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Dr. Destiny Ramjohn is one of the most respected professionals in her field, largely because of her dedication to social change and her passion for using her medical expertise to help others. For instance, she recently contributed to an article entitled The Influence of Substance Use, Social Sexual Environment, Psychosocial Factors, and Partner Characteristics on High-Risk Sexual Behavior Among Black and Latino Men Who Have Sex with Men Living with HIV: A Qualitative Study. But instead of simply contributing to the article, Dr. Destiny Ramjohn also addressed how the medical community – and the greater society – can address sexually transmitted diseases. The same push for social change happened after her contribution to Making the Connections: Community Capacity for Tobacco Control in an Urban African American Community. “Medical professionals are in a unique position to help others,” says Dr. Destiny Ramjohn. “With all the discussion surrounding healthcare reform, there’s an incredible opportunity to be an advocate for social justice and change.” Indeed, Dr. Destiny Ramjohn has used her experience and expertise to help promote conversations around sensitive issues such as AIDS and tobacco use. Instead of approaching social change in a manner we most typically envision, Dr. Destiny Ramjohn has used her research to showcase areas that the medical community can better address. For instance, much of the research from Dr. Destiny Ramjohn is focused on specific populations vulnerable to preventable public health issues. “We have to understand the medical conditions and health of a community before we can suggest and implement a solution,” says Dr. Destiny Ramjohn. To Dr. Destiny Ramjohn, this is the first step to promoting social change. - Open the door. “You want to open the door to a greater conversation. I happen to do that through research, but there are many methods to make people aware of an issue,” says Dr. Destiny Ramjohn.
- Find your allies. Dr. Destiny Ramjohn acknowledges that social change can never be accomplished single-handedly. It requires a group of people working together. This is similar to Dr. Destiny Ramjohn’s contributions to various articles that have been published in medical and psychological journals.
- Create a solution. Just as Dr. Destiny Ramjohn has suggested solutions after she evaluated various program structures, it’s possible to create a social solution once you familiarize yourself with the issue.
Through quantitative research community participatory-based research, Dr. Destiny Ramjohn has the opportunity to address medical issues that affect the population and provide the appropriate solutions. Sources: http://www.spssi.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=page.viewpage&pageid=693
http://www.womensfund.net/about/socialchange.htm
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Destiny Ramjohn, social change,
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