Folasade (Fola) May, MD, PhD, MPhil

Folasade (Fola) May, MD, PhD, MPhil, is an associate professor of Medicine at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), director of Quality Improvement in Gastroenterology at UCLA Health, director of the May Health Services Research Laboratory, associate director of the UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity, and staff physician in the Veterans Affairs. She received a BA in Molecular Cellular and Developmental Biology from Yale University, a Masters of Epidemiology at the University of Cambridge (UK), a medical degree at Harvard University, and a PhD in Health Policy and Management from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. 

In the May Laboratory at UCLA, Dr May and her team engage in health services research and quality improvement studies to improve population preventive health strategies, increase access to preventive services, and eliminate health disparities. She has designed and executed multiple studies to examine the impact of patient, provider, and system factors on many chronic disease states, including obesity, colorectal cancer, chronic liver disease, and hepatocellular carcinoma. 

Dr May has received numerous local and national awards for her research, community engagement, and advocacy, including recognition and funding from the National Institutes of Health, American Cancer Society, American College of Gastroenterology, American Gastroenterological Association, Tobacco Related Disease Research Program, National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, Broad Stem Cell Research Center, and Stand Up to Cancer. Media appearances have included ABC News, 20/20, Red Table Talk, Black News Channel, and Inside Edition. She is passionate about improving public awareness about preventive health and health equity and is involved in advocacy at the state and national level to develop and encourage policy to improve healthcare delivery and health equity.