Joshua Petrie, Ph.D., M.P.H., has joined the Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Population Health at Marshfield Clinic Research Institute as an associate research scientist where he will study infectious respiratory diseases such as rhinovirus, COVID-19 and influenza. 

Dr. Petrie received his doctorate in epidemiologic sciences and master's in public health from the University of Michigan School of Public Health in Ann Arbor.

“My mom is a nurse, so I've always had an interest in health care. I pursued a biology degree in undergrad so that I could go to medical school," said Dr. Petrie. “The more I did my research, I decided that wasn't for me. Then I found public health and got really interested in epidemiology." 

His primary research project is dealing with hospital-acquired respiratory infections, which was funded by the National Institutes of Health as a career development award. 

“I am trying to figure out how often hospital-acquired respiratory infections happen and comparing them across viruses," Dr. Petrie said. “For example, rhinovirus is typically thought of as a mild infection, but I am trying to figure out if it is worse inside of a hospital than out." 

He also has experience working on COVID-19 and influenza epidemiology research, including research conducted in a household cohort that had been followed for more than 10 years. His research team was able to look at the seasonality of pre-pandemic coronaviruses and how often people are re-infected to predict what COVID-19 transmission might look like as it becomes endemic.  

Dr. Petrie is married and has a two-year-old daughter. He is a devoted University of Michigan Wolverine fan and is currently getting into woodworking.