Cynthia Chih-Ying Li, PhD, OTR/L, FACRM, FAOTA, is a nationally recognized rehabilitation scientist and health services researcher whose work is reshaping how post-acute care quality and outcomes are measured and improved across post-acute care settings. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the UTMB School of Health Professions and an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Population Health and Health Disparities in the UTMB School of Public and Population Health.
Dr. Li earned her BS and MS in Occupational Therapy from National Taiwan University and her PhD in Health and Rehabilitation Science from the Medical University of South Carolina. She completed advanced training in outcomes measurement and large-data health services research through the Center for Large Data Research and Data Sharing in Rehabilitation (P2CHD065702), one of the country’s premier research centers in rehabilitation data science.
A rising leader in rehabilitation outcomes research, Dr. Li is a NIH-funded career development awardee from NICHD/NCMRR (K01HD101589) and has received numerous prestigious honors, including the American Occupational Therapy Foundation Early Career Research Excellence Award. She has also been selected as a Texas RCMAR Research Scholar (P30AG059301), LeaRRn Scholar (P2CHD101895), and AIM-AHEAD Research Fellow (OT2OD032581) - reflecting her national reputation for innovative and patient-centered research in learning health systems.
Her work has been supported by NCMRR, NIA, AOTF, and NIHCM, highlighting her success in securing competitive research support across multiple federal and foundation mechanisms. Dr. Li also serves as core faculty in the UTMB Center for Health Promotion, Performance, and Rehabilitation Research (CHPPRR) and as an Associate Scholar at the UTMB Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) program.
Dr. Li’s program of research centers on evaluating and transforming health policy to enhance the quality and coordination of post-acute care. Her work examines service use patterns, care transitions, and patient outcomes across settings, including home health, skilled nursing facilities, and inpatient rehabilitation. Through rigorous analytics and policy-focused inquiry, Dr. Li is advancing evidence that directly informs rehabilitation practice, improves patient trajectories, and supports a more equitable and high-performing post-acute care system. She was interviewed in the New York Times and her work and quotes were featured in a 2025 piece: https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/for-profit-rehab-hospitals-errors-unpenalized-undisclosed-cms/
Teaching Interest
- Grant Writing
- Outcome Measurement
- Translational Research