Faculty Spotlight: An Interview with Dr. Sumedha Ariely

Dr. Sumedha Gupta Ariely is an associate Professor in the Global Health department and teaches courses such as Research methods in Global Health (GLHLTH371) and Global Health Ethics (GLHLTH373). She is also a faculty lead for Duke Global Health Institute’s Durham Research and Service work, demonstrating her commitment to the “Local-is-Global” approach in global health endeavors. She has mentored a variety of undergraduate and graduate students through Bass Connections and DukeEngage projects. In her research, she investigates maternal, child, and adolescent health across international contexts. Notable, she has worked extensively with Uganda, Kenya, and India across her time at Duke. Using her background in developmental psychology, she examines how cultural and social factors relate to a community’s health behaviors and outcomes. To explore more of Dr. Ariely’s revolutionary work, I interviewed her on her experiences and initiatives in the global health field during her time at Duke to see how they have informed her research. 1. You’ve led initiatives in the “Global Is...
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Reflection on Contraceptive Product Development and Introduction Panel

During one of Duke’s wellness days, Kate Rademacher and Rebecca Callahan from FHI 360 presented the work being done at FHI 360 related to contraceptive development and accessibility/ acceptability in low- to middle- income countries (LMIC). As a part of FHI 360’s Contraceptive Technology Innovation Team and a public health scientist, Rebecca Callahan researches new contraceptive methods and product availability; As a technical director for the LEAP Initiative for FHI 360, Kate Rademacher supports the development of long-active contraceptives for low resources settings. At the start of the panel, Dr. Callahan introduced the research being done in FHI 360, exploring different forms of existing contraceptives and how they differ in use world-wide. Notably, she focuses on contraceptive usage in LMIC and discusses how for contraceptives to be properly received by these populations, they must have qualities like “safe and effective”, “discreet”, “low cost”, etc. Because contraceptive development is not as profitable for larger pharmaceutical companies, FHI 360 engages research for the...
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Faculty Spotlight: Sara LeGrand or Liz Turner selected as part of WomenLift Health’s 2021 Global Leadership Journey cohort

Faculty Spotlight: Sara LeGrand or Liz Turner selected as part of WomenLift Health’s 2021 Global Leadership Journey cohort

Sara LeGrand Serving as an Associate Research Professor of Global Health and as the co-director of the Duke Sexual and Gender Minority Health Program, Sara LeGrand has done incredible work in exploring health care disparities worldwide through her research and her teaching. Across her 10 years at Duke, Dr. LeGrand’s research has investigated HIV prevention & disparities among sexual and gender minorities and developed digital health interventions to improve antiretroviral adherence. Her research on sexual and gender minorities also explores social determinants of health that affect mental, physical, and social health outcomes globally. Recently, Dr. LeGrand has recently been published in the International Journal of Transgender Health in the study “Mental health and challenges of transgender women: A qualitative study in Brazil and India”, exploring the lived experiences of transgender women in low - and middle - income countries with high rates of transphobia and gender-based violence.   Elizabeth Turner In her work as the Director of Duke Global Health Institute’s Research and Design...
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