Keeping the 'Public' in Public Health |
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School-based recruitment for private well testing is an efficient public health outreach method to quickly obtain many private well samples and is a promising model for future private well outreach, according to a study led by Megan Rockafellow-Baldoni, program evaluator at the Center for Public Health Workforce Development, and Steven E. Spayd, who is part of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Rockafellow-Baldoni and Spayd found 25% of wells tested above the New Jersey arsenic standard and 5% above the Environmental Protection Agency recommendation for boron. Both Rockafellow-Baldoni and Spayd are alums of the Rutgers School of Public Health. Learn More
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For the 1.2 million Americans living with HIV or AIDS, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to undermine their physical, mental, social, and economic wellbeing, according to Rutgers School of Public Health dean, Perry N. Halkitis, and other HIV/AIDS experts, educators, researchers, and activists, in a recent op-ed.
"These impacts on health are exacerbated in Black and brown communities — particularly Black sexual- and gender-minority men and women and Black cisgender women — who are coping with the realities created by COVID-19, ongoing systemic discrimination, and a plethora of other social inequities that create additional vulnerabilities to their overall health," wrote the authors who include Shobha Swaminathan, associate professor and Travis Love, community educator and public health representative, both at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. Read NJ.com
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Student Group Spotlight: Stonewall Alliance for Health |
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The Rutgers School of Public Health's Stonewall Alliance for Health develops a community for students who identify as LGBTQ+, are allies of the LGBTQ+ community, or are interested in LGBTQ+ health topics. The safe space created within this club provides students with opportunities to share in their experiences, feel supported through their education at the School, and feel represented within the overall student population.
Through educational programs and workshops, students can increase their awareness of LGBTQ+ health issues and resources, services, and organizations available to address these needs. Through community service initiatives, students are also able to promote the wellbeing and overall health of LGBTQ+ people at the university, in the local community, and wherever else they may be.
Additionally, Stonewall Alliance for Health offers leadership activities, which help students to learn to advocate on behalf of the LGBTQ+ population and effectively discuss LGBTQ+ health issues with diverse groups of people.
The efforts of the Stonewall Alliance for Health aim to make the Rutgers School of Public Health more inclusive and to better prepare students for their professional lives addressing complex health problems within diverse populations.
Students can join the Stonewall Alliance for Health's upcoming events by visiting the Student Connect Canvas page for additional information.
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Student Spotlight: Newest Doctoral Candidates |
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Michael Briganti
Research Focus: Relationship of minority-specific chronic stress processes (i.e. discrimination, stigma, internalized homophobia, loneliness) on mental health (depression, anxiety, and PTSD), accounting for differences in coping style (positive or negative) and social support among a cohort of sexual minority men in New York City.
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Caleb Loschiavo
Research Focus: Human papillomavirus in transgender communities in New Jersey. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, the goal of his research is to better understand what transgender people experience when accessing healthcare related services for HPV.
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Wenxuan Xiong
Research Focus: Bayesian models, point-referenced spatial and spatial-temporal data analysis, and causal inference
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Peng Zhang
Research Focus: Clinical trials and adaptive design, especially in group sequential design and data monitoring. His dissertation topic is focused on conditional power and sample size re-estimation with consideration for correlation studies.
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COVID-19 Educational Resource for Latinx Families |
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COVID-19 disproportionately impacts Latinx families more than any other racial and ethnic group, yet there are few available resources to mitigate their risks.
The Rutgers School of Public Health’s Cancer Health Justice Lab has launched an educational COVID-19 video in Spanish to address the lack of resources available to Latinx families.
The video provides Spanish-speaking families with essential information regarding COVID-19 in plain language. Though the video is in Spanish, English subtitles have also been added to appeal to English and Spanish-speaking communities.
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School Receives $125K Gift for South Asian Health Research |
The Rutgers School of Public Health has received a $125,000 gift that will provide funding for researchers specifically asking new scientific questions in the area of South Asian health.
The gift, made by Divesh Srivastava, is in tribute to his parents’ passion for science.
