Chargers Publish Impactful Paper in Prestigious Public Health Journal

For Luzan JadKarim ’22 MPH, her time as a Charger not only enabled her to develop her passion for public health. It also offered her hands-on opportunities to gain experience and make an impact on the field – including the chance to be published in a leading academic journal.

JadKarim and her classmate Khyati Rustagi '23 MPH are the lead authors of a paper recently published in Frontiers in Public Health titled “Discrimination and intimate-partner violence among a sample of bisexual and gay men in the United States: a cross-sectional study.” JadKarim says sexual minority men (SMM) are an understudied population that is also at an increased risk for intimate-partner violence – and it’s a problem that often is underreported.

“Our study serves to provide more evidence on the prevalence of discrimination and intimate- partner violence within the population and how it can affect SMM,” explains JadKarim, now an implementation specialist at the SEICHE Center for Health and Justice at the Yale School of Medicine. “By adding more literature such as ours, we not only close the gaps in scientific knowledge, we also provide evidence for a need for healthcare resources for this population.”

‘Pave the way for a safer, more empathetic, and healthier world’

JadKarim and Rustagi worked with their mentor, Alvin Tran, Sc.D., MPH, as well as Nick Birk, a researcher from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston. JadKarim and Rustagi collaborated while also working independently on separate parts of the paper, crafting the manuscript and then addressing comments from reviewers.

The paper’s lead author, Rustagi began the process by reviewing existing research, gaining a deeper understanding of the themes and messaging. While analyzing the data, she sought and reviewed relevant content in journals, gathered information, and documented what she found. She says it was a wonderful learning experience that taught her about the importance of collaboration and mentorship while enabling her to build her research skills.

“Being a lead author is a remarkable journey that offers unparalleled growth, immense responsibility, and great fulfillment,” she said. “It is a privilege to have the opportunity to shape a research project, contribute to the scientific community, and leave a mark on the field. I encourage all aspiring lead authors to seize the opportunity, embrace dedication and commitment, and remember the power of ‘never giving up’ on your journey toward making a meaningful impact through research.”

Rustagi calls the research journey a “thrilling endeavor” – one that, she hopes, will make a meaningful impact on the public health community as well as SMM. Intimate-partner violence, she says, is often latent and underrecognized, yet its effects are devastating. She hopes addressing it will enable communities and the healthcare system to be better equipped to recognize the signs of violence and to intervene effectively and compassionately.

“Collecting robust information on partner violence is a transformative endeavor that enables us to confront this issue with knowledge, compassion, and determination,” she said. “By identifying knowledge gaps, developing effective health interventions, advocating for change, and empowering communities, we can create a society where healthy, respectful, and nonviolent relationships thrive. Through collective efforts, we can pave the way for a safer, more empathetic, and healthier world.”

‘This is concerning’

Dr. Tran, whose research interests include sexual-minority health, has served as a dedicated mentor to students who are interested in research. Under his guidance, students have presented their work at leading conferences and have been published in prestigious journals. As the leader of the University’s WeEmbody Lab, Dr. Tran has also helped to create countless opportunities for Chargers to gain research and advocacy experience.

Dr. Tran hopes the research he, JadKarim, and Rustagi have recently published has been meaningful to them and that it will make an important impact on the field as well.

“The vast majority of research has historically focused on experiences of intimate-partner violence in women, despite being a public health issue that does not discriminate based on gender and sexuality,” explains Dr. Tran, an assistant professor in the University’s Department of Population Health and Leadership.

“My students not only documented a concerning number of sexual-minority men reporting victimization of various forms of intimate partner violence, but they also found a significant association between experiences of everyday discrimination and domestic violence,” he continued. “This is concerning and has implications for public health practice that may include more effective screening for intimate partner violence in men, including sexual-minority men.”

‘A great mentor’

JadKarim says she’s grateful for Dr. Tran’s mentorship, and that working with him on the paper helped her learn to interpret the data, identify important literature, address questions from reviewers, and strengthen her writing style. She found the writing to be very different from what she had experienced in her coursework, but, she says, Dr. Tran helped break it down. This was particularly helpful, she says, because she endeavors to continue to conduct public health research, and she hopes to continue to publish.

“I am grateful to Dr. Tran for taking me under his wing and presenting me with numerous opportunities and experiences to learn and advance in my career as a scientist,” she said.

“Without him, I would not have realized my passion for population health science, and I would not have been able to get a manuscript publication, my job at Yale, or even know my true passion for research. He is a great mentor.”