The vaccine is free, but everyone vaccinated must be in an eligible group, wear a mask and bring valid identification. By appointment only, no walk-ups. Everyone eligible for vaccination according to the Alabama Department of Public Health Guidelines can request their vaccination.
Step 1: If you are in an eligible group such as HIV, request today your free COVID-19 Vaccination appointment!
At a time when American citizens should trust their government to protect them during the COVID-19 pandemic, trust does not come easily for many Black Americans. Social Media is spreading misinformation about the coronavirus and COVID-19 vaccines, feeding distrust among communities.
Black Americans are far less likely than other groups to intend to get vaccinated against COVID-19. However, pandemic has disproportionately killed African Americans at a rate 1.5 times as high as white Americans in cases in which race is known. That is why it is so important that all Black Americans get vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccine to protect themselves
Vaccines are now available and safe (visit www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/vaccines for COVID-19 Vaccine safety and benefits). The vaccines clinical studies trials were conducted across a diverse group of Americans from all backgrounds, including Black Americans. It is important to mention that teams of Black scientists participated in the development, test and review panels for the vaccines to ensure they are safe and effective. Black public health professionals feel confident that the research was done correctly. They support that everyone – regardless of race – should receive the COVID-19 vaccines.
MWCCS investigators encourage everyone to claim your place in line to get vaccinated!
In case you did not, here are a few steps to help you to be vaccinated!
The vaccine is free, but everyone vaccinated must be in an eligible group, wear a mask and bring valid identification. By appointment only, no walk-ups.
Step 1: Visit https://www.uabmedicinevaccine.org/ to see current group of those who are eligible. Everyone eligible for vaccination according to the Alabama Department of Public Health Guidelines can request their vaccination.
Step 2: If you are in an eligible group, request today your free COVID-19 Vaccination appointment!
Congratulations to Dr. Sadeep Shrestha, Professor in the UAB Department of Epidemiology! He is part of a team of investigators whose journal article “Primary HPV and Molecular Cervical Cancer Screening in US Women Living with HIV” was named a 2020 “Research Highlight” by the Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program at the National Cancer Institute.
Dr. Howard Strickler, Professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, led the project with participation of several Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) collaborators. The research on cervical cancer prevention focused on primary human papillomavirus screening with HPV16/18-genotyping in women living with HIV in the U.S. Researchers found that HPV screening with reflex testing for genotypes 16 and 18 resulted in fewer unnecessary colposcopies. If this finding is confirmed by other studies, it could be an important advance for women living with HIV. The UAB MWCCS clinical research study site contributed specimens from nearly 70 women enrolled in the WIHS Cohort.
This achievement exemplifies the strength and importance of data collected by the MWCCS. Congratulations to our UAB MWCCS investigators for the successful collaboration and this exciting new publication!
MPI Bulent Turan/Sheri Weiser/Edward Frongillo: Intersection of Material-Need Insecurities and HIV and Cardiovascular Health
Dr. Bulent Turan, Associate Professor in UAB’s College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Psychology along with Dr. Sheri Weiser (U of California San Francisco), and Dr. Edward Frongillo (U of South Carolina) have been awarded R01-funding by the NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to study the “Intersection of Material-Need Insecurities and HIV and Cardiovascular Health”. This study will examine the separate and intersectional effects of four specific material-need insecurities (food, housing, financial, and healthcare insecurity) on HIV and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk outcomes using latent profile and latent transition analyses. The inability to have basic needs met such as food, housing, healthcare, or money may affect health outcomes among people living with HIV and at-risk for HIV.
Dr. Turan and his team hope to better understand how insecurities may co-occur, among which populations, and how they may or may not combine to affect synergistically HIV and CVD outcomes. Researchers will leverage the extensive physical exam, laboratory and survey data from the MWCCS, and add survey measures and blood collection in a longitudinal five-year study among >3000 HIV-infected and at-risk study participants.
Jenni Wise: The Impact of Environmental and Psychosocial Stressors on Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Women Living with HIV: A Mixed Methods Study
Dr. Jenni Wise, an Assistant Professor in the UAB School of Nursing has been awarded K12 funding by the NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to investigate the impact of healthy environments, the support of family and friends, and the ability to manage one’s day-to-day live on cardiovascular health of women living with HIV (WLWH) and women at risk of acquiring HIV (WARH). In the United States, cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality and WLWH are at elevated risk for CVD compared to women without HIV. Understanding how clinical and socioeconomic disparities influence individual risk for CVD is essential to developing effective interventions and policies to best improve health outcomes.
