About

Katherine Yun, MD, MHS, is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics (General Pediatrics) at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and a faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She received her medical degree from Harvard Medical School in 2006 and completed her residency in pediatrics at Yale University in 2009. Between 2009 and 2011, she was a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar and earned her Masters in Health Sciences Research from Yale University. During her time at Yale, she served as the supervising physician in the Yale-New Haven Hospital Pediatric Refugee Clinic and was a co-recipient of Connecticut’s Myra M. Oliver Award for her efforts in helping refugees and immigrants. Her primary research interests focus on refugee and immigrant health, particularly the well-being of children in immigrant families in the United States. Her work has addressed issues such as access to care for children and families with limited English proficiency, community-based health care navigation, the prevalence of non-communicable conditions and insurance coverage among refugees, and the use of clinical decision support to promote evidence-based, guideline-directed immigrant health care. She is also engaged in mitigating COVID-19 impacts in immigrant communities, understanding health policy effects on immigrant children and families, and training pediatricians in multilingual child health research and practice. Dr. Yun provides primary care at CHOP South Philadelphia and through the Refugee Child Health Program, emphasizing the importance of working with families from diverse regions, languages, and cultures to deliver compassionate, high-quality care.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Family medicine
• Demography
• Environmental health
• Gerontology

Selected publications

• Cross-Language Qualitative Child Health Research: A Systematic Review

  PEDIATRICS · 2026-04-17

  article

  CONTEXT: An increasing number of US children have parents who prefer languages other than English (LOEs). However, many LOE families are excluded from participation in qualitative research because of English proficiency requirements. Guidance to promote inclusion of LOE populations in qualitative research is limited. OBJECTIVE: To synthesize published child health cross-language qualitative research and examine trends in how studies are conducted when a language barrier exists between researchers and participants. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, CINAHL, and Sociological Abstracts. STUDY SELECTION: US-based cross-language research studies published between January 2010 and July 2025 that included adult LOE caregivers and discussed child health topics. DATA EXTRACTION: Two reviewers examined each manuscript to describe cross-language processes for handling qualitative data collected with LOE participants, including study design/preparation, data collection, and analysis. RESULTS: Fifty-two studies were included. Most studies included only Spanish-speaking participants. Studies covered a wide range of health issues and populations. Studies used varying procedures to obtain information from LOE caregivers. Most studies conducted qualitative analysis in English after translating interviews from the source language. Many relied on bilingual research study staff or community members. Few described how findings were disseminated back to the community of interest. LIMITATIONS: Cross-language qualitative child health research has increased in recent years; best practices for handling language data in LOEs might be emerging. CONCLUSIONS: This review identified variability in methods in published qualitative cross-language child health research. We share recommendations to promote inclusive practices in cross-language qualitative research to improve the generalizability and quality of child health research in the United States.

  PublisherDOI

• Characteristics Associated With Community Violence Prevention Programs in <scp>US</scp> Hospitals: A Cross‐Sectional Survey Analysis

