Promoting Health, Safety and Equity
Promoting Health, Safety and Equity
Dr. Ju Nyeong Park (she/her) is an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology (Research) at Brown University and Research Project Leader at the Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) on Opioids and Overdose of Rhode Island Hospital. She founded the Harm Reduction Innovation Lab in 2021 to identify evidence-based solutions to overdose in partnership with local organizations and state and federal agencies. Dr. Park earned her Ph.D. and M.H.S. in Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University and B.Sc. from the University of Sydney. She enjoys traveling, food and live music. Dr. Park can be reached directly at ju_park@brown.edu or on
Bluesky (@drjupark.bsky.social)
Rehan Aslam was born and raised in Los Angeles and is driven by the impact the opioid epidemic has had on his own community. Rehan worked in substance use treatment for several years, prior to earning his BA from UCLA, MPH from Brown University, and turning his focus toward research. When he’s not doing research, Rehan enjoys spending time out and about in Providence with his dog, Bingo.
Dr. Greg Rosen (he/him) is an Assistant Professor (Research) in the Division of General Internal Medicine at Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University Warren Alpert Medical School. Working at the intersection of HIV and substance use, Greg uses mixed methods and implementation science frameworks to optimize delivery of health services to marginalized populations worldwide, with a focus on people who sell sex and/or use drugs in sub-Saharan Africa and the United States.
Gabby Riendeau is a graduate student at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) and is studying Public Health for her MPH. With the belief that health is a human right, Gabby is passionate about community-based participatory research, health education, and health literacy. She is currently working on a project relating to overdose detection technologies and the intertwined impact of sleep and opioid use disorder.
Ryan Koch (he/him) is a graduate student at Johnson & Wales graduate school for clinical mental health counseling and earned a Bachelor’s from Binghamton University in Psychology. He is interested insubstance use and its intersection between mood disorders. Ultimately, Ryan aims toearn a PhD in Clinical Psychology. He is currently working on a project relating to overdose detection technologies and the intertwined impact of sleep and opioid use disorder.
Christina Vasquez (she/her) is a medical student at the Warren Alpert Medical School and earned a B.Sc. with honors from Brown University. She is interested in research, advocacy, and public policy that will reduce health disparities. Christina is currently assisting with efforts to evaluate overdose detection technologies in Rhode Island and understand the intertwined impact of sleep and opioid use disorder.
Johnny Bird (he/him) is a medical student at Brown University. He is passionate about eliminating barriers to life-saving harm reduction strategies. His research is focused on implementation of drug checking programs in countries throughout the Americas and improving access to harm reduction services for communities from Latin America.
Autumn Froias is a PhD student at Simmons University School of Social Work. Autumn's scholarly interests include treating and reducing the harms associated with substance use disorders. She has worked on a number of research studies funded by the National Institutes of Health investigating the impact of new technologies on behavioral health screening and treatment. Autumn's work has been published in Substance Abuse, Substance Use and Misuse, and Contemporary Clinical Trials. Autumn earned an MSW and BA in Psychology from Boston University and has been practicing as a licensed independent clinical social worker for nearly 10 years. She currently works as a behavioral health clinician at SSTAR's Opioid Triage Center located in Fall River, Massachusetts.
Menaka Naidu (she/her) is a graduate student at Brown University’s School of Public Health, pursuing her MPH with a focus on health technology. She holds a B.A. in Health and Human Biology from Brown University. At HRIL, Menaka is collaborating with Dr. Park on research related to drug checking technologies.
Dr. Javier Cepeda is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University. His research focuses on characterizing the intersecting epidemics of substance use, infectious disease, and justice involvement, and specializes in economic evaluation. His current work involves application of methods drawn from epidemiology, prevention science, mathematical modeling, and economic evaluation, using data from studies based in the United States, Mexico, and Kyrgyzstan.
Dr. Traci Green is a Professor of Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University and epidemiologist whose research focuses on drug use, opioid use disorder, and drug-related injury. She is currently an Adjunct Associate Professor at the Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University where she co-directs the COBRE on Opioids and Overdose at Rhode Island Hospital. She is PI of several projects, including CUTS, a NIDA-funded community-based drug checking cohort study.
