As a sociologist, I am interested in Health technology, Mental health & suicide, and Substances & pain.
I am a Portland, OR-based researcher and Sociology Doctoral candidate at the University of California San Francisco, working with the wonderful Dr. Howard Pinderhughes. I have content expertise in opioids, chronic pain, mental health, mental health crisis services, crisis text, suicidal ideation, stigmatization & discrimination, and social determinants of health. I have methods expertise in study design, mixed methods, and qualitative methods including in-depth interviewing, text-based interviewing, online focus groups, grounded theory, and thematic analysis.
As a researcher, I strive to design and conduct research to improve health equity which ultimately improves the health and health services experiences of marginalized populations. In my work, I prioritize scientific rigor, respect for colleagues and participants, and a critical approach which illuminates structures of power and inequity. My work is deeply interdisciplinary in nature, and I have built and worked with interdisciplinary teams with training in medicine, nursing, psychology, policy, and sociology. My research has been featured in Health Sociology Review, the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the Journal of Ambulatory Care Management, the International Journal of Qualitative Methods, the Journal of Integrative and Complementary Medicine, and others.
My work spans three areas of investigation:
Health TECHnology
As technology continues to play an increasingly central role in our lives and society, it is imperative that me understand how individuals and organizations use, regard, and deploy technological tools in health, healthcare, and illness. My research in this area has focused on the intersection of technology and health, emphasizing innovative methodologies and applications to improve mental health outcomes. I have explored the integration of social determinants of health into electronic health records, used asynchronous online focus groups to gather nuanced insights from providers who prescribe opioids, and explored the use of crisis text services to understand help-seeking behaviors among young adults. This work reflects a commitment to making health technologies accessible and effective, particularly for marginalized populations. These projects bridge science and technology studies literature with health services research methods and to develop theoretically-informed and empirically actionable clinical and policy recommendations to improve care.
Mental Health & Suicide
Drawing from my training in public health and sociology, my work in this area addresses critical issues in suicide prevention and mental health services. My dissertation examines crisis text services and their role in supporting young adults with suicidal ideation, with a focus on control, agency, and privacy. Other projects have explored the stigma associated with chronic pain and suicidality and the barriers to mental health care access for low-income individuals. By combining qualitative and mixed methods approaches, I aim to uncover the structural and interpersonal dynamics that shape mental health help-seeking and intervention effectiveness. My work in this realm in deeply informed by my experience as a crisis text counselor.
Substance use & Pain
My research in substance use and pain management investigates innovative care models and policy impacts, particularly within Medicaid populations. I have examined clinician perspectives on implementing non-pharmacologic approaches to pain management. This work directly informed Medicaid policies in Oregon, leading to expanded access to integrative and complementary treatments for back pain while reducing opioid reliance. Additionally, my research on fentanyl’s rising presence in drug supplies has shaped public health strategies aimed at harm reduction.
In my spare time, I can be found rock climbing, reading fiction, working on knees or some other deceptively hard-to-draw body part in an art class, baking something with a ridiculous amount of sugar, or most wonderfully, hangin’ with my fam.
