Claire R Morton, MD, MPP
she/her/hers
Research Associate 1Cards
About
I am a general surgery resident, health services researcher, and aspiring academic breast surgeon committed to improving how surgical care is delivered to older adults and patients facing serious illness. My work sits at the intersection of surgery, aging, palliative care, and health policy, with a focus on how care delivery decisions shape outcomes that matter most to patients and families.
Research
Publications
2026
Understanding Surgeon Engagement with Palliative Care Practices for Seriously Ill Patients: A Qualitative Study
Morton C, Reich A, Sun W, Dhanani H, Comrie C, Suh L, Farber O, Tabata-Kelly M, Dohan D, Cooper Z. Understanding Surgeon Engagement with Palliative Care Practices for Seriously Ill Patients: A Qualitative Study. Annals Of Surgery 2026, 10.1097/sla.0000000000007098. PMID: 42168819, PMCID: PMC13215160, DOI: 10.1097/sla.0000000000007098.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchPalliative careIll Older AdultsOlder surgical patientsOlder adultsObservations of clinical encountersPalliative care practiceRegional health systemSeriously Ill PatientsPC deliveryCare practicesPsychosocial distressPC integrationHealth systemPsychosocial issuesSurgeon engagementClinical encountersPatient encountersClinician interviewsSurgical patientsQualitative studyClinic visitsElective surgeryClinical sitesDeductive analysisClinicians' understandingLocal Ablative Therapy in Oligometastatic Breast Cancer—Equipoise Persists
Kim L, Morton C, Golshan M. Local Ablative Therapy in Oligometastatic Breast Cancer—Equipoise Persists. JAMA Surgery 2026, 161: 477-478. PMID: 41779408, DOI: 10.1001/jamasurg.2026.0106.Commentaries, Editorials and LettersPatient Perceptions of Palliative Care in Surgery: A Qualitative Study
Morton C, Reich A, Sun W, Dhanani H, Comrie C, Suh L, Farber O, Tabata-Kelly M, Dohan D, Cooper Z. Patient Perceptions of Palliative Care in Surgery: A Qualitative Study. Journal Of Pain And Symptom Management 2026, 72: e50-e57. PMID: 41763336, PMCID: PMC12952691, DOI: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2026.02.014.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsPalliative careEnd-of-lifePatients' perceptionsPerceptions of palliative careEnd-of-life careIll Older AdultsDefinition of PCEnd-of-life treatmentPatient perspectivePC integrationSemistructured interviewsOlder adultsForgo surgeryPsychological burdenQualitative studyCareContextual factorsComprehensive definitionSurgical patientsInterviewsPC domainsSurgical practiceEthnographic observationsHospicePatientsEfficiency of Sorting Site of Care for Frail Patients Undergoing Mastectomy
Morton C, Chen Y, Williams K, Bloch R, Brooks E, Minami C, Nguyen L. Efficiency of Sorting Site of Care for Frail Patients Undergoing Mastectomy. Annals Of Surgical Oncology 2026, 33: 3319-3326. PMID: 41535562, PMCID: PMC12818549, DOI: 10.1245/s10434-025-18910-5.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsAmbulatory surgery centersSite of careFrail patientsOlder adultsRisk of adverse outcomesPrefrail older adultsOdds of transferUnique adverse eventsAssociation of frailtyLogistic regression modelsAcute hospitalsInpatient careAdverse eventsInpatient settingAdverse outcomesMastectomyAmbulatory proceduresSurgery centersPatientsCareMethodsThe authorsFrailtyRegression modelsCost-saving
2025
Frailty and Postoperative Complications in Older Adults With Nonmetastatic Breast Cancer
Lorentzen E, Chen Y, Morton C, King T, Mittendorf E, Minami C. Frailty and Postoperative Complications in Older Adults With Nonmetastatic Breast Cancer. JAMA Network Open 2025, 8: e2531841. PMID: 40952745, PMCID: PMC12439052, DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.31841.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchImpact of age and treatment-related adverse events on financial toxicity among patients with breast cancer: a systematic review
