TAPS Postdoctoral Fellows
Ahmad Danesh, MD, MPH, PhD, received his PhD in Epidemiology from the School of Public Health at Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS) after completing his master’s degree in public health at the University of Connecticut (UConn). As an assistant professor, he has teaching experience in epidemiology and research methodology at Golestan University of Medical Sciences (GoUMS). He also has ten years of experience treating substance abuse disorders as a medical practitioner in Iran.
His research interest is alcohol dependency and its effect on HIV risky behaviors among HIV-vulnerable groups (e.g., PWID, MSM, FSW). In recent studies, he explored the prevalence of polysubstance abuse, specifically methamphetamine and alcohol consumption, among clients of Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) centers. The findings have shown how much alcohol consumption could be prevalent among HIV-vulnerable groups, even in countries with alcohol consumption laws. He is now interested in exploring the effect of alcohol dependency on HIV transmission among HIV-vulnerable groups. As a TAPS fellow, he plans to identify the pervasiveness of alcohol consumption (binge drinking and harmful alcohol consumption) among PWID and MSM groups and its association with HIV-risky behaviors. He also plans to identify factors that could reduce or enhance the association between alcohol consumption and HIV-risky behaviors at the individual and community levels. The findings could be further analyzed for novel approaches to better address alcohol consumption among HIV-vulnerable groups, which may be needed for better controlling the HIV epidemic in the future.
Holly Nishimura, PhD, MPH, received her PhD from the Department of International Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Nishimura’s research interests include understanding the social and structural factors that contribute to inequalities in health outcomes globally, with a particular focus on gender and economic inequalities. She is also actively engaged in efforts to decolonize global health and improve equity and inclusion in academia. Her dissertation research used a mixed methods approach to understand the relationship between transactional sex and HIV among men in Rakai, Uganda. Dr. Nishimura received the Fulbright-Fogarty and Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) from NIMH for her predoctoral training. Prior to entering the PhD program, she received an M.P.H. in Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health and B.A. in Integrative Biology from UC Berkeley. As a TAPS fellow, she will be working with Dr. Carol Camlin on the Owete study, which uses a social network approach to promote HIV self-testing and linkage to care among fishermen at Lake Victoria.
Colbey Ricklefs, MD, MPH, is a clinical fellow in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at UCSF. He received his master’s degree in public health at Boston University School of Public Health and his medical degree from the University of Missouri. He completed his residency in Family Medicine at the University of Washington Family Medicine Residency Program where he was based at Harborview Medical Center, and came to the University of California, San Francisco, to pursue fellowship in Adolescent Medicine. Dr. Ricklefs developed a particular interest in HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) during residency and led a project to remove a pejorative diagnosis commonly associated with PrEP prescriptions; this culminated in resolutions adopted by both the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American Medical Association that aimed to remove stigmatizing and pejorative language from medical diagnostic codes. He strives to merge his clinical and research interests in improving care for all adolescents and young adults. As a TAPS fellow, he hopes to develop his data analytic and epidemiological skillset to develop a career in implementation science advocating for PrEP, DoxyPEP, and STI prevention in adolescent and young adult specialty clinic settings.
Heather M. Tucker, PhD, MA, received a PhD degree from the Department of Gender Studies at Central European University, and MA from the University of Sussex. As a feminist anthropologist, Dr. Tucker’s research interests include examining differences in and access to HIV/sexual and reproductive health care for vulnerable and invisibilized populations, and developing community-based solutions. Dr. Tucker conducted research previously at the Center for Global Health Equity at University of Michigan, working on a team conducting feminist participatory research with CBOs in Western Kenya. As a TAPS fellow, Dr. Tucker will be studying Epidemiology at UC Berkeley and plans to extend their mixed-methods research experience, capacity and collaborations. Dr. Tucker’s long-term goal is to become an interdisciplinary researcher, conducting high impact community-engaged research focused on access to HIV/sexual and reproductive health care.
Ryan Whitacre, PhD, has developed expertise in medical anthropology and global public health through doctoral training at UCSF and UC Berkeley, subsequent research at Geneva Graduate Institute in Switzerland, as a Research Scientist at the Public Health Institute, and as a Lecturer at UC Berkeley. He is passionate about improving healthcare access, combating systemic discrimination, and enhancing our understanding of the health needs of marginalized populations. His dissertation assessed PrEP implementation in safety-net sexual health clinics in San Francisco. His postdoctoral work has traced how the rise of biomedical HIV prevention catalyzed systemic shifts in multilateral HIV policies and strategies. His most recent work examined the impacts of financialization on the biopharmaceutical industry, barriers to community engagement on substance use epidemics in California, and the structural vulnerability of refugees in the MENA/EU borderlands. As a TAPS fellow, Dr. Whitacre aims to enhance his epidemiological skills through the MPH program, foster new collaborations, expand his research portfolio and pursue career development in HIV prevention research.