M. Courtney Hughes, Ph.D.
Professor
M. Courtney Hughes conducts research at the intersection of artificial intelligence and public health, applying data-driven methods to improve health outcomes and systems of care. Her work focuses on how AI can better support individuals with serious illness and their caregivers, while also strengthening health outcomes research. She explores the role of AI in informing more effective health programs, interventions and policy decisions. Through this work, she aims to advance equitable, high-quality care and enhance training and education in health-related fields.
Research Areas
- AI and health
- Palliative care and caregiving
- Determinants of health
- Quality in health care
- Health education and training
School: Preventative and Applied Health
College: Health and Human Sciences
Email: courtneyhughes@niu.edu
Selected Publications
- Hughes MC. (2026) A Harm-Reduction Framework to for Responsible AI in Public Health Research. npj Digital Public Health.
- Muasher-Kerwin C, Hughes MC, Econie SM. (2026) Using Large Language Models to Support Qualitative Health Research Through Coding, Theming, Quotation Selection, and Data Visualization. Discover Artificial Intelligence. Vol. 6.
- Muasher-Kerwin C, Hughes MC, Sanatizadeh A, Mayer JF, Alhoori H. (2026) Harnessing Multimodal Large Language Models to Interpret Ecological Momentary Assessment-Generated Caregiving Photographs. Discover Artificial Intelligence. Vol. 6.
- Muasher-Kerwin C, Hughes MC, Foster M, Al Azher I, Alhoori H. (2025) Exploring large language models for summarizing and interpreting an online brain tumor support forum. Digital Health.