Divesh fondly remembers his parents’ visit to Washington, D.C. years ago, before his father’s diagnosis of stomach cancer. His mother, who had studied both biology and library sciences and had worked as a librarian, insisted on visiting the Library of Congress. His mother and father, a physicist by training who had worked as an engineer, both passed on a love of science to Divesh.
Sadly, Divesh’s father, Swayam Prakash, passed away from cancer a few years ago. Since then, Divesh has wanted to do something to honor him and his mother’s devotion as a caregiver.
Knowing the propensity for cancer in South Asians and the insufficiency of data on this specific population, he felt that supporting emerging research in this area would both honor his parents’ love of science and bring more attention to the health of South Asians.
“We want researchers to be able to take risks and ask new questions without worrying about how to obtain their initial funding,” explains Divesh. “In this way, our gift is something living that can benefit people well into the future.”
With the help of his wife, Jaya Satagopan - a professor within the department of biostatistics and epidemiology – and the Rutgers University Foundation, Divesh was able to create the Maya and Swayam Prakash Fund to honor his parents and further scientific research on South Asian health.
Funding for pilot studies is critical to moving new ideas forward, helping them advance into long-term, federally funded research projects.
If you’re interested in learning more about the Maya and Swayam Prakash Fund or making a gift of your own, please contact Katie Mayfield.
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Health officials have noted the disparate impact COVID-19 is having on Black and brown communities, in particular, since early in the pandemic. “What we know about pandemics and epidemics is that often the most vulnerable in our society experience the worst health outcomes in relation to the disease,” says Perry N. Halkitis, dean of the Rutgers School of Public Health. Read NJ Spotlight
While it’s fine to get COVID-19 vaccine appointments at different places due to a challenging supply situation and lack of a centralized scheduling system, “if you happen to get more than one [appointment], then you cancel one,” says Leslie Kantor, professor and chair of the department of urban-global public health. Read NJ.com
After two shots, you might be protected from suffering severe symptoms of COVID-19, but you might still be able to get and transmit the virus, according to Henry F. Raymond, associate professor in the department of biostatistics and epidemiology. The vaccine doesn’t make you unable to get the virus. It only acts to lessen the effect of the virus,” he adds. Read NJ.com
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Windows of Understanding (Update) |
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We've partnered with Windows of Understanding, a public art project is that transforms “main street” spaces into literal windows of understanding; spaces in which the community can learn about the positive strides being made by local organizations around a wide array of social justice issues.
Working with librarian and artist Megan Lotts, we wanted to draw attention to the importance of equitable and socially just COVID-19 vaccine distribution.
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21PHirst Signature Webinar Series |
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What's Next for Public Health?
Lessons Learned from the Challenges of the COVID-19 Pandemic
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Join the Rutgers School of Public Health for “What’s Next for Public Health?” on Friday, March 12, 2021, at 8:45 a.m. EST. The webinar will focus on ensuring that the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic are applied as we move the field of public health forward.
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Enobong (Anna) Branch, PhD
Senior Vice President for Equity
Rutgers University
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Arturo Brito, MD, MPH
Executive Director
Nicholson Foundation
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Brian C. Castrucci, DrPH
President and CEO
de Beaumont Foundation
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Paschal Nwako, PhD, MPH, REHS, CHES, DAAS
County Health Officer and Public Health Coordinator
Camden County
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Stephanie Silvera, PhD, MS, CPH
Professor of Public Heath
Montclair State University
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The conversation will be moderated by Perry N. Halkitis, PhD, MS, MPH, dean of the Rutgers School of Public Health, an Brenda Flanagan, Senior Correspondent, NJ Spotlight News.
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This webinar is open to all and is part of the Rutgers School of Public Health’s 21PHirst Series, which supports the School’s core foundational areas of education, research, and community engagement, guided by the principles of social justice and health equity. The 21Phirst Series is supported by GlaxoSmithKline. |
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Check out the Rutgers School of Public Health's events calendar to learn about and/or join various events hosted, co-hosted, or supported by the School. |
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Rutgers School of Public Health |
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683 Hoes Lane West
Piscataway, NJ 08854
732-235-9700
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One Riverfront Plaza, Suite 1020
Newark, NJ 07102
973-972-7212
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