Dr. Jennifer Cohen
Healthcare workforce researcher specializing in healthcare workforce systems, direct care, and disability services
Founder & Principal Researcher, Canvas
Research affiliations: Rutgers University | University of the Witwatersrand
Canvas helps healthcare and disability organizations make workforce decisions grounded in rigorous, real-world evidence.
Canvas is an independent research practice producing rigorous, policy-relevant workforce research across healthcare and disability systems.
Dr. Cohen’s work examines workforce stability, economic insecurity, and structural conditions shaping frontline work — particularly in disability services and direct support professions.
Dr. Cohen is a nationally recognized workforce researcher and former tenured professor, with a track record of peer-reviewed publications, grant-funded research, and advising organizations across the healthcare and disability sectors.
Selected Experience & Impact
Led large-scale, mixed-methods workforce studies with over 4,500 frontline healthcare and disability workers, identifying structural drivers of turnover, compensation, and economic insecurity
Produced research used by leadership teams to guide workforce strategy, funding advocacy, and policy decisions
Conducted independent evaluations of workforce and disability employment initiatives, assessing outcomes, implementation, and system-level impact
Research affiliations with Rutgers University and the University of the Witwatersrand
