Debby Herbenick to Receive Early Career Scholar Award from School of Public Health-Bloomington

Dr. Debby Herbenick

The Research Committee of the School of Public Health-Bloomington has announced that Dr. Debby Herbenick is the 2013 recipient of the school’s Early Career Scholar Award. The award recognizes outstanding contributions to research and/or creative activity by an early career member of the faculty in the School of Public Health-Bloomington.

 

Dr. Herbenick, whose research is focused on sexual health, is an Associate Scientist and serves as Co-Director of the school’s Center for Sexual Health Promotion.

Dean Mohammad R. Torabi, noted “Dr. Herbenick has developed an international reputation for conducting rigorous research in the area of sexual health. Of particular note has been the extent to which she has worked to translate research findings to the general public in order to help individuals around the world better understand the complexities often associated with relationships and sexual behaviors.”

Dr. Herbenick will be presented the award during a public seminar to be held on April 16, 2013 at 10:30am in the University Club in the Indiana Memorial Union.  A reception honoring Dr. Herbenick follows the seminar.

Indiana Prevention Resource Center celebrates 25 years with bullying prevention events

The Indiana Prevention Resource Center, part of the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington, is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a series of activities designed to raise awareness about bullying and provide educators with more tools to address bullying in their schools.

"Sticks and Stoned: Bullying, Substance Use and Mental Health Policies, Practices and Resources" features four events in April that will give educators and the general public an opportunity to hear from state and national experts about addressing bullying, a problem known to contribute to mental health and substance abuse problems in teens and adolescents.

"It is important to recognize the relationship between bullying and poor mental health outcomes and substance abuse," said Jeanie Alter, project manager with the IPRC. "The better we understand how they influence each other, the better we can prevent problems and be responsive to issues when they arise."

Indiana University Bloomington names Beth Meyerson as an Outstanding Junior Faculty Member

Dr. Beth Meyerson

Meyerson, an assistant professor of health policy and management in the School of Public Health-Bloomington and co-director of the Center for AIDS/STD Prevention, studies what she calls "health system elasticity;" referring to the flexibility of health systems to create greater access for populations facing health inequalities. Her work has involved everything from information system integration to health system behavior change She has been an IU faculty member since 2011 after serving as president/CEO of the Policy Resource Group LLC. Dr. Meyerson has a Ph.D. from Saint Louis University.

Meyerson's award will support a national cervical cancer screening policy adoption study of state public programs. "In the U.S. we are in the enviable position to achieve cervical cancer elimination in our lifetimes," Meyerson said. "New screening recommendations are a policy innovation that can leverage program evolution. Our success against cervical cancer depends in part on our understanding whether and how policy innovation is being adopted by states, and the factors that facilitate or prevent adoption."

Read more >>

School of Public Health-Bloomington creates Office of Global and Community Health Partnerships

Resources for creating and nurturing more effective community engagement have been brought together under a new umbrella office at the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington. Local and international partners alike can now connect with school's students, faculty and staff via the Office of Global and Community Health Partnerships.

The realignment emphasizes the continued evolution taking place at the new school, formerly the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, and addresses the public health-oriented workforce development needs of rural regions in central and southern Indiana. School efforts to address critical public health issues such as violent crimes and obesity -- issues that hamper communities in Indiana and around the world -- are ongoing and expected to expand as the office makes it easier to connect the school's resources to community partners who need them.

"Our school has traditionally had deep levels of community engagement," said Michael Reece, associate dean for research. "We plan to capitalize on that, and the momentum created by the transition, to play a more integral role in reshaping the health and social services infrastructure in our communities and to make an impact on health care delivery."

School of Public Health-Bloomington to sponsor 9th Annual Bloomington AIDS Walk

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) infection remains a significant health issue in our community, with nearly 200 individuals living with
HIV in Monroe County alone. In the region, nearly 500 individuals are living with HIV, and over 4,000 Hoosiers are have been infected with the virus. While it no longer garners the national attention it once did, HIV infection rates continue to remain stable, and in some populations, are increasing.

To bring needed attention and funding to the ongoing issues of HIV prevention, education, and health support, the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington is proud to announce that it has partnered with IU Health and is this year’s primary sponsor of the 9^th Annual Bloomington Aids Walk.

When:  Singup is Saturday March 23rd at 12:30, start time is 2pm

Where: Buskirk Park (formerly the Third Street Park)

Additional details: http://www.btownaidswalk.org

All proceeds of the Bloomington AIDS Walk benefit IU Health Positive Link.

