Biography

Faith Newsome is a third-year doctoral student studying pediatric metabolic and bariatric surgery at the University of Florida. She is also the founder and President of OCEANS, a support and advocacy group for adolescents with obesity. As a teenager, she underwent gastric bypass surgery. Through her pre-operative experience, she discovered she wanted to participate in patient advocacy and contribute to research involving adolescents with obesity. Since then, Newsome has participated in patient advocacy efforts by serving as a committee member for the Obesity Action Coalition and sharing her story with several news organizations including the New York Times, TODAY, and WRAL. On a professional level, Newsome now serves as a doctoral research assistant and has contributed to several research projects at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University, and the University of Florida during her time as an undergraduate and graduate student. Newsome’s research interests include the implementation of evidence-based treatments for obesity, health disparities and inequities, and pre-operative education for teenagers undergoing bariatric surgery.