News

Dr. Mike Smith will serve as Site Principal Investigator on an NIH funded grant titled “Evaluating indirect survey question methods on reproductive health behavior.” Smith will be collaborating with the Maryland Population Research Center, University of Maryland, as well as with colleagues at the University of California at Los Angeles, Rutgers University, and the Guttmacher Institute. The two-year grant is funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Dr. Nathan Hale is lead author of an article in Women’s Health Issues. The article is titled, “Impact of the Choose Well Contraceptive Access Initiative on Method Use Among Women Enrolled in South Carolina's Medicaid Program: A Mid-line Assessment." The research team examined the impact of the Choose Well statewide contraceptive access initiative on contraceptive use among South Carolina Medicaid beneficiaries at midline, just prior to COVID-19. This study found that Choose Well was associated with significant increases in the levels and trends of highly effective method use among women of reproductive age enrolled in South Carolina Medicaid. Co-authors include faculty of CARE Women’s Health Wondi Manalew, Edward Leinaar, Michael Smith, and Amal Khoury as well as Bisakha Sen of the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

CARE Women's Health, part of ETSU's College of Public Health, was recently awarded two separate grants to research child and maternal health outcomes as well as the intersection of postpartum contraception and infant feeding throughout Western North Carolina. Dr. Kate Beatty, an associate professor in ETSU's Department of Health Services Management and Policy, will lead the project to examine the impact of a lack of access to services such as broadband and transportation, as well as income limitations, on maternal and child health outcomes. A second project exploring the ways to influence the region's high preterm birth rate by addressing short-interval pregnancies will be led by Liane Ventura, a research associate with CARE Women's Health. Both grants are funded by the Dogwood Health Trust, a private foundation that works to improve the health and well-being of those living in the 18 counties and the Qualla Boundary in Western North Carolina and total more than $120,000.

Kristen Surles was drawn to the field of public health after earning her master’s degree by working for a non-profit agency that provided counseling to teens. “A lot of kids don’t have access to care. I found that a lot of schools are overwhelmed and under-resourced to provide any kind of care to youth." Now a doctoral student in health management and policy in the College of Public Health, Surles is a graduate assistant in CARE Women’s Health and an Emerging Scholar in Family Planning, with her work funded by a grant from the Society of Family Planning Research Fund.

Drs. Michael Smith, Nathan Hale, Kate Beatty, and Amal Khoury, faculty in East Tennessee State University College of Public Health’s Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women’s Health have published an article in the American Journal of Public Health.  The article, South Carolina’s Choose Well Initiative to Reduce Unintended Pregnancy: Rationale, Implementation Design, and Evaluation Methodology, describes the implementation and evaluation of the Choose Well, a contraceptive access initiative in South Carolina. The article appears in a special issue of the American Journal of Public Health that is devoted to discussing the strengths, limitations, benefits, and opportunities for statewide contraceptive access initiatives in the US.

Nathan Hale has been named the Associate Dean for Research in the College of Public Health. Kate Beatty has been named the Master of Public Health Director.

Drs. Michael Smith, Nathan Hale, and Amal Khoury have published an article in Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health. The article, Ranges of pregnancy preferences and contraceptive use: Results from a population-based survey in the southeast United States, investigates the relationship between the full range of prospective pregnancy preferences, and contraceptive use using a psychometrically evaluated measure of pregnancy preferences.

Dr. Kate Beatty, a public health researcher whose work focuses on rural and Appalachian health and advancing health care for rural and low-income women, has won East Tennessee State University’s Distinguished Faculty Award for Research. It is the highest research honor that ETSU presents to a faculty member.

In addition to celebrating the successes of the past year, the annual fall picnic allows the college to recognize outstanding accomplishments by some individuals and groups.

