October 20th - Oral Abstract Session IV

Ashley Mussallem is a research assistant at the Research Center on Culture and Language at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf. She works under the Deaf Health Lab focusing on studies examining health literacy, COVID-19 impact, and perinatal experiences in deaf and hard of hearing individuals. She is a senior at the Rochester Institute of Technology pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in biomedical sciences with a minor in exercise science. Post-graduation, Ashley aims to study in the field of healthcare, possibly pursue a doctor of medicine degree, and dismantle disparities in health care experienced by deaf and minority groups.

Alison Caballero, MPH, CHES is the Director of the Center for Health Literacy at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Alison collaborates with institutional leaders in education, research, and clinical care and a host of external partners to advance the Center’s mission to improve health by making health information easy to understand. She leads the team of expert staff who conduct collaborative research and provide health communications training and a host of services including plain language assessment and editing, Spanish translation, health education materials development, and field testing. Alison’s background includes workforce development, public health education and research, patient education, medical administration, and major gifts fundraising. Her undergraduate studies were in health education and her graduate studies focused on public health management and policy. She completed a prevention fellowship with the US Department of Health and Human Services and has been a certified health education specialist (CHES®) for more than 20 years.

Jennifer M. Gan, healthcare MBA, is a research program manager in the Center for Health Literacy (CHL), with a faculty instructor appointment in the Department of Medical Humanities and Bioethics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS). Her research interests include health disparities in vulnerable populations focusing on health literacy, rural health, mental health, digital health, and the LGBTQIA+ and Latinx/Hispanic communities. Before joining UAMS, she served as the deputy director of clinical research for a psychiatric clinic that specialized in serving the Latinx/Hispanic population and conducted clinical research trials focused on Alzheimer’s disease, depression, and anxiety. Prior to that she worked at the University of California (UC), Irvine Medical Center and at the UC, San Francisco Medical Center. With a background in sociology and over 20 years of experience working in academic medical centers, she has developed a keen understanding of healthcare delivery and a passion for engaging underserved communities to address their healthcare and wellness needs.

Tetine Sentell (moderator), PhD, is Professor and Director of the Office of Public Health Studies at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. She co-leads the Healthy Hawai‘i Initiative Evaluation Team and her research focuses on untangling the complex relationship between health disparities, education, literacy, English language proficiency, and other social factors. She is especially interested in the role of community, social, and family level variables, especially how social networks can support and sustain health literacy.