  Academic Emergency Medicine · 2026-04-01

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Violence is a social determinant of health, and hospitals are well-positioned to promote patient well-being by addressing its root causes. Understanding factors associated with hospital engagement in community violence prevention can guide intervention development and capacity building. OBJECTIVE: To examine hospital and county-level factors associated with the presence of community violence prevention programs (CVPPs) in U.S. hospitals. METHODS: This cross-sectional study linked data from the 2022 American Hospital Association Annual Survey with county-level socioeconomic and demographic data from the US Census Bureau and all-cause homicide rates from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The sample included general medical and surgical hospitals with Medicare identification numbers. Survey-adjusted logistic regression assessed associations between hospital CVPP presence and all-cause homicide. Our response variable was whether or not the hospital had a CVPP, and our explanatory variable was county-level all-cause homicide rates. We adjusted for hospital characteristics and county-level socio-demographics. RESULTS: Of 4,374 hospitals, 990 (22.6%) reported having CVPPs. Compared to those without CVPPs, hospitals with CVPPs were more likely to be nonprofit (85.0% vs. 62.9%), large (> 500 beds; 16.9% vs. 4.7%), have more annual ED visits (51,873.9 vs. 26,224.5), and be urban (81.1% vs. 51.8%) (all p < 0.001). They also more frequently offered outpatient psychiatric (86.1% vs. 46.9%), substance use (74.4% vs. 23.2%), and pain management (93.1% vs. 65.2%) services. In adjusted models, homicide rates were not associated with CVPP presence (aOR = 1.01, 95% CI [0.99, 1.04]). CVPP presence was independently associated with nonprofit ownership, larger size, trauma designation, and lower social deprivation in urban counties. CONCLUSIONS: Hospital and community characteristics, rather than homicide rates, predict CVPP presence. CVPPs are concentrated in larger, urban, well-resourced hospitals rather than in areas with the highest homicide rates, highlighting potential misalignment between program placement and community need.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Black Teenage Male and Caregiver Perspectives on Anticipatory Guidance for Police Encounters

  PEDIATRICS · 2026-02-02

  article

  OBJECTIVE: Black families often address police interaction safety with a conversation known as "The Talk." Previous academic literature centering the physician's perspective has proposed pediatrician involvement in anticipatory guidance on this topic. This study explores the views of Black teenage male individuals and their caregivers on pediatricians discussing safe police interactions as part of routine guidance and seeks to identify key factors for facilitating these discussions. METHODS: Semistructured interviews were conducted individually with Black male individuals aged 13 to 18 years and their caregivers. Participants were recruited from primary care well visits at an academic institution in west Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Interviews were conducted virtually, recorded, and transcribed for analysis. Themes were validated by randomly selected participants of the study. RESULTS: A total of 47 participants, including 20 youth-caregiver dyads, completed interviews. Participants supported pediatrician involvement in anticipatory guidance for teenagers about navigating police encounters, emphasizing that conversations should seek to improve youth safety and reduce fear during police encounters. Interviewees felt that racial concordance with pediatricians was not essential if the discussion was compassionate and culturally sensitive. Caregivers expressed a desire to align pediatrician guidance with family teaching and child's social and cognitive development. Participants preferred one-on-one conversations with pediatricians to enhance receptivity. CONCLUSIONS: Black teenage male individuals and their caregivers are open to pediatricians discussing police interactions as part of anticipatory guidance, emphasizing a tailored, sensitive approach. Further research is needed to investigate the perspectives of Black non-male youth and other populations disproportionately impacted by police violence.

  PublisherDOI

• Family Navigation to Reduce Disparities in Early Intervention Services: A Randomized Controlled Trial

  PEDIATRICS · 2026-03-09 · 1 citations

  article

  OBJECTIVE: Disparities in early intervention (EI) use are well documented. We sought to determine the effects of family navigation (FN) on EI services use and child development among low-income, racially diverse children with suspected developmental delays. METHODS: We conducted a randomized controlled trial at 6 pediatric practices in a large urban community. Children who were aged younger than 30 months, had a gestational age of more than 35 weeks, had parents who spoke English or Spanish, and were referred to Part C EI were eligible. Children were randomized to FN or usual care and followed for 12 months. The main outcome measures were multidisciplinary evaluation (MDE) and EI service initiation and duration obtained from county EI program administrative files and Bayley-3 developmental scores. We examined differences among groups using intention-to-treat logistic and Cox regression models. RESULTS: We randomized 358 eligible children and followed 305 (85%) for 12 months. Children were predominantly Black with family incomes of less than $55 000. Overall, 257 (72%) completed an MDE, and 195 (54%) initiated services. Children who received FN had greater odds of MDE completion (adjusted odds ratio, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.2-3.5) and greater EI service initiation (64.4% vs 54.7%; P = .02) than children who received usual care. The average duration of EI services and Bayley-3 scores did not differ among groups. CONCLUSIONS: We found that an FN program improved EI referral completion and services initiation but not EI duration or child development among a population of predominantly low-income urban Black children. Implementation of FN programs in similar minoritized communities may reduce disparities in access to EI services.

