#health disparities
Left: JoAnn Trejo, PhD, is professor in the Department of Pharmacology at UC San Diego School of Medicine and assistant vice chancellor for UC San Diego Health Sciences Faculty Affairs. Right: Elizabeth Winzeler, PhD, is professor in the Division of Host Microbe Systems and Therapeutics in the Department of Pediatrics at UC San Diego School of Medicine and adjunct professor in the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at UC San Diego.
Leaders in cell biology and anti-malarial drug development respectively, JoAnn Trejo and Elizabeth Winzeler were recognized by their peers with one of the highest honors in health and medicine.
Trejo is known for discovering how cellular responses are regulated by molecules known as G protein-coupled receptors, particularly in the context of vascular inflammation and cancer. Her findings have advanced the fundamental knowledge of cell biology and helped identify new targets for drug development. Trejo’s research has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), including a recent NIH R35 Outstanding Investigator Award.
Winzeler is known for her early contribution to the field of functional genomics, where she worked primarily in the model yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Concerned about global health disparities and the alarming rise in the number of worldwide malaria cases in the early 2000s, she shifted her research focus to malaria, beginning with functional genomics and then moving to drug discovery.
“Two UC San Diego Scientists Elected to National Academy of Medicine”
All of UsAdvances
Officially launched in 2018, the All of Us Research Program represents a massive, long-term effort to gather information from 1 million or more persons living in the United States, then use that data to accelerate health research and medical therapies. The biggest emphasis is upon gathering information on racial, ethnic and cultural groups who have historically been underrepresented or ignored in medical research.
Today, the sponsoring National Institutes of Health announced the release of the first genomic dataset generated by All of Us: nearly 100,000 whole genome sequences encompassing diverse individuals that can be used as a national resource for studies covering a wide variety of health conditions.
UC San Diego is part of the All of Us program, led by Lucila Ohno-Machado, MD, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Medicine, chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics at UC San Diego Health, and associate dean for informatics and technology.
“As modern medicine seeks to become more precise and personalized, it necessarily requires more and more data to both understand the big picture of health and disease and, more specifically, how each person fits into the whole,” said Ohno-Machado. “With this first public genomic dataset, All of Us begins to meet its goals and expectations, allowing physicians and scientists to parse the mysteries and challenges of diseases across the health spectrum in new, individualized ways.”
— Scott LaFee
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“While the majority of LGBTQ folks do not attempt suicide and do not die by suicide there are pretty huge disparities between the suicide attempt rates of LGBTQ individuals and the population at large. In the population at large it is estimated that roughly 5% of people have attempted suicide. In the LGBTQ community, between 12% and 19% of LGB adults have reported attempting suicide across multiple studies, and on the National Transgender Discrimination Survey 41% of trans* folks reported having attempted suicide…The hope with this study is that by understanding the experiences of all people from across the spectrum of gender, sex, and sexual identities we’ll be able to help further develop an understanding of the emotional needs of LGBTQ individuals and may, in turn, be able to inform the creation of suicide prevention materials for the LGBTQ community and therapeutic work with LGBTQ people.”
My friend and colleague Joe Orovecz is recruiting for a seriously important study. He’s written more about LGBTQ suicide, suicide prevention, his study, and what is required in participation after the click-through.
“…The study is open to all individuals (NOT just those who have experienced suicidal thoughts or have had a suicide attempt) who a) identify as a sexual minority identity (e.g., asexual, bisexual, gay, lesbian, pansexual), b) identify as trans* (e.g., genderqueer, transgender, FTM, MTF), c) have experienced a gender transition, but don’t identify as trans* (e.g., stealth), and/or d) are intersex. If you’re interested in participating you must also be 18 years of age or older and must currently reside within the United States of America.”
Link to Study: https://louisvilleeducation.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_3VFdVQseMcgXInH
When talking about suicide through written communication I think it’s always important to start with giving people resources in case they need them right then and there. So, before writing too much I want to note that if you’re having thoughts of suicide, are struggling with something emotionally, or really just need someone to talk to, the Trevor Project and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline have phone counselors available 24/7 to talk to you about whatever you might be going through. The Trevor Project is specific to LGBTQ youth, ages 13 to 24 and one of their counselors can be reached at 1-866-488-7386. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a network of crisis centers around the country available for anyone in the U.S. to call; the phone number for the Lifeline is 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Both hotlines are free and confidential. They also have additional services available on their websites: www.thetrevorproject.org & www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org. These hotlines are also available if you have concerns for someone you care about and want to know more about how to get them help. Even if you generally feel pretty good emotionally I recommend putting these numbers in your phone, you never know when it might be good to have them, either for yourself or for someone else.
Now that you’ve got some resources in case you need them either right now or later down the line, I want to address some issues related to suicide in the LGBTQ community. First off, I want to talk about the way we talk about suicide. Suicidal behavior in the LGBTQ community is something that has gotten a lot of attention in the media in recent years. Now such attention can highlight a serious problem which exists and needs to be addressed; however, it can also contribute to a narrative of suicidality within the LGBTQ community which isn’t helpful at all and in fact can be extremely harmful. Creating the impression that all LGBTQ folks engage in suicidal behavior can result in a normalization of suicidal behaviors within our community which can in turn increase the risk for future suicide attempts and death by suicide. However, by realizing we have to deal with a lot of stress and sometimes a lot of pain because of what society puts us through and by realizing that for some of us that stress and pain contributes to thoughts of suicide, we can be better prepared to support one another and get help for ourselves when we need it. So realize that the statistics I’m about to present highlight a problem, a problem which we can work toward healing.