Dr. Wise’s research aims to 1) examine the relationships between environmental, interpersonal, and individual factors on inflammation, stress, and CVD risk among nearly 2000 women living with HIV and at risk of HIV in the U.S., 2) explore individual traits (i.e., attitudes, behaviors, and coping mechanisms) that influence the impact of the environment on stress and CVD risk among women living with HIV and at risk of HIV in the Southern U.S. This is important since the Southeastern region is the epicenter for HIV infection and CVD risk in the U.S. The research goal is to differentiate how risks for CVD differ by HIV status, age, exposure to geographic disparities, and dose of stress. The knowledge gained from the proposed research will be used to develop evidence-based interventions to improve CVD outcomes among WLWH.
Researchers will leverage the extensive physical exam, laboratory and survey data from the MWCCS research infrastructure, and add qualitative data collection (virtual focus groups and/or in-depth interviews).
Dr. Jodie Dionne-Odom, UAB MWCCS Principal Investigator
The UAB-UMMC MWCCS team is pleased to announce Dr. Jodie Dionne-Odom’s appointment as co-Principal Investigator for the UAB-UMMC MWCCS. Given her two decades of experience as a physician in the field of women’s reproductive health in the US and abroad, previous work with the WIHS cohort, and her research focus on improving infection outcomes in women and pregnancy, Dr. Dionne complements and strengthens the current MWCCS team. As a clinician scientist, she has a life long passion for Infectious Diseases, HIV/STI, Women’s Health and Global Health.
Since joining the UAB Division of Infectious Disease in the Department of Medicine in 2013, Dr. Dionne has assumed the role of Chief of Women’s Health at the 1917 HIV Clinic, Associate Scientist in the Center for AIDS Research, and the Associate Director of Global Health for the Center for Women’s Reproductive Health. She was awarded the UAB Pittman Scholarship for Research Excellence in 2018 and she is a highly rated physician and research mentor in infectious diseases. She also serves as the Associate Director of the Cameroon Health Initiative (CHI UAB), Sparkman Global Scholar, Academic Editor for PLOS ONE, and UAB ID Fellowship Research Director.
Dr. Dionne is a leader in the field of HIV/STI co-morbidities and a member of the CDC/HRSA Advisory Committee on HIV, Viral Hepatitis and STD Prevention and Treatment as well as a coauthor of the 2020 CDC STD Treatment Guidelines and the CDC Yellow Book Health Guidelines for Travelers. With NIH support, she is currently leading several randomized clinical trials in the US and in Africa to improve the prevention and treatment of coinfections in women with and without HIV. She has authored nearly 50 publications and given over 50 invited presentations to national and international scientific audiences. Recently, she has been engaged with educating the public about COVID19 in interviews with local and national media to share new information about disease transmission, prevention, and outbreak control.
Dr. Dionne resides in Birmingham with her husband Dr. James Dionne-Odom, also a member of the UAB faculty, and their two children. Her pastimes include travel, playing the piano and hiking.
Current UAB MWCCS staff includes Dr. Zenoria Causey Pruitt (Project Director), Dr. Corilyn Ott (Research Assistant), Ms. Margaret McDonald (Data Manager) and Ms. Amy Tubbs (Research Nurse Coordinator), with recent additions to our research team: Ms. Silvia Gisiger Camata, Mr. Henry R. Jones and Ms. Dannielle Freeman. Ms. Gisiger-Camata brings more than 11 years of research experience to assist with community outreach activities and website management. Mr. Henry R. Jones, a native of Birmingham, will assist with recruitment of new study participants, and Ms. Dannielle Freeman will join our valuable team of nurses.
Welcome aboard Dr. Dionne, Ms. Gisiger-Camata, Mr. Jones and Ms. Freeman!
Mirjam-Colette Kempf, MPH, PhD
Deborah Konkle-Parker, PhD
UAB-UMMC MWCCS Principal Investigators
If you would like additional information about the UAB-UMMC MACS/WIHS combined Cohort Study (MWCCS) study, please click the link: UAB-UMMC MWCCS Study.
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