Welcome!
Guidesmith is a website that focuses on how you can guide yourself, or someone else, through a high stakes situation such as a family health crisis. Guidesmith is hosted by Jeff Belkora as a public interest website.
Please use the links to the left to navigate this site and review its contents. If you are interested in further resources, use the contact form to initiate a request.
Photo by John Mugge
Jeff Belkora
I am a faculty member at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine.
I conduct research as an Assistant Professor of Surgery in the Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies.
I promote patient participation in medical decisions in both academic and community settings.
UCSF Responsibilities
- Director of Decision Services at the UCSF Breast Care Center. This program assists patients with information reviewing, question-listing, note-taking, and audio-recording consultations. It is a demonstration program of the Foundation for Informed Medical Decision Making, and was recognized by the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality as one of the first 100 Innovations in their Innovations Exchange. Winner of an innovation contest sponsored by the Mayo Clinic's Center for Innovation.
- Director of Evaluation and Decision Services for BreastCancerTrials.org, a nonprofit website that helps breast cancer patients learn about and find clinical trials that might be right for them. BreastCancerTrials.org is a project launched by the Center of Excellence for Breast Cancer Care, which has also incubated the ATHENA Breast Health Network.
Community Projects
- Consulting Investigator at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation, where I work with the Research Institute and the Cancer Care Program to translate patient participation research into practice.
- Collaborator with resource centers and other community-based organizations that implement and evaluate elements of my decision support programs, including The Cancer Support Community, the Mendocino Cancer Resource Center, Breast Cancer Connections, the Humboldt Community Breast Health Project, and the Education Network to Advance Cancer Clinical Trials (ENACCT).
Professional background and training
Prior to joining UCSF, I co-founded Outcome Software, a provider of decision analysis software. Before Outcome, I was a management consultant with Strategic Decisions Group.
My training includes a Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics from Brown University, a Master's Degree in Statistics from Stanford University, and a Ph.D. in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University. Since arriving at UCSF, I have been a Fellow in the UCSF Teaching Scholars Program, pursued training in clinical research, and held a career development award sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. I am grateful to the many people in various organizations that have inspired, taught, or otherwise supported me over the years.