Dr. Gregory Kirk, MD, MPH, PhD is the Vice Dean for Research at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and previously served as the Vice Chair for Clinical and Translational Research for the Department of Medicine in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
Dr. Kirk’s research focuses on understanding the long-term consequences of HIV infection, and in particular, the impact of HIV on chronic comorbidities including lung disease. He leads an interdisciplinary group of epidemiologists, clinicians, biostatisticians and behavioral and laboratory scientists involved in a diverse research portfolio. His work is largely centered in long-standing, high-risk cohorts in both domestic (Baltimore, Maryland) and international settings (Africa, the Caribbean, the Netherlands). Dr. Kirk provided the scientific vision and leadership to rigorously incorporate chronic disease, cancer and geriatric research strategies into aging cohorts of HIV-infected persons. He initiated an NHLBI-funded consortium of Baltimore-based cohorts to longitudinally evaluate chronic pulmonary complications of HIV (SHIELD; Study of HIV Infection in the Etiology of Lung Disease). With >2,500 participants followed with semi-annual collection of detailed respiratory surveys, biospecimens, and spirometry, SHIELD is among the largest and longest running prospective cohorts of lung disease focused on HIV. With colleagues, he provided some of the first well-controlled evidence that HIV infection may increase risk for lung cancer and obstructive lung disease, independent of smoking.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Kirk has played an instrumental role in coordinating the research response at Johns Hopkins, helping to lead the rapid scale-up of a $6 million University investment in nine research program areas, and in providing oversight of the safe return to laboratory and human subjects research activities.
Dr. Kirk graduated from medical school at the University of Oklahoma and completed residency and fellowship training at Johns Hopkins, Georgetown and the National Institute of Health. He received his MPH and doctoral degrees in Epidemiology from Hopkins, and now is a Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Epidemiology and Oncology. Dr. Kirk has contributed to >250 peer-reviewed publications in the scientific literature. He is an elected Fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the American College of Epidemiology and American Society of Clinical Investigation. Board-certified in preventive medicine, internal medicine, and infectious diseases, Dr. Kirk continues clinical practice in infectious diseases at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Hopkins Bayview Medical Center.
