Biography

Dr. Gina Evans is an Assistant Professorship (tenure-track) at the Baylor College of Medicine's Chronic Disease Prevention and Control Research Center. She holds a Doctoral degree in Counseling Psychology from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Upon completion of her degree she became a Kellogg Health Scholars (KHS) fellow. Her primary reasons for becoming a KHS were to challenge and change the way we currently conduct health disparities research with and in minority communities. Dr. Evans overall research and career goal is to: (1) investigate social determinants that contribute to poor health, (2) design applicable health promotion and self-management interventions and (3) improve minority participation in clinical trials and generate research findings that can assist individuals, and researchers and policy developers in building healthier communities for minority groups. Dr. Evans' contributed to and completed many research studies during her doctoral and KHSF program. Her early research explored psychosocial factors that impact eating habits among African American women. She expanded upon this research by completing a pilot study exploring the utility of a self-management intervention among ethnic minority stroke patients. She was recently awarded a NIDDK research supplement to examine the "Effects of Social Determinants of Health on Self-Care Activities among Ethnic minorities with Type II Diabetes". These experiences have led to publications in peer reviewed journals such as Nutrition Education and Behavior, Neurorehabilitation and Training and Education in Professional Psychology as well as manuscripts that are in press and under review. She has also disseminated her research findings through presentations at national conferences such as the American Public Health Association and American Psychological Association. Through her work with the Eliminating Disparities in Clinical Trials (EDICT) initiative she developed educational workshops that encourage researchers in community and academic settings to adopt culturally appropriate policy recommendations in their clinical trial research. Dr. Evans continues to strive to complete quality research projects that provide a lasting effect on individuals, communities and the global society. When asked what the impact of the Kellogg Health Scholars Program has made to her career, Dr. Evans said "[T]he program has linked me with mentors who have been instrumental in increasing my research skills as well as knowledge of health disparities. Through this mentorship, I have been able to learn more advanced methods of investigating how social determinants of health impact health disparities and health outcomes." Further, she states that "the rewards of this mentorship can be witnessed with my current NIDDK funded research supplement to investigate the 'Effects of Social Determinants of Health on Diabetes Self-care among Ethnic Minorities.' The plan is to use my research findings to impact policy changes in equitable health care, health care reimbursement, and health policy."