Describe your dissertation and why you were interested in that topic. My dissertation explored the impact of balancing multiple societal roles while navigating organizational dynamics on the health status of Generation X professional Black women. I am interested in this topic because the health inequities between Black and White women are alarming. For Blacks, there is a diminishing health return on higher socioeconomic status. Black women do not experience the same improvement in health status from their advanced education and higher incomes when compared to White women. Related to my dissertation work, I recently co-authored, "Perilous Times for Black Educated College Women,” published by The Urban Investement Strategies Center's Whole Community Health Intitative, UNC Kenan-Flager Business School, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Additionally, a summary of the brief was posted by the HR Exchange Network.
In what ways has the Jefferson degree facilitated your career? It has provided me with the opportunity to do two things:
- Focus more deeply on collaborations that design standardized care models to improve health outcomes for underserved patient populations
- Forge a new path leveraging my research to counsel organizations and individuals on fostering workplace environments that deliver results in health protective ways
What are you doing now? I lead a team focused on health payment & policy, market access, and value-based care to ensure that patients have access to orthopedic technology.
Share advice for prospective students pursuing a degree in your field. Take the leap! Invest in yourself and pursue your ideas following your instincts even when the path forward is not crystal clear. Passion has a way of providing light along the way.
Describe any recognition or awards. It was a great honor to be the first graduate of the first DHSc cohort and to also receive the 2024 JCPH Dissertation Research Excellence Award.
What’s something people would be surprised to find out about you? I am a Master Gardener, and most people are shocked to hear that I would spend 12 hours on Saturday in the garden grilling lunch and dinner while dropping rhododendrons in the ground!