  PublisherDOI

• Development and Evaluation of Clinical Decision Support for Immigrant Child Health Screening in Primary Care

  Applied Clinical Informatics · 2025-04-28

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Abstract While electronic health record (EHR)-based tools for refugee health screening exist, support for other immigrant children has lagged. Reasons include lack of time, difficulty determining screening eligibility, and lack of awareness of screening recommendations. EHR-based tools to promote immigrant child health screening (ICHS) can address these challenges, but guidance is needed for tools that are usable by clinicians and acceptable to immigrant families. Develop useful EHR-based tools to support ICHS while incorporating evaluation of acceptability, usability, and implementation effort. We followed a five-step human-centered design approach to develop EHR-based tools for ICHS. This included: (1) representative users completing semi-structured interviews. (2) Health professionals and community advisory groups providing ongoing guidance. (3) Developing a functional prototype. (4) Usability testing of the prototype. And (5) an assessment of the implementation effort involving a second site installation coupled with expert implementation time estimations. Sixteen interviewees discussed screening barriers and how EHR-based tools could support discussing nativity (country of birth). From the interview findings and in consultation with advisory group members, we developed an EHR-based toolkit including noninterruptive alerts, an order set, and a documentation prompt. Ten clinicians completed usability testing. All recognized the alert and asked country of birth. Most (9) were satisfied with the system. All felt it was easy to use, helpful, and would not hinder patient care. Content experts (n = 8) estimated installation times (range: 4–20 hours, median 10) with high levels of confidence (range: 1–5, median 4). A second-site test installation required 7.25 hours. Our EHR-based tools designed with the guidance of experts were highly rated on usability and can help clinicians identify patients eligible for ICHS in a sensitive manner. Installation testing demonstrated that this content could be implemented in a reasonable timeframe at external sites.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Site-Specific Adaptation of an Inpatient Patient Navigator Program at 2 Children’s Hospitals

  Hospital Pediatrics · 2025-09-03

  articleOpen access

  OBJECTIVE: The Family Bridge Program was developed at a single pediatric hospital to improve outcomes for hospitalized children from families of color, who are low income, or who speak a language other than English. The program uses a family navigator ("Guide") that supports families via 6 service domains: Language Access, Orientation to the Hospital, Communication Preferences and Coaching, Addressing Unmet Social Needs, Supportive Check-Ins, and Discharge Follow-Up. This study describes an analysis to translate the program to a second pediatric hospital. METHODS: We interviewed clinical and hospital staff with experience matching the program domains to identify Guide tasks and factors that could influence task performance between the 2 hospitals. The interview format and analysis were framed by a sociotechnical model to identify task-related factors (persons and roles, resources and tools, community and organizational characteristics…) and to develop adaptation and communication strategies for the Guide. RESULTS: We interviewed 45 participants (22 at Hospital 1, 23 at Hospital 2), representing 14 clinical and staff roles. Analysis identified 57 tasks for the Guide across the 6 program domains. Multiple sociotechnical factors were identified that could impact task performance between and within both hospitals. Additional analysis identified sociotechnical factors and adaptation strategies for integrating the Guide with the clinical team. CONCLUSIONS: The analysis facilitated a task-based adaptation of the Family Bridge Program to a second hospital by identifying and addressing sociotechnical differences between sites. This approach provides a framework for replicating the program at other hospitals.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Evaluation of Language Accessibility of Community Resources to Address Pediatric Social Needs in 2 Large US Cities

