with unmet basic needs on health outcomes for children with sickle cell disease.