The Bloomington AIDS Walk is an opportunity for members of the community to join together to help the fight against AIDS by raising funds for AIDS prevention, research, and education.

"Health promotion and disease prevention through research, teaching,  and meaningful community engagement are the heart and soul of our mission," noted Mohammad Torabi, dean of the School of Public Health-Bloomington and chancellor's professor. "I am very pleased we are the presenting sponsor for such an important awareness-raising event and that we are able to partner with IU Health Positive Link. The work they do is critical to so many people in our community and region. I encourage everyone to considering participating."

Teams are welcomed so start your own or donate to help a friend with theirs. There is a competition to see which teams will raise the most for this great cause, so let’s dig in and get to work! Come walk with us, start a team, donate some time, effort, and money to help save lives and provide a better future for everyone.

Parking is street level. Cats and dogs are welcomed and must be leashed.

Dong-Chul Seo named fellow, president-elect of the American Academy of Health Behavior

Dong-Chul Seo, associate professor in the Department of Applied Health Science at the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington, has been named a fellow as well as president-elect for 2013-14 of the American Academy of Health Behavior.

"Dr. Seo is an incredible asset to the school and to Indiana University," said Mohammad Torabi, dean and chancellor's professor at the School of Public Health-Bloomington. "It is only fitting that he be selected as a fellow as well as president-elect of such a prestigious organization."

Dr. Dong-Chul Seo

Seo worked as an evaluation expert for the Korean government for 12 years before joining the IU faculty in 2004. He has 24 years of research experience in policy and socio-ecological approaches for obesity and addictive behavior. His research has been supported by 12 different grants funded by federal, state and local agencies since 2004, and he was principle investigator or co-principle investigator on 11 of the 12 grants. He has published more than 70 articles in peer-reviewed journals in the past nine years. Seo has served as a grant reviewer for a number of agencies, including the National Science Foundation, as an editor for the World Journal of Methodology and as a peer reviewer for 13 journals.

"It is a great honor to be named both a fellow of the academy and to be named president-elect of the group I hold in such high esteem," Seo said. "I could not be more honored."

Seo served as American Academy of Health Behavior Research Review Committee chair in 2008-09. He joined the AAHB Board in 2010 as a delegate and is currently serving as treasurer.

After his term as president-elect, he will serve as president for 2014-15.

"Professor Seo's excellence in research in health behavior and high-quality publications in dozens of premier journals make him uniquely suited for leadership in the AAHB," said David Lohrmann, chair of the Department of Applied Health Science at the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington.

The American Academy of Health Behavior's mission is to serve as the research home for health behavior scholars and researchers whose primary commitment is to excellence in research and the application of research to improve public health. Fellow status is conferred as an indication of distinction and is based solely on merit.

Aquatics expert William Ramos named to American Red Cross Scientific Advisory Council

Dr. William Ramos

William Ramos, assistant professor in the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies at the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington, has been appointed to the American Red Cross Scientific Advisory Council.

"Selection for membership to serve on the council is certainly an honor for me," said Ramos, director of the IU Aquatic Institute. "I am very much looking forward to contributions that can be made as a representative of Indiana University and the School of Public Health-Bloomington to an organization that I hold in highest esteem. I feel confident that my multidisciplinary background in the area of aquatics will serve well in assisting to advance the mission of the American Red Cross through evaluating methods, techniques and current research."

Sport and food connection too strong -- and obvious -- to ignore

Spectator sports and food -- often high-calorie or low-nutrition -- have long gone hand-in-hand, yet FDA regulations geared toward calorie transparency at restaurant chains ignore this relationship. Popular fast-food restaurants soon will be required to post calorie counts, but concession stands at major sports facilities and many sports bars will not.

"The proposed menu labeling regulations, as part of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, overlook sport and sport spectatorship. Stadiums and arenas aren't included," said Antonio Williams, sport and fitness marketing expert at the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington. "Neither are sports bars or restaurants that are not part of a chain. It's a big mistake. It's no secret that a tremendous amount of food is consumed during sporting events and that fans often are exposed to numerous food-related ads and sponsorship. It's a symbiotic relationship."

During the Super Bowl, for example, typically one third of advertisements involve food. Williams said game day also represents the second heaviest day of the year for food consumption, according to the USDA.

Dr. Antonio Williams

The regulations may overlook the relationship between food and sport, but corporate America hasn't, Williams said, pointing to major sports venues and football bowl games named for food-related corporations.

