PARTNRS - Parenting and Relationship Transition & Risk Study

about

 

Trace Kershaw, Ph.D., Principal Investigator

Dr. Kershaw is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health in the Social Behavioral Sciences Program and is a member of the Methodology and Biostatistics Core. Dr. Kershaw received his Ph.D. in social psychology from Wayne State University and completed his postdoctoral training in health psychology and HIV research at Yale University as part of the CIRA Post-Doctoral Training Fellowships. His research is in the area of HIV/STD prevention and reproductive and maternal-child health epidemiology. Specifically, Dr. Kershaw is interested in:

  1. the role of heterosexual men and relationships on the sexual risk of young pregnant/parenting women,
  2. social, psychological, and biological influences on health and sexual behavior before, during, and after pregnancy, and
  3. integrating HIV/STD and unwanted pregnancy prevention with prenatal and postnatal care for young men and their pregnant partners.

He is currently involved in several research projects assessing the influence of behavioral interventions aimed to reduce the occurrence of HIV/STD and negative perinatal and postnatal outcomes (e.g., low birth weight, maternal mortality) for young pregnant women in the United States and abroad (e.g., South Africa, Haiti).

In addition, Dr. Kershaw is interested in methodological and quantitative issues related to designing, implementing, and evaluating applied behavioral interventions. In particular, he is interested in:

  1. quantitative methods to identify high-risk groups for the development of targeted interventions, and
  2. the development and evaluation of dyadic interventions.

Dr. Kershaw has participated in several research projects assessing the influence of dyadic interventions on the quality of life of women with advanced cancer and their partners. Dr. Kershaw plans to extend this methodology to the area of HIV/STD-prevention among expectant fathers and their partners.

CIRA Bio: Click here for further information on CIRA affiliated projects and selected publications.

Anna Arnold, M.P.H., Project Coordinator

Anna joined the PARTNRS team in early 2007. Prior to her current post, Anna worked as a project manager for the Department of Nursing and an internal operations consulting group at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Anna earned her Masters in Public Health from the Center for Evaluative and Clinical Sciences at Dartmouth College and conducted her undergraduate studies at Hamilton College, where she majored in biochemistry.

Kwaku Ayebi-Awuah, B.S., Research Assistant

Kwaku recently joined the PARTNRS team in May 2007 after earning a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Connecticut where he majored in Allied Health Sciences. While in school, Kwaku worked at the Center for Undergraduate Education as both a peer advisor/mentor and as a Residential Assistant for the Student Support Services, assisting youth making the transition from high school to college.

During his time at UConn, Kwaku was dedicated to educating the community on HIV/AIDS and HPV. In 2006, Kwaku conducted research on the cross-cultural differences in the treatment of HIV/AIDS in U.S., U.K. and Ghana. He also produced a program in 2007 titled, "The Hidden Reality of HIV/AIDS and HPV in America" to raise funds for the Windham AIDS program in Willimantic.

Rachael Gerber, B.A., Research Assistant

Rachael is a candidate for a Master's degree in Public Health at Yale School of Public Health with a concentration in Social and Behavioral Science. Prior to coming to Yale, Rachael served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Togo, West Africa, where she worked in rural communities to raise awareness of health issues such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, reproductive health, and water sanitation. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from Boston University.

Cynthia Palmieri, B.S., Research Assistant

Cynthia has been a part of the PARTNRS team since March of 2007, and has been at Yale for nearly three years. Prior to joining the PARTNRS team, Cynthia worked at the Yale Child Study Center, as a mental health counselor, assisting youth making the transition from highly structured residential settings to family or foster homes. Cynthia earned a Bachelors of Science at Southern Connecticut State University where she majored in Sociology.

Jhumka Gupta, Ph.D., Post-Doctoral Fellow (CIRA)

Jhumka Gupta received her Doctor of Science in social epidemiology from Harvard School of Public Health in 2007. Her work focuses on gender-based violence as a health issue, both within the United States and internationally. She is particularly interested in gender-based violence in the context of migration and political violence, and identifying men's risk and protective factors for the perpetration of intimate partner violence, and how such exposures impact reproductive health. Prior to her doctoral studies, Jhumka worked on women's health programs in Haiti, India, and at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health.

Jeannette Ickovics, Ph.D., Co-Investigator

Dr. Ickovics is an Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health and of Psychology. She is the Director of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Program within EPH. Dr. Ickovics has been involved in HIV research since 1989. She serves on the CIRA Executive Committee and is the Deputy Director of the Center and Director of its Development Core. She has been the Director of Education and Training for CIRA since the inception of its Training Program. This NIMH-funded training program supports eight Pre- and Post-Doctoral Fellows in HIV prevention annually.

