Population Health and Health Equity Scholars (PHHE) Program: The PHHE program supports current junior faculty at the assistant professor level. The award provides flexible funding to accelerate and increase the impact of population health and health equity research.
Award: $20,000
Application cycle is open October-December.
The pilot awards go to support innovative research or programming already underway and led by the scholars.
2024 Scholars
Natalie L. Wilson, PhD, DNP, MPH APRN-BC School of Nursing, Department of Community Health Systems
Proposal Title: Mapping Culturally Tailored Practices for Health Outcomes for People Everywhere (HOPE) Mobile Services
Abstract: Mobile Health Clinics (MHC) improve access to care by removing traditional barriers (e.g. transportation, safety, stigma), and providing direct tailored services that have flexibility to adapt based on the target population. African American people experiencing homelessness (AA-PEH) face multiple intersectional vulnerabilities and are amongst the most heavily impacted by HIV, sexually transmitted infections (STI), and hepatitis C (HCV). Ending the HIV Epidemic goals will be unattainable if we do not tailor intervention strategies to reach marginalized populations. There is a gap in developing and tailoring culturally relevant clinical operating protocols to deliver a structural “test and treat” intervention of outreach, and HIV testing, prevention, and treatment. The overall objective of this Population Health and Health Equity is to collaborate with other US and global mobile clinics focused on providing population-based culturally relevant care to identify and adapt sustainable strategies for care delivery tailored to marginalized populations for HIV testing and care continuum.
About Dr. Wilson: Dr. Wilson’s research is informed by almost 30 years of clinical expertise in primary care, HIV, and sexual health. As part of the Ending the HIV Epidemic National Strategy, Dr. Wilson's research is focused on developing innovative solutions to address the constraints marginalized populations and those from disadvantaged socioeconomic environments have in accessing the HIV Status Neutral Care Continuum. She uses community engagement and mixed-methods implementation science methods to transform healthcare by building in health equity at the individual, system, and community levels.
Jessica de Leon, MD, School of Medicine, Department of Neurology
Proposal Title: Longitudinal analysis of the Cognitive Assessment for Tagalog Speakers (CATS) batter
Abstract: Filipino Americans comprise the 2nd largest Asian American population in California, and a previous study found that they have the highest dementia incidence rate among Asian American subgroups. We recently designed the Cognitive Assessment for Tagalog Speakers (CATS) to detect cognitive deficits in Filipino Americans with Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. The proposed study will analyze longitudinal data to better understand how scores are related to cultural and linguistic factors and/or early signs of neurodegenerative disease. Results will provide preliminary data for future studies that validate and norm the CATS battery in larger cohorts.
About Dr. de Leon: Dr. de Leon is an assistant professor of neurology at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center (MAC), where she focuses on the care of patients with neurodegenerative disease. She leads MAC outreach efforts to the Filipino American community, with the goal of providing culturally and linguistically tailored education on brain health. Her current research focuses on the role of bilingualism in cognitive and brain reserve, the development of socioculturally tailored cognitive measures for Tagalog and Spanish speakers, and cross-linguistic studies in neurodegenerative disease.
Jill Goslinga, MD, MPH, School of Medicine, Department of Neurology
Proposal Title: Air Quality Effects on Patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (AIRPALS)
Abstract: ALS is a fatal neurodegenerative disease with genetic and environmental causes. Air pollution increases disease risk, yet the impact on disease progression is unknown. Low-income and minority populations often suffer from poor air quality, and air pollution may contribute to ALS health disparities. This retrospective cohort study will explore the relationship between ALS participants’ exposure to outdoor air pollution (PM2.5) and rate of functional decline (ALSFRS- R). I will study the relationship between annual PM2.5 levels and rate of functional decline among ALS participants, adjusting for confounders. Then, to address residual geographic confounding (e.g., inequitable health care access in Fresno versus Marin), I will also harness the “natural experiment” of seasonal wildfires to compare functional decline before and during prolonged exposure to wildfire smoke. Finally, I will study the relationship between air pollution and patient demographics to understand the PM2.5 burden on vulnerable populations.
About Dr. Goslinga: Dr. Goslinga grew up on a farm near Milaca, Minnesota and studied biochemistry (BS) at the University of Minnesota. She then attended Harvard Medical School where she also earned a Master's of Public Health (MPH) in Health Policy. Finally, she completed her neurology residency and neuromuscular/EMG fellowship at UCSF before joining the neurology faculty. Her research interests include environmental epidemiology, geographic health equity, and ALS clinical trials. She also teaches fellows, residents, and medical students, and she is a mentor for First Generation medical students.
Daisy León-Martínez, MD, School of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences
Proposal Title: Risk factors for prenatal cardio-metabolic disease in Medicaid-eligible pregnant people, rethinking the paradigm: A randomized comparative-effectiveness trial to investigate the efficacy of Glow! group prenatal care compared to enhanced individual prenatal care on incidence of prenatal cardio–metabolic disease in Medicaid-eligible pregnant people.
Abstract: Prenatal cardio–metabolic disease disproportionately affects people who identify as Black or Latinx and individuals of lower socioeconomic status. This condition is associated with preterm birth, neonatal intensive care admissions, and maternal mortality, thus contributing to disparities in maternal–fetal outcomes. Importantly, existing literature falls short of explaining the observed inequity. I propose a secondary analysis of the PCORI-funded EMBRACE study (NCT04154423) led by Miriam Kuppermann, PhD, MPH. My project aims to investigate the suspected role of socioeconomic factors, racism, and models of healthcare delivery in producing elevated rates of prenatal cardio–metabolic disease among minoritized populations and to determine whether group prenatal care may mitigate their effects.
