Daniela Nagar

Background

About Daniela Nagar

My current position is a Health Research Analyst at Mathematica. I developed my interest in public health through researching and writing my undergraduate thesis, where I argued that gender inequality is the main driver of the ongoing HIV epidemic in Botswana. While my long-term goal is to pursue international development work, my interest in health, combined with my passion for data integrity led me to my role at Mathematica. I have spent much of my time at Mathematica providing research support to a Medicare project focused on alternative payment models. Diving into domestic healthcare with an extremely technical project, I not only developed my quantitative research and project management skills, but also learned quickly of the complexities of the American healthcare system. Per my interest in international development, I later had the opportunity to support the evaluation of a client’s 7-year project in Indonesia, focused on sexual health education. This project allowed me to develop my qualitative analysis skills, and I ultimately exercised my writing skills through synthesizing my findings into a section of Mathematica’s final report. My latest project work includes a human-centered design project focused on improving data modernization across state health departments, as well as a technical assistance project reviewing state report submissions for a Medicaid waiver addressing mental health care. As a more seasoned Mathematica employee on this new work, I am enjoying taking more of a leadership role on both projects. I look forward to applying the skills I have honed at Mathematica toward research in my main passion area, global poverty traps, in graduate school and and beyond. Outside of my professional life, I love to sing and am the lead singer in a soul/pop cover band in Cambridge.