Obinna Ekwunife PhD

Obinna Ekwunife

Obinna Ekwunife
PhD

Assistant Professor

Department of Medicine

Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences


Specialty/Research Focus

Adolescent Medicine; Community Based Participatory Research; Community Health Research; Community Pharmacy; Global Health; Health Disparities Research; Health Outcomes Research; Health Services Research; Implementation Science; Program Evaluation; Public Health; Qualitative Methods

Contact Information
UB Downtown Gateway
77 Goodell St
Buffalo, New York 14203
Phone: 716-829-5729
ekwunife@buffalo.edu



Professional Summary:

Dr. Obinna Ekwunife is a health economist and implementation scientist and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Population Health, at the University at Buffalo. His research focuses on developing, evaluating, and implementing cost-effective strategies to reduce health inequities among adults with chronic diseases, particularly in low-income and underserved populations. As a health economist on multidisciplinary teams focused on health equity, he applies econometric and economic evaluation methods to identify interventions that improve health outcomes, inform resource allocation, and expand access to effective health services.

Dr. Ekwunife currently serves as a Co-Investigator on six active research projects, leading the health economics evaluation components. These include four NIH R01-funded projects: an NIH/NIMHD-funded study (R01MD018721) evaluating a cardiovascular risk-reduction intervention combining income supplementation, food incentives, and education among food-insecure African American adults; an NIH/NIDDK-funded study (R01DK149293) comparing continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) with traditional fingerstick blood glucose monitoring among non-insulin-treated adults with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes; an NIH/NIDDK-funded study (R01DK149584) evaluating CGM, telephone coaching, and values clarification to help older adults with diabetes engage in values-concordant care; and an NIH/NIDDK-funded study (R01DK148601) examining whether addressing social needs plus poverty produces greater benefits than addressing social needs alone or usual care among low-income adults with type 2 diabetes. He also serves as Co-Investigator on two American Diabetes Association-funded projects: one evaluating a CGM-enhanced Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) among adults with prediabetes and another testing a CGM-enhanced digital literacy and navigation intervention for low-income adults with type 2 diabetes. Dr. Ekwunife previously served as Site Principal Investigator on an NIH P30 Center for AIDS Research (CFAR)-funded study evaluating pharmacy-delivered oral HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in Nigeria, examining private community pharmacies as an innovative platform for expanding access to HIV prevention services.

Education and Training:

  • Fellowship, Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center (2024)
  • Certificate, Certificate in Health Economics & Outcomes Research, University of Washington Professional & Continuing Education (2023)
  • Certificate, Professional Certificate Program in Data Science, Purdue University/Simplilearn (2023)
  • Fellowship, Takemi Fellowship, Harvard School of Public Health (2022)
  • Fellowship, Postdoctoral Fellowship, Leibniz Institute of Preventive Research and Epidemiology (BIPS)/University of Bremen (2016)
  • PhD, Health Economics, University of Nigeria (2012)
  • MS, Clinical Pharmacy, University of Nigeria (2008)
  • BPharm, Pharmacy, University of Nigeria (2004)

Employment:

  • Assistant Program Director, Health Services Research, Division of Population Health, Department of Medicine, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo (2024-present)

Awards and Honors:

  • 26th NIH Summer Institute for Randomized Trials of Behavioral Interventions (2026)
  • AIM-AHEAD & NCATS Health Data Science Training Program (HDSTP) - Cohort 3 (2025)
  • Community Engagement & Advocacy Champion of the Year (2025)
  • IDM Annual Symposium Travel Grant (2024)

UB 2020 Strategic Strengths:

  • Civic Engagement and Public Policy
  • Health and Wellness Across the Lifespan

Grants and Sponsored Research:

  • August 2026–June 2031
    Conditional Cash Transfer and Basic Needs Resolution Intervention for Low Income Adults with T2DM
    NIH NIDDK
    Role: Co-Investigator
    $3,854,904
  • July 2026–June 2031
    Efficacy of Continuous Glucose Monitoring Relative to Traditional Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose in Non-Insulin Treated Adults with Poorly Controlled T2DM
    NIH/NIDDK
    Role: Co-Investigator
    $3,998,816
  • September 2024–March 2029
    Cardiovascular Risk Reduction for Adults with Food Insecurity Using Structured Incentives (CVD-FIT)
    NIH NIMHD
    Role: Co-Investigator
    $3,275,405
  • July 2025–June 2028
    A novel continuous glucose monitoring enhanced DPP intervention to prevent type 2 diabetes in adults with prediabetes
    American Diabetes Association
    Role: Co-Investigator
    $600,000
  • November 2024–July 2026
    Enhancing PrEP Access for At-Risk Young People through Pharmacy-delivered Oral PrEP in Nigeria
    University of Washington/Fred Hutch Center for AIDS Research (CFAR)
    Role: Principal Investigator
    $80,000

Journal Articles:

See all (55 more)

Books and Book Chapters:

  • Obinna Ekwunife, Gift Nwanne. (2025) Structural Inequalities and Chronic Disease Health Outcomes: Implementing Evidence Based Strategies. In: Structural Inequalities and Chronic Disease Health Outcomes. Elsevier
  • Rebekah Walker, Obinna Ekwunife, En-ling Chen, David Jacobs, Leonard Egede. (2025) Structural Inequalities and Chronic Disease Health Outcomes: Type 2 Diabetes. In: Structural Inequalities and Chronic Disease Health Outcomes. Elsevier

Presentations:

  • "Social Risk Factors and Advanced Cardiovascular-Kidney-Metabolic (CKM) Syndrome in U.S. Adults: Evidence from NHANES 2005–2018" American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions (2025)
  • "Examining the Association between Prediabetes and Mortality – the Role of Patient Profiles in Risk Prediction" American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions 2025 (2025)
  • "Understanding the cost of pharmacy-delivered HIV pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis services in Kenya: findings from a pilot study" Institute of Disease Modeling Symposium (2024)

Service Activities:

  • As an Academic Editor for Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation, I oversee the peer review process, ensuring the quality and relevance of submitted manuscripts in health economics, cost-effectiveness analysis, and resource allocation.; Academic Editor (2024–present)

School News:

In the Media:


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Contact Information

UB Downtown Gateway
77 Goodell St
Buffalo, New York 14203
Phone: 716-829-5729
ekwunife@buffalo.edu