Events

Three sectioned overdose prevention centers currently operate in the United States: two in New York City and one in Providence, Rhode Island. This talk will present early findings from SAFER, a mixed-methods evaluation of these three US overdose prevention centers. Drawing on prospective cohort data and neighborhood-level impact evaluation, the talk will examine the effects of the OPCs on individual and community health and safety outcomes.

Bennett Allen is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology in the Department of Population Health at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, where he leads SPOTLIGHT: The NYU Systems and Policy Lab. His work focuses on the evaluation of policies and programs across substance use and mental health, injury and violence prevention, and public safety. He also is interested in the ethical challenges that come with using data to inform policy decisions. As Principal Investigator, his work has been supported by the CDC, NIH, Commonwealth Fund, Greenwall Foundation, and Cities of New York and Boston. Prior to joining NYU, he worked in substance use and mental health policy for the New York City government.

How can qualitative research help us understand the processes through which change occurs? This talk offers a practical introduction to investigating mediation qualitatively, focusing on how an influence, experience, or intervention may shape an outcome through an intervening process. It introduces key conceptual distinctions and provides guidance on developing research questions, gathering evidence, and analyzing proposed pathways. Particular attention is given to temporal sequence, context, alternative explanations, and the limits of causal claims.

Joanna Kim is a prevention scientist and assistant professor of clinical psychology at Arizona State University. Her research examines how family processes and intervention delivery contexts shape the effectiveness of preventive interventions, with particular attention to family engagement and use of intervention skills in everyday life. She is also interested in qualitative methods to center families’ perspectives and inform prevention research. Her work on digital strategies to support caregiver home practice has received funding from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute of Mental Health, and the Administration for Children and Families.

LINK TO VIDEO

Methamphetamine can complicate the management of chronic diseases, including HIV, and is associated with a range of health complications. This talk will draw on Dr. Han’s research focused on substance use among older populations, with a focus on a qualitative study examining motivations for methamphetamine use among older adults living with HIV. This talk will also explore the role of social isolation and loneliness in methamphetamine use, as well as provide a model of care that integrates methamphetamine use disorder treatment with chronic disease management.

Benjamin Han, MD MPH, is an Associate Professor, geriatrician, addiction medicine physician, and clinician-researcher in the Department of Medicine at UC San Diego. He is a primary care physician at the Jennifer Moreno Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, where he leads the syringe service program (SSP-Access to Care Program), which is recognized as an age-friendly health program by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement that integrates harm reduction interventions with chronic disease management and low-barrier substance use disorder treatment for Veterans. He also serves as a supporting editor for the Journal of Addiction Medicine. His research focuses on the intersection of chronic medical disease and substance use, with a career goal to improve the health of older adults with substance use disorders. Prior to joining UCSD in 2020, he was faculty at New York University School of Medicine and a primary care physician at Bellevue Hospital.

LINK TO VIDEO

Co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders (CODs) affect an estimated 21.5 million adults in the U.S., yet 41% receive no treatment at all. This talk draws on Dr. Choi’s research on outpatient COD care, with a focus on the qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews (n=20) with clinicians and program directors across urban and rural outpatient SUD clinics in New York State. Using a multi-level stigma framework, the talk examines how structural fragmentation, organizational capacity, and clinical risk categorization shape access to comprehensive care, often placing providers between person-centered intent and system-level constraints. Dr. Choi will also reflect on her positionality as a social worker and former substance use counselor conducting this research.

Jasmin Choi is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Health at Hofstra University School of Health Sciences. Her research examines how healthcare systems can improve access, engagement, and outcomes for individuals with complex behavioral health needs, particularly those facing high stigma burden. Using mixed methods, administrative data, and implementation-focused approaches, she investigates how organizational, provider, and patient-level factors shape healthcare experiences across behavioral health settings. Dr. Choi brings applied experience in both direct practice and policy to her research. As a licensed social worker, she provided direct counseling and advocacy for underserved communities, including individuals affected by HIV and substance use, as well as immigrant and refugee populations. She later worked as a Federal Policy Analyst for Massachusetts’ Medicaid program, coordinating managed care operations and contributing to state-level health policy initiatives. She has also held research positions at Boston University, Stanford University, and the RAND Corporation.

LINK TO VIDEO

Daniel Bertolino and Connor Reynolds will provide an overview of recent HIV surveillance data in New York City, focusing on individuals with a history of injection drug use. They will also present an evaluation of a crystal meth harm reduction program in the city.

Daniel Bertolino is the Ending the Epidemic Data Analyst in the Bureau of Hepatitis, HIV, and STIs at the New York City Health Department. He oversees the analysis of citywide HIV surveillance data and the production of annual reports, slide sets, and surveillance statistics tables, as well as the processing of internal and external data requests. He has worked at the NYC Health Department since 2018.

Connor Reynolds is a Data Analyst in the New York City Health Department’s Bureau of Hepatitis, HIV, and STIs, specifically in the HIV Care and Treatment Program’s Research and Evaluation Unit. His primary responsibility is to provide data analysis and reporting to evaluate and plan NYC Tax Levy-funded HIV programs. He has worked at the NYC Health Department since 2022.