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Refugee, Immigrant, and Global Health

For more than a decade, the institute has organized interdisciplinary research teams to improve the lives of refugee and immigrant populations. Working in partnership with Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital, we recently received federal funding to explore discrimination and health issues among Somali refugees. Another current project involves the impact that sanctuary cities have on health and well-being have on its communities.

Violence Prevention and Trauma Studies

The institute conducts research on the cause and prevention of violence, including child abuse, youth violence, sexual assault, community violence, and intimate partner/teen dating violence. We evaluate the effectiveness of proposed interventions and develop new interventions based on an ecological approach to environmental, social, and individual determinants of violence.

Northeastern University Public Evaluation Lab

Northeastern’s Public Evaluation Lab provides program consultations with community organizations and faculty researchers, so they can enhance the lives of the people they serve. Evaluations can assess operations, resources, services, benchmarking, outcomes, impact, and more. In addition, our interdisciplinary faculty can help organizations hone funding proposals that are essential to carrying out their mission.

Public Mental Health and Substance Abuse

The institute is home to national thought leaders in behavioral health research, with a special emphasis on mental health and substance abuse. We explore how stigma, discrimination, and socioeconomic factors affect access to education, employment, and medical health. The institute also promotes public involvement in our research through community-based participatory research methods.

Health Promotion and Disease Prevention

Institute faculty research how social and economic factors influence health and disease prevention. Currently, we are focused on HIV/AIDS, obesity, and Hepatitis C, as well as how racial and ethnic disparities affect pregnancy outcomes across generations.

Institute of Health, Equity, and Social Justice (IHESJR)

Disparities in health and mental health arise and persist as the result of complex individual, societal, and global factors. We bring together faculty and students from across Northeastern University, along with external research partners, to tackle these complex challenges. Our teams draw upon a wide range of research methods and interventions, but share a common commitment to promoting health equity and social justice through high-impact, community engaged research.

Health Equity Intern Opportunity

Health Equity Interns are Northeastern University undergraduate students who commit to working four hours a week during one academic semester at the Institute on Health Equity and Social Justice Research in its mission of conducting research towards advancing health equity and social inclusion and reducing health disparities. Opportunities are available for interns to continue an affiliation with the Institute once the semester internship is completed.

Learn More

2020 Annual Report

This has been an exciting and productive year for us at the Institute for Health Equity and Social Justice Research. As you will see in this second Annual Report our teams of faculty, students and community partners, have been busy with new and exciting programmatic and research efforts…

Work Opportunities

Currently none available

Health Equity Interns

Health Equity Interns are Northeastern University undergraduate students who commit to working four hours a week during one academic semester at the Institute on Urban Health Research in its mission of conducting research towards advancing health equity and social inclusion and reducing health disparities. Opportunities are available for interns to continue an affiliation with the Institute once the semester internship is completed.

NEWS

Culturally Responsive Evaluation (CRE): Introduction and Inquiry

As a community-academic collaborative response to the ongoing social injustices and be in solidarity with Black Lives Matter, the Northeastern University Public Evaluation Lab (NU-PEL)’s Director, Tiana Yom, and the Greater Boston Evaluation Network (GBEN)’s Programming Team, Kelly Washburn and Calpurnynia Roberts, have partnered to create a virtual, year-long professional development and training series, focusing [...]

IHESJR Community Interviewer Featured in the New York Times and The Oregonian

Firearms are involved in half of all suicide fatalities. Certain subgroups within the general population are at increased risk for firearms suicide, including law enforcement, active duty military, veterans, persons with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), those in the LGBTQ community, and young people who have adverse childhood experiences. Brett Bass, one of the community interviewers for [...]

Salus Populi Advisory Board Formation

Research has shown that laws can significantly impact population health and health equity. Most of this research has focused on the impact of statutes and regulations, but in the U.S. legal system, with its well-entrenched tradition of judicial review, judges wield enormous authority over critical health determinants, including housing stability, socio-economic position (as impacted by [...]

IHESJR Collaborates with Mass DMH & McLean LEAP Center

On November 5, individuals within IHESJR attended the Massachusetts Strategic Meeting 2020. The conference, hosted by the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health (DMH) and McLean Hospital’s LEAP Center, aimed to discuss and develop a Strategic Plan for Early Psychosis. Alisa Lincoln, Raimy Jaramillo, and Atsushi Matsumoto worked with Mass DMH, the McLean Hospital LEAP center, […]