Dr. Kate Beatty is lead author of an article in the Journal of Public Health Management & Practice. The article, Telehealth for Contraceptive Care During the Initial Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic at Local Health Departments in 2 US States: A Mixed-Methods Approach, examined implementation of telehealth for contraceptive care among health departments (HDs) in two Southern US states with centralized/largely centralized governance structures during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additional CARE Women' Health faculty, students, and alumni co-authors include Michael Smith, Amal Khoury, Liane Ventura, Tosin Ariyo, Jordan de Jong, Kristen Surles, Aurin Rahman, and Deborah Slawson.

Dr. Nathan Hale is lead author of an article in the Journal of Appalachian Health.  The article, "Changes in Adolescent Birth Rates within Appalachian Subregions and Non-Appalachian Counties in the United States, 2012–2018," discusses disparities in adolescent birth rates and the extent to which declines are seen in Appalachia. Kathleen Tatro, student in the College’s Doctor of Public Health program, is a co-author.  Additional co-authors include CARE Women’s Health researches Drs. Sylvester Orimaye, Michael Smith, Kate Beatty, and Amal Khoury, as well as Center for Rural Health Research Director Michael Meit.

Liane Ventura is lead author of a Center article on contraceptive access in South Carolina.  The article, “Contraceptive Access at Federally Qualified Health Centers During the South Carolina Choose Well Initiative: A Qualitative Analysis of Staff Perceptions and Experiences,” examined perceptions of staff from Choose Well-participating Federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) regarding contraceptive access during the first 2 years of the initiative, including factors that facilitated or posed access challenges as well as sustaining factors. Co-authors include other faculty of CARE Women’s Health Kate Beatty, Amal Khoury, Michael Smith, Oluwatosin Ariyo, Deborah Slawson, and Amy Weber.  

Dr. Katie Baker been awarded a research grant from the Society of Family Planning Research Fund to explore self-administered injectable contraception in the southeastern US.  She is funded as part of an opportunity titled “In their hands: Exploring the potential of self-administered injectable contraception. Self-administration has the potential to expand people’s contraceptive choice and access. On May 21, 2021, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued Selected Practice Recommendations for Contraceptive Use providing strong support for self-administration and clearing the path for more widespread provision of this method.

Dr. Michael Smith is examining how policies affect birth outcomes across generations thanks to a $1.86 million R-01 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). His collaborators include Dr. Nancy Fleischer of the University of Michigan and Dr. Annie Ro of the University of California, Irvine, who are the co-principal investigators on the study. 

The East Tennessee State University Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women’s Health (CARE Women’s Health) is the recipient of a $3,192,884 research award in 2021 for a total of approximately $18 million in grant funding since 2017. Dr. Amal Khoury, director of CARE Women’s Health and a professor in the ETSU College of Public Health, said the latest award will expand and extend research and evaluation on priority women’s health issues at the center.

Kristen Surles, doctoral student in East Tennessee State University College of Public Healthhas been named an Emerging Scholar in Family Planning. She is a current Health Management and Policy doctoral student with the Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women's Health. 

The Emerging Scholars in Family Planning grant is designed to help trainees establish a family planning research portfolio.  As one of its core strategies, the Society of Family Planning Research Fund (SFPRF) is seeking to build and support an inclusive, multidisciplinary, skilled, and well-connected community of emerging scholars with a shared focus on family planning. Grant deliverables include the completion of a publishable scholarly research project, including those associated with a thesis or dissertation.

Dr.'s Katie Baker, Nathan Hale, Kate Beatty, and Amal Khoury recieved awards for their work within the College.

Glory Okwori, Health Management and Policy concentration student in East Tennessee State University College of Public Health’s Doctor of Public Health program, is lead author of an article in The Journal of Rural Health.  The article, “Geographic differences in contraception provision and utilization among federally funded family planning clinics in South Carolina and Alabama,” discusses the importance of federally funded family planning clinics to ensure women have access to contraceptive care, especially in rural areas. Drs. Michael Smith, Kate Beatty, Amal Khoury, and Nathan Hale, faculty in the Department of Health Services Management and Policy, are co-authors.  Liane Ventura, research project manager in the department, is an additional co-author.  All authors are members of the Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women’s Health.

