Garrett T. Wasp, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth; Assistant Professor, The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice; Physician, Section of Medical Oncology, Dartmouth Cancer Center
Dr. Garrett Wasp is a practicing medical oncologist and health services researcher studying how patients and clinicians communicate and make decisions about cancer treatment and end-of-life care. He is a trained VitalTalkTM and Serious Illness Care ProgramTM communication skills coach. Dr. Wasp has also led and participated in several research studies focused on communication skills training, implementation, and evaluation. His overarching career goal is to design and implement flexible communication tools and processes that promote more effective shared decision making. His approach is novel as he uses insights from emotion regulation and behavior change theory to better understand and positively influence medical decision making related to cancer treatment and end-of-life care. Methods that Dr. Wasp has used in the past include Medicare claims data analysis, qualitative analysis of recorded clinic visits, communication skills training evaluation, and implementation research. Since starting his current position in 2019, he has also served as a site PI or associate investigator on 11 National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN) trials. In 2024, Dr. Wasp was selected for two, complimentary career development awards (one of which is K08 from the NCI).
Dr. Wasp moved to the Upper Valley in 2013 for his medical training, and he has enjoyed building a life and community here. Outside of work time, he is usually spending it with his wife and two school-age children. He enjoy skiing, bicycling (road), and hiking. He also enjoy landscaping and gardening.
Selected Publications
- Guo K, Wasp G, Vergo M, Wilson M, Holthoff MM, Buus-Frank ME, Perry JJ, Cullinan AM. Impact of implementing serious illness conversations across a comprehensive cancer center using an interdisciplinary approach. Am J Hosp Palliat Care. 2024 May 10:10499091241252058. doi: 10.1177/10499091241252058. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38725412.
- Wasp GT, Kaur-Gill S, Anderson EC, Vergo MT, Chelen J, Tosteson T, Barr PJ, Barnato AE. Evaluating physician emotion regulation in serious illness conversations using multimodal assessment. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2023 Oct;66(4):351-360.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2023.07.001. PMID: 37433418; PMCID: PMC10574810.
- Wasp GT, Cullinan AM, Anton CP, Williams A, Perry JJ, Holthoff MM, Buus-Frank ME. Interdisciplinary approach and patient/family partners to improve serious illness conversations in outpatient oncology. JCO Oncol Pract. 2022 Oct;18(10):e1567-e1573. doi: 10.1200/OP.22.00086. PMID: 35858156.
- Wasp GT, Knutzen KE, Murray GF, Brody-Bizar OC, Liu MA, Pollak KI, Tulsky JA, Schenker Y, Barnato AE. Systemic therapy decision making in advanced cancer: A qualitative analysis of patient-oncologist encounters. JCO Oncol Pract. 2022 Aug;18(8):e1357-e1366. doi: 10.1200/OP.21.00377. PMID: 34855459; PMCID: PMC9377707.
- Wasp GT, Alam SS, Brooks GA, Khayal IS, Kapadia NS, Carmichael DQ, Austin AM, Barnato AE. End-of-life quality metrics among medicare decedents at minority-serving cancer centers: A retrospective study. Cancer Med. 2020 Mar;9(5):1911-1921. doi: 10.1002/cam4.2752. PMID: 31925998; PMCID: PMC7050066.