Dr. Ryan has worked in healthcare and public health for 35 years – beginning her career as a NICU respiratory therapist and life flight therapist for a large tertiary hospital in southern CA, where she also conducted physician and nurse trainings and patient education. Working in leadership and direct service positions for integrated medical systems, health plans, and the health department, Dr. Ryan developed, implemented, and evaluated Disease Management Programs, Care Transitions Programs, and system-wide quality improvement initiatives for underserved and publicly insured populations.

Mid-career, AHRQ awarded Dr. Ryan a pre-doctoral fellowship to earn her PhD in health services research and health policy from Brandeis University. She wanted to hone her advanced statistics and evaluation methods skills to prove the efficacy of educational programs built on clear and effective communication in facilitating patient activation, shared decision-making, and better outcomes. Dr. Ryan’s dissertation examined the association between organizational factors and patient outcomes among senior patients with multiple chronic conditions, including the relational coordination of patients’ primary care physicians.

Her passion for improving the accessibility and effectiveness of health care services for all people fuels her work. Dr. Ryan believes that embedding health literacy practices in all patient communication, educational programs, and quality initiatives will improve patient outcomes. Her philosophy is, "Applying a health literacy lens to every patient encounter could transform our healthcare system and the lives of all patients."