About Dr. León-Martínez: Daisy León-Martínez, MD is Assistant Professor in the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine. Her research interests include prenatal cardiometabolic disease (i.e., hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and gestational diabetes), healthcare equity in obstetric care, especially as it relates to those with limited health literacy and non-English primary language, and racism in medicine. She is currently completing a Masters in Applied Sciences (MAS) in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at UCSF. Ultimately, she aims to develop a research program focused on promoting broad adoption, adaptation, and maintenance of health-related interventions that yield measurably improved outcomes for underserved obstetric patients.
Sarah A Gutin, PhD, MPH, School of Nursing, Department of Community Health Systems
Proposal Title: Examining the impacts of HIV stigma on couples’ uptake of sexual and reproductive health services and implications for intervention adaptions in Kisumu, Kenya
Abstract: The desire for children is strong among HIV-affected couples. While safer conception (SC) strategies to reduce HIV transmission to partners during conception are available, SC services are underused in many high HIV prevalence countries. Data suggests that this may be due to HIV-related stigma, yet it is unclear whether stigma affects the couple as a unit. Understanding how stigma operates, if it impacts whether couples seek SC services, and how to address it in couple interventions is unknown. To understand what influences SC service uptake in western Kenya, we propose to qualitatively and quantitatively examine HIV stigma and whether sero-different couples seek SC services. Results will be used to develop content for an adapted couples’ intervention that seeks to improve relationship dynamics and build social support and resilience to HIV stigma among HIV-affected couples. Ensuring the reproductive rights of HIV-affected couples is an issue of health equity and reproductive justice.
About Dr. Gutin: Sarah A. Gutin, PhD, MPH, is a social behavioral scientist who is Assistant Professor in the Dept. of Community Health Systems at the UCSF School of Nursing and holds a joint appointment in the Division of Prevention Science in the School of Medicine. Her research focuses on addressing the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs and rights of people living with HIV (PLHIV) and her research interests include the intersection of reproductive health and HIV care in global contexts, working with couples to improve uptake of SRH services, safer conception, family planning, fertility desires, and HIV stigma. Dr. Gutin has 20 years of experience leading and overseeing research as well as HIV prevention and reproductive health projects in both the US and various sub-Saharan African countries, including South Africa, Uganda, Mozambique, Botswana, and Kenya.
Carlos Penilla, D.Ph., M.S., School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Proposal Title: Promoting Health and Reducing Alcohol-Related Risk Behavior in Latinx Adolescents
Abstract: Data indicates that 31% of Latinx high school students currently drink alcohol, with more females than males reporting alcohol use. Because the majority of adolescent health problems are amenable to behavioral change and most adolescents visit a healthcare provider once a year, health behavior change interventions linked to clinic-based health information technologies hold promise for improving healthcare quality and subsequent health outcomes for underserved adolescents. This study will investigate how a clinic-based intervention system impacts the alcohol-related behavioral outcomes of Latinx adolescents aged 15 to 17 years. Implications include an increased understanding of how to utilize learning technologies to engage underrepresented groups to reduce underage drinking, as well as help to build the foundation for addressing potential sources of algorithmic bias in the context of AI-driven behavior change technologies.
About Dr. Penilla: Dr. Penilla’s health equity research informs a deeper understanding of the complex lives of Spanish-speaking communities. His work focuses on bridging technology-based intervention and clinic-based behavioral health research to reduce alcohol-related risk behavior in Latinx adolescents and young adults. He continues to examine the development of obesity in Mexican American families, with a special focus on the role that fathers play in preventing obesity in their children. Dr. Penilla earned his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Science degrees from San Francisco State University and his Doctor of Public Health degree from the University of California, Berkeley.
Tanisha Hill-Jarrett, PhD, School of Medicine, Department Neurology
Proposal Title: “What we don’t see, we assume can’t be”: Black women’s experience of healthcare and possible brain health futures using Afrofuturism and digital storytelling
Abstract: Existing data indicate 80% of Black Americans experience barriers to healthcare and 50% have experienced discrimination when seeking care for a person living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (ADRD). Black Americans are diagnosed with dementia at later and more severe stages of cognitive impairment compared to non-Hispanic, White counterparts. Timely cognitive assessment and diagnosis is key to early intervention which requires identification and elimination of structural level barriers within the healthcare system. For Black women, structural racism interacts with structural sexism to create unique social exposures which may also drive ADRD diagnostic disparities. The proposed study seeks to use digital storytelling through the lens of Afrofuturism to explicate Black women’s experiences of seeking care for cognitive concerns and/or dementia within the healthcare system. The objective of this work is to identify avenues for intervention at the institutional level and center Black women as change agents in the conversation on equitable access and delivery of brain health care.
About Dr. Hill-Jarrett: Tanisha Hill-Jarrett, PhD, is a neuropsychologist and an assistant professor at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center. Her research applies intersectionality theory to understand how psychosocial stressors and structural racism and sexism impact Black women’s cognitive aging and confer risk for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD). As a scientist and clinician, she is committed to making wellness and brain health accessible and participates in the Memory and Aging Center Black/African American Community Outreach Team. She seeks to incorporate Afrofuturism as a tool for brain health among community-dwelling Black elders, and a praxis that drives social change and centers the possible futures of Black women.