"Some research shows that companies who sell unhealthy products have marketed them effectively by tying them to images or activities that are widely viewed as pure or healthy, like sport," he said.

Williams and co-author Crystal Williams note in an upcoming article in the Loyola Consumer Law Review that the National Restaurant Association has submitted letters to the FDA arguing that applying the new regulation to concession stands in sports arenas and stadiums would fall within the intent of Congress when it adopted the Affordable Care Act.

Their article, "Hitting calories out of the ballpark: An examination of the FDA's new menu labeling laws and their impact on sport spectatorship," will appear in the March issue of the journal.

Antonio Williams, assistant professor in the school's Department of Kinesiology, can be reached at 812-855-3061 or aw22@indiana.edu. Crystal Williams is an attorney at Barnes & Thornburg LLP in Indianapolis.

Study reveals sex to be pleasurable with or without use of a condom or lubricant

American men and women rated sex as highly arousing and pleasurable regardless of whether condoms and/or lubricants were used, according to a study led by Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington researchers and published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine.

Led by Debby Herbenick and Michael Reece, co-directors of the Center for Sexual Health Promotion, researchers reviewed a nationally representative study of men and women ages 18 to 59 to assess characteristics of condom and lubricant use during participants' most recent sexual event, and the relationship of their condom and lubricant use to their ratings of sexual quality.

Data were from the 2009 National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior, which involved the administration of an online questionnaire to a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. adults. Results showed that men and women consistently rate sex as highly arousing and pleasurable with few differences based on condom or lubricant use. More than twice as many women than men were unsure whether the condom was lubricated -- 26.6 percent vs. 11.4 percent -- or from what material it was made -- 23.6 percent vs. 8.9 percent.

"This may be because men are more likely than women to purchase condoms and to apply condoms," Herbenick said. "However, it's important for more women to become familiar with the condoms they use with their partner so that they can make choices that enhance the safety and pleasure of their sexual experiences."

Additionally, no significant differences were found in regard to men's ratings of the ease of their erections based on condom and lubricant use.

"The U.S. continues to grapple with high rates of sexually transmitted infections, HIV and unintended pregnancies," Herbenick said. "We need to understand how people make choices about the products they use, or avoid using, and how these products contribute to the safety and pleasurable aspects of their sexual experiences. This is particularly important as the products themselves evolve and become more mainstream in American society. We also need to understand what men and women know, or don't know, about the products they use so that we can better target public health education messages to individuals and groups."

Dr. Debby Herbenick

"The epidemiologic studies assessing human sexual function and behavior in the U.S. that were started 60 years ago by Kinsey are continued now by Herbenick and Reece. Gathering sexual data regarding condom use is highly relevant," said Irwin Goldstein, M.D., editor-in-chief of The Journal of Sexual Medicine. "Understanding current condom use offers health care providers an opportunity to educate those people uncomfortable with condoms but for whom lack of use may lead to significant sexually transmitted infection health risk."

The article, "Characteristics of Condom and Lubricant Use Among a Nationally Representative Probability Sample of Adults Ages 18-59 In the United States" is available online and at sciencenewsroom@wiley.com. It will appear in the February issue.

The study was supported by Church & Dwight, Inc., the maker of Trojan Brand condoms and vibrators. Co-authors include Vanessa Schick, Nicole Smith and Brian Dodge, Center for Sexual Health Promotion at the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington; Stephanie Sanders, The Kinsey Institute for Research on Sex, Gender and Reproduction and Department of Gender Studies, College of Arts and Sciences at IU Bloomington; and J. Dennis Fortenberry, M.D., IU School of Medicine.

Lance Armstrong's confession falls flat

Cyclist Lance Armstrong's revelations did not surprise Galen Clavio, assistant professor in the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington, "for no other reason than the mountain of evidence pointing toward his having used performance-enhancing drugs during his cycling career was overwhelming from the start," Clavio said.

Dr. Galen Clavio

"I am not certain what Armstrong is hoping to gain through his public confession, because thus far he has failed to appear emotionally contrite," Clavio said. "From a public relations perspective within the context of sport, I do not think his Oprah appearance has done anything positive. His performance reminds me very much of Tiger Woods' attempt at a public confession of guilt, although to Lance's credit he has been far more forthcoming and direct than Woods ever was.

"Woods seems to have been given the benefit of the doubt by both fans and media. I doubt that Armstrong will be given the same degree of latitude."

Clavio, assistant professor in the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington's Department of Kinesiology, can be reached at gclavio2@indiana.edu or 812-855-3367.