CDSI Leadership

The Center for Drug Safety and Immunology (CDSI) is an internationally acclaimed center for excellence in research and clinical care whose mission is to understand the mechanisms and risks of immune-mediated adverse drug reactions. CDSI aims to unite scientific and lay communities to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of these adverse drug reactions and, ultimately, the safety of drugs.

Elizabeth Phillips, MD

CDSI Founder and Director

Elizabeth Phillips, MD

John A. Oates Chair in Clinical Research, Vanderbilt University Medical Center 

Professor of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, VUMC

Professor of Dermatology and Pathology, Immunology, and Microbiology, VUMC

Professor of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine 

Dr. Elizabeth Phillips is the Founder and Director of CDSI. She is an international leader in drug hypersensitivity, studying genetic risk, mechanisms, and outcomes of severe and life-threatening immune-mediated adverse drug reactions. Dr. Phillips continues to translate this knowledge into safer drug-prescribing practices.   

Michelle Martin-Pozo, PhD

CDSI Program Director

Michelle Martin-Pozo, PhD

Research Assistant Professor of Medicine

Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Dr. Michelle Martin-Pozo is the Program Director of CDSI. In this role, she provides management and direction of CDSI’s research and clinical trial initiatives. Dr. Martin-Pozo's professional background includes experience in laboratory-based research as well as administrative oversight and management of large funding portfolios. This experience, in combination with her PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology, has enabled her to lead diverse initiatives at CDSI.