Bree E. Holtz Ph.D.

Dr. Holtz is an associate professor in the Department of Advertising & Public Relations and the Director of the Ethics Institute at Michigan State University. She is also an American Telemedicine Association College Fellow and a  2022 Brandt Fellow.

Dr. Holtz's research explores the adoption, perceptions, and outcomes of telemedicine, mobile health applications (mHealth), consumer-grade health sensors (e.g., Fitbit, Apple Watch), electronic medical records, artificial intelligence (AI), and social media in health communication. Her work sits at the intersection of health communication, information communication technologies (ICT), and strategic communication for health behavior change. She has a particular interest in the adoption and integration of consumer health technology, telehealth services, and AI in healthcare settings, with the ultimate goal of improving health outcomes and individuals' quality of life. She has built a successful record of mixed methods research around this mission. This record includes 40 peer-reviewed articles, five book chapters, and numerous presentations (both conference and invited). I have also submitted proposals for internal, foundation, and federal funding and demonstrated success with more than $2 million in research awards, as either the PI or a Co-I.

As part of this work, Dr. Holtz founded and led a statewide Telemedicine Think Tank, bringing together experts from across Michigan to explore barriers, opportunities, and future directions for telehealth. This initiative led to a special issue of the Journal of Telemedicine and eHealth, featuring white papers co-authored by stakeholders across academia, healthcare, and policy.

Dr. Holtz is also deeply engaged in ethics education, research, and institutional transformation through her leadership at the Ethics Institute run through the Office of the Provost.

Dr. Holtz has received multiple research and teaching awards, including Michigan State University’s Teacher-Scholar Award. She was a 2023-2024 Academic Leadership Fellow.

She earned her B.A. in Telecommunication from MSU, her MSc in Information Systems from the London School of Economics, and her Ph.D. in Media and Information Studies from MSU. She completed her postdoctoral training at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System in the Health Services Research and Development Department before returning to MSU’s College of Communication Arts and Sciences in 2012.

Development, adoption and utilization of information communication technologies(mobile health, mhealth, electronic medical records, telemedicine/telehealth, etc.) in health care

Thematic Research Areas

Health & Risk, Environment & Science Communication
Human Centered Technology Design

Research Centers and Labs

Health and Risk Communication Center