About Joanne Wolfe, MD, MPH
Joanne Wolfe, MD MPH is the Chair of Pediatrics and Physician-in-Chief at MassGeneral for Children. She also serves as the Chair of Pediatrics at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Dr. Wolfe previously served as the Division Chief of Pediatric Palliative Care in the Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Director of Palliative Care at Boston Children’s Hospital for nearly 30 years. She also served as the Vice President for Faculty Development at the Dana-Farber. Dr. Wolfe is Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. She holds an MD degree (1990) from Harvard Medical School and an MPH (1998) from the Harvard School of Public Health.
Dr. Wolfe specializes in pediatric supportive and palliative care, working together with an interprofessional team to provide an extra layer of support to seriously ill children and their families. She supports the primary team and families with delineating goals of care and complex decision-making. She also holds expertise in symptom management and quality of life interventions. Dr. Wolfe’s research focuses on easing suffering and promoting wellbeing in children with serious illness and their families. She also co-directs the multinational Pediatric Palliative Care Research Network.
Departments, Centers, & Programs:
Clinical Interests:
- Care of children with serious illness Infants, children and adolescents
Treats:
- Adult & Pediatrics
Languages:
- French, Hebrew
Locations
Mass General for Children (MGfC)
55 Fruit St.
Boston, MA 02114
Phone: 888-644-3248
Medical Education
- MD, Harvard Medical School*
- Residency, Boston Children's Hospital
- Fellowship, Children's Hospital Boston / Dana Farber Cancer Institute
American Board Certifications
- Hospice and Palliative Medicine, American Board of Pediatrics
Accepted Insurance Plans
- Aetna
- Beech Street
- Blue Cross Blue Shield
- Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare
- Cigna
- Commonwealth Care Alliance
- Coventry
- Fallon Health
- Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
- Humana
- Maine Community Health Options
- Mass General Brigham Health Plan
- MassHealth
- Medicaid ME
- Medicaid NH
- Medicaid RI
- Medicaid VT
- Medicare
- Medicare ACO
- Multiplan
- Railroad Medicare
- Senior Whole Health
- TriCare
- Tufts Health Plan
- United Health Care
- Wellpoint
- WellSense
- WellSense NH
Note: This provider may accept more insurance plans than shown; please call the practice to find out if your plan is accepted.
Research
Dr. Wolfe?s research aims to improve wellbeing for seriously ill pediatric patients and their families. Together with her research team she focuses on identifying and measuring developmentally appropriate outcomes for patients and their families. They then systematically develop and rigorously evaluate interventions aimed at improving these outcomes. Her team?s research seeks to impact care throughout the illness trajectory across all ages from perinatal through young adults. Key interventions currently under development and evaluation include the impact of specialty palliative care interventions in children with advanced cancer and those with neurological impairment experiencing recurrent pain.