Dr. Ickovics obtained her Ph.D. in applied social psychology in 1989 from George Washington University, and completed her post-doctoral training in health psychology at Yale University. Dr. Ickovics' health research focuses on women and HIV/AIDS as well as more general research on the interaction of biomedical and psychosocial factors that promote good health and recovery. She is the recipient of research grants from the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, and several private foundations. Since 1989, she has been engaged in clinic- and community-based research, focusing on individuals traditionally under-represented in AIDS research. Her most recent work includes pregnant teens and young women who can often be characterized by their minority status and poverty. It is critical to reduce HIV and STD risk within the context of adolescent pregnancy, wherein young women not only fail to protect themselves, but may actively seek pregnancy -- leaving them vulnerable to other risks associated with unprotected sex. Pregnancy is a time when most women are motivated to improve their own health to enhance the health of their child; therefore, she believes it provides an important window of opportunity for long-term HIV risk reduction. A large NIH-funded randomized controlled trial is currently underway to test the effectiveness of an innovative model of group prenatal care to reduce risk for HIV and other STDs as well as improve perinatal outcomes in New Haven, CT and Atlanta, GA.

Dr. Ickovics is the author of more than 75 peer-reviewed publications. She has consulted with the Institute of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Public Health Service, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on issues related to women and HIV as well as behavioral issues in AIDS clinical trials. She was the Founder and Co-Chair (1995-2001) of the Recruitment, Adherence and Retention Subcommittee of the AIDS Clinical Trials Group Outcomes Committee (NIAID). She is the recipient of awards, including a Scholar Award from the American Foundation for AIDS Research (1993-1996), the Emerging Leadership Award from the Committee on Women in Psychology of the American Psychological Association (1999), and the Early Distinguished Contributions for Psychology in the Public Interest from the American Psychological Association (2000).

Dr. Ickovics leads a research team known as "The Connecticut Women's Health Project," committed to HIV/STD prevention and promoting reproductive health among at-risk women.

CIRA Bio: Click here for further information on CIRA affiliated projects and selected publications.

Urania Magriples, M.D., Co-Investigator

Dr. Magriples is an Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a member of the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine. She received her M.D. at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and completed her residency in Obstetrics and fellowship in Maternal Fetal Medicine at Yale.

Dr. Magriples is interested in

  1. Medical complications of pregnancy and their effects on mothers and their infants
  2. Prenatal ultrasound for the detection of fetal anomalies
  3. Social and behavioral influences on the utilization of health care.

She is currently involved in research involving the effectiveness of group prenatal care in improving perinatal outcomes and reducing the risk of HIV and unwanted pregnancies.

Dr. Magriples was voted one of Connecticut’s Top Doctors in 2006.

Linda Niccolai, Ph.D., Co-Investigator

Professor Niccolai is an epidemiologist whose research is primarily focused on sexually transmitted infections (STI), including HIV. Her main area of interest is in behavioral aspects of HIV/STI prevention. Her research includes a focus on the underserved populations of adolescents and women, and includes both domestic and international sites. Specifically, she is interested in studying both individual- and partnership-level determinants of sexual risk behaviors, and population-based patterns of transmission dynamics.

Professor Niccolai is principal investigator of a 3-year study to examine the behavioral and molecular epidemiology of repeat chlamydia infections. The purpose of this study is to determine the sources of repeat infections among young women at reproductive health centers in Connecticut. She also collaborates with the Connecticut Department of Public Health Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control Program on several projects, including an epidemiologic investigation of syphilis trends. Finally, she collaborates on HIV prevention research in Russia and India.

CIRA Bio: Click here for further information on CIRA affiliated projects and selected publications.

Derrick Gordon, Ph.D., Co-Investigator

Dr. Gordon is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine and at The Consultation Center, Division of Prevention and Community Research, where he is Director of Research, Policy & Program on Male Development. Currently he is serving as the clinical supervisor for the Connecticut State EVOLVE Program. Dr. Gordon is involved in the Greater New Haven Domestic Violence Task Force where he has held various leadership positions. He is the Director of Research for the Male Involvement Network, which seeks to support low income, non-custodial fathers. Dr. Gordon's interests include risk and protective factors for adolescents identified as at risk, fatherhood contributions to child development, the impact of violence on the development of children, fathers, and families and the impact of social and individual ethnic/racial identity on academic outcomes.

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