Dr. Brandon Marshall is a Professor of Epidemiology at the Brown University School of Public Health, and the Founding Director of the People, Place & Health Collective (PPHC) at Brown University. His work focuses on substance use epidemiology, harm reduction research, and the social, environmental, and structural determinants of health of drug-using populations. His team conducts research that aims to improve the health and well-being of people who use drugs.
Dr. Chatterjee is a primary care and addiction medicine physician who takes care of patients at Boston Health Care of the Homeless Program and does research on opioid use disorder and homelessness at Boston Medical Center. He is an Assistant Professor at Boston University School of Medicine, and also teaches at Harvard Medical School. He received his MD from the University of North Carolina, completed a combined internal medicine and pediatrics residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital, and a fellowship in General Internal Medicine at Harvard.
Dr. Brandon del Pozo is an Assistant Professor (Research) in the Department of Medicine at Brown University and conducts NIH-funded research at the intersection of public health, public safety, and justice. Prior to research, he served as a police officer for 19 years in New York. He spent four years as Chief of Police of Burlington, Vermont, where he directed the city's interdisciplinary response to the opioid crisis. His efforts were associated with a substantial and sustained reduction in opioid overdose deaths.
Dr. Saba Rouhani is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology at NYU School of Global Health. She conducts research in social epidemiology, policy evaluation, and overdose prevention. Prior to joining NYU Dr. Rouhani worked as research faculty in the Department of Health, Behavior and Society at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She also completed a fellowship funded by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Dr. Walley is a Professor of Medicine at Boston University, as well as a primary care physician and addiction specialist at Boston Medical Center. He is a founder of the inpatient addiction consult service and low barrier walk-in substance use care clinic at Boston Medical Center and the President of the American College of Academic Addiction Medicine. He serves as the Medical Director for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s Bureau of Substance Addiction Services and Safespot Overdose Hotline. His research focuses on overdose prevention and the integration of addiction specialty care and general medical care.
Mary Figgatt (she/her) is an epidemiologist with a research focus on the intersection of substance use and infectious disease. Her research goal is to identify strategies to reduce structural barriers to care for people with drug use-associated wounds. She also evaluates community-designed interventions to respond to the changing drug supply. To strengthen the translation of research into practice, her work draws from collaborations with directly impacted communities and her experience working in public health practice. She received her PhD in Epidemiology from UNC Gillings School of Public Health and her MPH from Drexel University. She is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Miriam Hospital.
Masoumah Haidari (She/her) is a junior in the UG/MPH program at Brown University where she is pursuing her passion for Public Health with a focus on Global Health. She is working as a research intern at HRIL. Her research interests include harm reduction, mental health improvement, and developing sustainable public health interventions that are culturally sensitive and globally applicable.
Amanda Lee Molina (she/her) is a rising senior at Brown University concentrating in Health and Human Biology. She is interested in studying the social determinants of health and equitable health care. She is also passionate about compassionate patient care, which she pursues as an EMT for Brown Emergency Medical Services. At HRIL, Amanda works as an intern helping with research operations and administrative tasks.
Kate Dowling (she/her) is an MPH student at Brown University's School of Public Health and earned a B.A. in public health from Brown as an undergrad. She is interested in health policy and substance use, and is studying Health Services for her MPH. At HRIL, Kate is working with Dr. Park on a thesis using data from the DISCS study media analysis to look at stakeholder opinions on safe consumption sites.
Alison Lu (she/her) is a rising junior at Brown University concentrating in Public Health, as well as a certificate in Engaged Scholarship. Her research interests are in studying substance use disorders, including alcohol addiction and opioid overdoses, as well as harm reduction interventions to help those afflicted with addiction. Alison Lu received Brown University's Yat K. Tow Prize for in 2023 for her outstanding commitment to serving the community.
Megan Aho is a junior at Brown University concentrating in Public Health. Her research interests include substance use disorders, harm reduction, and destigmatizing the culture around addiction.
Claire Kim (she/her) is a graduate of Brown University with a concentration in Neuroscience. As an intern at HRIL, she assisted in research and data analysis under the guidance of her peers and mentors. She hopes to extend her scope of research into the field of public health to become a better advocate for the well-being of community.
Harm Reduction Innovation Lab
1125 North Main Street, Providence, Rhode Island 02904, United States