The East Tennessee State University Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women’s Health (CARE Women’s Health) is studying the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on contraceptive services in health department clinics and federally qualified health centers (FQHC). The surveys and interviews examined issues such as the contraceptive methods the clinics have continued or stopped providing; changes in their patient volume; availability of resources and supplies (such as personal protective equipment); temporary clinic closures, staffing layoffs, furloughs, and absenteeism due to illness; utilization of telehealth; and COVID-19 screening and testing practices. CARE Women’s Health released an Issue Brief discussing their findings.

Dr. Nathan Hale, faculty in the East Tennessee State University College of Public Health’s Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women’s Health, has published an article in Women’s Health Issues.  The article, “Contraceptive Use Patterns among Women of Reproductive Age in Two Southeastern States,” discusses the important role of health insurance in enabling women, particularly women with lower incomes, to obtain the contraceptive care that they need to achieve optimal health and to plan whether and when to get pregnant.

 Sylvester Orimaye, Research Associate with the East Tennessee State University College of Public Health’s Center for Applied Research & Evaluation in Women’s Health,  has authored an article in the American Journal of Public Health.  The article, "Adolescent Birth Rates and Rural–Urban Differences by Levels of Deprivation and Health Professional Shortage Areas in the United States, 2017–2018," examines birth rates of females aged 15 to 19 in rural and urban counties of the United States.

Dr. Tosin Ariyo,  has been awarded a 2020 Changemakers in Family Planning grant from the Society of Family Planning. Dr. Ariyo is a community health scientist and women’s health advocate who is dedicated to addressing health disparities in underserved communities. She serves as research director in the Department of Health Services Management and Policy in the ETSU College of Public Health.

Edward Leinaar, part of East Tennessee State University’s College of Public Health, has authored an article in Southern Medical Journal. The article, "Perceived Barriers to Contraceptive Access and Acceptance among Reproductive-Age Women Receiving Opioid Agonist Therapy in Northeast Tennessee," describes the unique challenges women with substance use disorders experience to obtaining contraceptives and user-dependent method adherence, contributing to higher than average rates of unintended pregnancy.

Each year since 2009, the Dean recognizes one or two individuals and one or two groups, with the “Dean’s Special Recognition Award" with the intention to highlight individuals and groups that had provided an exceptional service to the College, overall, or to him, personally. This year, the Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women's Health was awarded this honor. In Dr. Wykoff's own words, "This research group has received the largest research grant, not in the history of the College, but in the history of ETSU. They are doing research that changing understanding of women's health. They are working across the Southeast in  3 different states, a tremendously successful operation under the direction of Dr. Amal Khoury and really the backbone of our research infrastructure." Congratulations to the entire team for all of your hard work and dedication!

CARE Women’s Health leverages the expertise of approximately 50 ETSU students, faculty, and staff members, as well as collaborations with other universities, public health and health care systems, and stakeholders from throughout the country.

Edward Leinaar, has authored an article describing dynamics of healthcare access and contraceptive utilization among women in Northeast Tennessee seeking treatment for opioid use disorder. The article, “Healthcare Access, Pregnancy Intention, and Contraceptive Practices Among Reproductive-Aged Women Receiving Opioid Agonist Therapy in Northeast Tennessee,” was published in the Southern Medical Journal. 

As a member of the Advisory Council, Dr. Khoury will help guide the strategic direction of the Coalition and provide feedback and expert opinion in developing, implementing and evaluating the course that the Coalition’s work will take. Council members represent business, education, science and medicine, public health, government relations, and other relevant areas. The Council will serve as a sounding board and think tank as the Coalition moves forward with its plan of action.

Dr. Nathan Hale associate professor and Director of Research for the Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women's Health, has been named to the editorial board of the Journal of Rural Health. The Journal of Rural Health, a quarterly journal published by the National Rural Health Association, offers a variety of original research relevant and important to rural health. Some examples include evaluations, case studies, and analyses related to health status and behavior, as well as to health work force, policy and access issues.