Deana Williams, PhD, MPH
Research Investigator
MultiCare Health System
Dr. Deana Williams is a community-based Research Investigator at the MultiCare Health System. For nearly a decade, her research has focused on advancing health equity alongside LGBTQ+ populations and Communities of Color through community-engaged, strengths-based approaches. In 2023, she founded the Health Equity Research Program within her research institute, a multidisciplinary collaboration between community members, researchers, and healthcare professionals working towards health and racial justice. Her current work is centered on remedying cancer health disparities, and she serves as the PI and co-PI of two studies funded by Washington State’s Cancer Endowment aimed at piloting multi-level, community-engaged interventions to close gaps in clinical trials. Dr. Williams has been an invited speaker and panelist at several national conferences, sharing actionable, systems-level strategies for disrupting racism and additional forms of structural oppression in healthcare. She also holds expertise in fostering cultural humility among healthcare and public health professionals.