Myers S, Morton C, Bain P, Obeng-Gyasi S, Paskett E, McAlearney A, Greenup R, Minami C, Mittendorf E, King T. Impact of age and treatment-related adverse events on financial toxicity among patients with breast cancer: a systematic review. Journal Of Cancer Survivorship 2025, 1-8. PMID: 40884698, DOI: 10.1007/s11764-025-01881-7.Peer-Reviewed Reviews, Practice Guidelines, Standards, and Consensus StatementsTreatment-related adverse eventsBreast cancerFinancial toxicityAdverse eventsNon-metastatic invasive breast cancerIncidence of breast cancerStage I-III breast cancerYoung breast cancer survivorsI-III breast cancerInvasive breast cancerYounger ageSystematic reviewPatient-reported outcome metricsBreast cancer survivorsYoung adultsTreatment-related symptomsMetastatic diseasePatient ageCancer histologyCancer survivorsEnglish-language publicationsImpact of agePrimary outcomePatientsCancerMeasures to evaluate clinician communication in the intensive care unit: A systematic review of measurement properties
Morton C, Raymond-King L, Brackett A, Cooper Z, Liu J. Measures to evaluate clinician communication in the intensive care unit: A systematic review of measurement properties. Patient Education And Counseling 2025, 140: 109266. PMID: 40712401, PMCID: PMC12403032, DOI: 10.1016/j.pec.2025.109266.Peer-Reviewed Reviews, Practice Guidelines, Standards, and Consensus StatementsConceptsCritical Care Family Satisfaction SurveyFS-ICUClinician communicationIntensive care unitMeasurement propertiesSystematic reviews of measurement propertiesQuality of clinician communicationStructural validitySystematic reviewFamily Satisfaction SurveyPatient-centered mannerCare unitRemoval of duplicatesCOSMIN criteriaCOSMIN guidelinesSystematic literature searchContent validityFamily satisfactionConstruct validityInternal consistencySatisfaction surveyCOSMINOutcome measuresIntensive care unit patientsScreening toolSurvivorship Issues in Older Adults with Breast Cancer
Morton C, Lorentzen E, Minami C. Survivorship Issues in Older Adults with Breast Cancer. Current Breast Cancer Reports 2025, 17: 20. PMID: 41523952, PMCID: PMC12781956, DOI: 10.1007/s12609-025-00586-1.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchOlder adult breast cancer survivorsAdult breast cancer survivorsBreast cancer survivorsSurvivorship concernsOlder adultsCancer survivorsHistory of breast cancerBreast cancerRisk of hip fractureConcerns of older adultsComprehensive geriatric assessmentTreatment decision-makingSurvivorship issuesSymptom burdenHip fractureGeriatric assessmentUnique needsBaseline comorbidityCognitive declineYoung adulthoodTime of diagnosisAdultsSurvivorshipSurvivorsReviewThe numberBrief report: Relationships of frailty and age with nonresponse to patient reported outcome measures
Morton C, Cooper Z, Bleday R, Fanning J, Steinberg J, Zeng C, Pusic A, Liu J. Brief report: Relationships of frailty and age with nonresponse to patient reported outcome measures. Advances In Patient-Reported Outcomes 2025, 1: 100197. PMID: 41356115, PMCID: PMC12680023, DOI: 10.1016/j.apro.2025.100197.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchPatient-reported outcome measuresOlder adultsOutcome measuresHealth care interventionsReported outcome measurePilot groupSample of patientsRelationship of frailtyCare interventionsPilot group of patientsProportion of patientsGroup of patientsFrailtyAdultsRetrospective analysisClinical syndromePatientsSurgeryPrefrailtyAge
2024
Risk Factors for Lower Extremity Minor Amputation Conversion to Major Amputation
Rolle N, Kawaji Q, Morton C, Rosenberg K, Kalsi R, Blitzer D, Nagarsheth K. Risk Factors for Lower Extremity Minor Amputation Conversion to Major Amputation. Annals Of Vascular Surgery 2024, 104: 166-173. PMID: 38387800, DOI: 10.1016/j.avsg.2023.12.066.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMeSH KeywordsAgedAmputation, SurgicalChi-Square DistributionFemaleHumansKaplan-Meier EstimateLimb SalvageLogistic ModelsLower ExtremityMaleMiddle AgedMultivariate AnalysisPeripheral Arterial DiseaseProportional Hazards ModelsReoperationRetrospective StudiesRisk FactorsTime FactorsTreatment OutcomeWound HealingConceptsMinor LEALower extremity amputationMidfoot amputationRisk factorsRetrospective chart reviewLevel of amputationChance of wound healingMultivariate logistic regression modelLogistic regression modelsTertiary care medical centerMidfoot groupExtremity amputationAmputation patientsAmputation groupPatient understandingMinor amputationChi-square testCox proportional hazardsMajor amputationMidfootDescriptive statisticsLimb salvage approachAmputationMedical CenterIndependent risk factor