  Academic Pediatrics · 2025-10-28

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  OBJECTIVE: To assess language accessibility of selected community-based programs serving families who speak Spanish, Somali, or Vietnamese in 2 large US cities. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional evaluation of selected community-based programs identified using online directories used by health systems seeking to address unmet social needs among pediatric patients. We reviewed program websites and telephone menus for language accessibility and surveyed program staff about language access for service delivery. RESULTS: Out of 179 community-based programs identified, 126 had unique websites (40% were available in languages other than English). One hundred and seventy-eight had working telephone numbers, of which 57% directed callers to a telephone menu. More than half (58%) of telephone menus had an option for language selection, almost exclusively Spanish. Of 136 programs that completed the telephone-based survey, 65% reported bilingual staff, and 46% reported working with interpreters for service delivery in Spanish. For service delivery in Somali, 9% reported bilingual staff, and 57% reported interpreters. For service delivery in Vietnamese, 16% reported bilingual staff, and 57% reported interpreters. A subset of programs reported no ability to support service delivery in Spanish (20%), Somali (32%), or Vietnamese (32%). CONCLUSIONS: Community-based programs may not have the language-related resources necessary to support families who speak Spanish, Somali, or Vietnamese. Health systems should consider confirming language access and/or providing language support when referring patients to community resources.

  PublisherDOI

• Improving adherence to CDC public health guidance for screening newly arrived refugee children through clinical decision support implementation: a primary care-based quality improvement study

  BMJ Open Quality · 2025-07-01

  articleOpen access

  INTRODUCTION: Many refugee children arrive in the USA from regions with higher risks of health conditions such as elevated blood lead or latent tuberculosis, making comprehensive health screening on arrival crucial for child health. Despite Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) screening guidance, clinical implementation challenges persist. To address this, we developed a clinical decision support (CDS) toolkit to support screening within the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's refugee health programme. This quality improvement project evaluated the CDS toolkit's effectiveness in improving clinician adherence to screening guidance for newly arrived refugee children across two Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles. METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated health screening for refugee children aged 6 months to 21 years seen in a primary care-based refugee child health programme from 1 January 2011 to 30 September 2023. We assessed completion of recommended screenings for elevated blood lead level (EBLL), tuberculosis, hepatitis B, anaemia, HIV and eosinophilia. The CDS toolkit was updated during the second PDSA cycle to streamline order sets and align with updated CDC guidance. Screening rates were compared across three periods: baseline, first PDSA cycle and second PDSA cycle. RESULTS: Among 830 refugee children, initial screening completion remained high at 90.12%. Follow-up lead testing improved from 21.46% at baseline to 36.92% in the second PDSA cycle, though 43.08% of eligible children still missed timely follow-up. EBLL prevalence at arrival increased from 7.43% to 15.69%, reflecting changes in screening thresholds and demographics. These findings demonstrate the CDS toolkit's effectiveness in maintaining high initial screening rates while highlighting persistent challenges in follow-up care. CONCLUSIONS: The updated CDS toolkit maintained high completion rates for initial screening, and after two PDSA cycles, it correlated with improvements in follow-up testing for EBLL. This project underscores the need for further interventions to improve follow-up care and supports the potential of CDS toolkits to enhance refugee health screening.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Pediatrician Perspectives on Incorporating Discussion of Police Encounters Into Anticipatory Guidance for Black Youth and Their Caregivers

  JAMA Pediatrics · 2025-01-13 · 2 citations

  letterOpen access

  This study explores the barriers and facilitators to pediatricians discussing safely navigating police interactions with Black youth and their caregivers.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• A Secret Shopper Study of Language Accessibility of Community-Based Behavioral Health Services for Children in Families Who Speak Spanish and English

  The Journal of Pediatrics · 2024-08-31 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• Development of a Healthcare Navigation Intervention

  NIH · $505k · 2015–2019

Frequent coauthors

• Colleen Payton

  Moravian University

  44 shared

• Janine Young

  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

  40 shared

• Blain Mamo

  Minnesota Department of Health

  37 shared

• Kevin Scott

  35 shared

• Jasmine Matheson

  Washington State Department of Health

  33 shared

• William M. Stauffer

  University of Minnesota Medical Center

  32 shared

• Barbara L. Stone

  University of Pennsylvania

  32 shared

• Lihai Song

  Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

  32 shared

Awards & honors

• Connecticut’s Myra M. Oliver Award