While the majority of LGBTQ folks do not attempt suicide and do not die by suicide there are pretty huge disparities between the suicide attempt rates of LGBTQ individuals and the population at large. In the population at large it is estimated that roughly 5% of people have attempted suicide. In the LGBTQ community, between 12% and 19% of LGB adults have reported attempting suicide across multiple studies, and on the National Transgender Discrimination Survey 41% of trans* folks reported having attempted suicide. In youth, CDC findings have shown that the number of LGB youth reporting having ever attempted suicide is 4 times the number of straight youth, and the number of questioning youth reporting having ever attempted suicide is 3 times the number of straight youth. In studiesof transgender youth, between 25% and 45% of the youth surveyed reported having attempted suicide. While there are clear disparities between the LGBTQ community and the population at large in relation to suicide attempts, we don’t know as much about differences in the number of individuals dying by suicide. Death records do not include information about sexual or gender identity and studies that have attempted to investigate suicide deaths have been limited; however, a recent review found evidence to support the idea that there is a higher risk for suicide death among sexual minorities than among straight individuals. Additionally there is theory and data that support the notion that having higher rates of suicide attempts leads to a higher risk for death by suicide.
In thinking about these statistics and facts we can’t forget that behind each of them exist the faces of real people, the lives of real people, and the pain of real people. We might be these people, we might have been these people, or we might know these people and so we need to remember that a suicide attempt or a suicide death should never be a mark of shame. We don’t want to normalize attempting suicide, but we certainly don’t want to place more shame on people who might already be bearing a hell of a lot of shame already. What we need to do is work together to understand all of our lived experiences to try and help each other to live. In my opinion that’s what suicide prevention work is really all about: helping people to live.
That’s the reason why I’m conducting a study on emotional states, coping, and suicide in the LGBTQ community, to help us learn more about how we can help people to live. The study is an online survey that asks questions about different aspects of identity, emotional states, coping, and suicide and asks you to watch a video about halfway through. I’m hoping you might be able to take the survey yourself if you qualify to participate and/or pass it on to other folks who might be interested.
As far as who is qualified to participate, the study is open to all individuals (NOT just those who have experienced suicidal thoughts or have had a suicide attempt) who identify with any of the following identities: a) a sexual minority identity (e.g., asexual, bisexual, gay, lesbian, pansexual), b) identify as trans* (e.g., genderqueer, transgender, FTM, MTF), c) have experienced a gender transition, but don’t identify as trans* (e.g., stealth), and/or d) be intersex. If you’re interested in participating you must also be 18 years of age or older and must currently reside within the United States of America.
The hope with this study is that by understanding the experiences of all people from across the spectrum of gender, sex, and sexual identities we’ll be able to help further develop an understanding of the emotional needs of LGBTQ individuals and may, in turn, be able to inform the creation of suicide prevention materials for the LGBTQ community and therapeutic work with LGBTQ people.
Thank you for taking the time to read this note, remember the phone numbers I presented you with at the beginning (they should be in your phone now :-D) and if you’re interested and able to take the survey, the link is:
https://louisvilleeducation.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_3VFdVQseMcgXInH
The official recruitment letter is pasted below and includes contact information should you have any questions:
To Whom It May Concern:
My name is Joe Orovecz and I am currently conducting a research study under the supervision of Dr. Mark Leach as part of my doctoral program in counseling psychology. The study explores issues related to emotional wellbeing, coping, and suicide in LGBTQ individuals. To qualify for participation in the studyindividuals must identify with any of the following identities: a) a sexual minority identity (e.g., asexual, bisexual, gay, lesbian, pansexual), b) identify as trans* (e.g., genderqueer, transgender, FTM, MTF), c) have experienced a gender transition, but don’t identify as trans* (e.g., stealth), and/or d) be intersex. Individuals interested in participating must also be 18 years of age or older and must currently reside within the United States of America.
By participating you will provide information which may help further develop an understanding of the emotional needs of LGBTQ individuals and may, in turn, inform the creation of suicide prevention materials for the LGBTQ community and therapeutic work with LGBTQ people. While you may not receive any direct benefits by participating in this study, you will be provided with information related to useful resources before beginning the study and you may expand your understanding of suicide and psychological stressors as a result of participating in the study.
It is our goal to recruit a diverse group of participants for this study so we can capture the experiences of individuals with identities from across the LGBTQ spectrum. We also hope to recruit participants with diverse backgrounds in additional areas of identity and experience (e.g., race, ethnicity, partner status). For that reason we strongly encourage the participation of all individuals who qualify to participate and have done our best to accommodate the recording of the various identities individuals may hold.
If you are interested in being a part of this study, you can complete the questionnaire here:
https://louisvilleeducation.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_3VFdVQseMcgXInH
If you have any questions, please contact Joe Orovecz at [email protected] or Dr. Mark Leach at [email protected].
Thank you,
Joe Orovecz,
Doctoral Fellow, Counseling Psychology
Educational and Counseling Psychology, Counseling, and College Student Personnel
University of Louisville
