When prospective faculty members ask us what is best about the University of Colorado Denver we enthusiastically answer, “Our students!” We are so fortunate to have students from who are diverse in so many ways. We all benefit from the different experiences and backgrounds you bring to the campus community and the Department of Health and Behavioral Sciences program. Nowhere is this more relevant than in public health where we continually strive to be more inclusive and improve health equity.

This spring marks the fourth semester during the COVID-19 pandemic. You have remained committed to your education despite the continual changes brought by the pandemic at the university and in the larger community. For those of us who work in public health, the pandemic has taught us much about the need to balance individual freedom and economic interests with community safety and well-being. This is never easy, but we are hopeful that having lived through this time you will apply what you have learned to future public health challenges.

While a new COVID variant may be circulating, we are hopeful that current vaccines and boosters, new treatments, and growing population immunity will enable us to continue in-person instruction. Above all, please know you are valued members of our campus community.

Renate Cisne (Rena) earned her bachelor’s degree in Public Health from CU Denver in 2020. She currently works for a neurosurgery group as a perioperative coordinator. She describes her work in more detail, “My work includes scheduling patients for spine and brain surgeries and coordinating all aspects of surgical procedures.” Rena goes on to share that “public health is an often overlooked aspect of healthcare, having a background in this field has armed me with the knowledge and skills to navigate the healthcare system and become an advocate for our patients’ health.”

After earning an associate degree in applied science in medical assisting at Arapahoe Community College, Rena was drawn to the Public Health major at CU Denver. She relates, “after working in healthcare, I realized that I was more drawn to promoting health and wellbeing and preventing disease than the reactive nature of medicine.”

I asked Rena what she enjoyed most about her undergraduate training in public health and she recounted, “Learning of public health interventions that have changed the landscape of health across the globe has been the most fascinating aspect of this program. Public health is often an underappreciated field and discovering the positive impact of these improvements is empowering.”

Her favorite public health course was an elective course focused on the global HIV/AIDS epidemic (PBHL 4200). She emphasized how rigorous and well-rounded the course was. It provided “background and context behind this global epidemic as well as the future direction of HIV prevention measures; this course emphasized the importance of public health programs in reducing the incidence and mortality of disease.”

Rena will continue her education in the public health field. She has recently been accepted into the master’s program in Public Health at Loma Linda University where she will start her studies in Fall 2022.

Karen Hampanda, MPH, PhD, is Assistant professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at CU Anschutz with an adjoint appointment in the Health and Behavioral Sciences (HBS) department. She also serves as the Associate Director of Research for the Division of Academic Specialists in Obstetrics and Gynecology and is a Senior Investigator in the Center for Global Health.

Karen’s research examines social and behavioral determinants of maternal and child health and sexual and reproductive health with a focus on HIV and intimate partner violence. In our conversation, Karen discussed her ongoing projects. “I am currently the Principal Investigator on a National Institute of Mental Health-funded randomized controlled trial (my first R-level grant as Principal Investigator) in Zambia testing a psychoeducational couples-based intervention with pregnant women living with HIV and their male partners to promote women’s health postpartum and prevent mother-to-child transmission. I also am the coordinator for an implementation project at the Children’s Hospital Immunodeficiency Program to improve intimate partner violence education, screening, counseling, and referrals.” Karen is also wrapping up several other projects and working with faculty in her division on a few projects pertaining to women’s health and medical education. 

Karen graduated from HBS in 2016. She was drawn to the program because of its interdisciplinary focus on health. She tells me, “I have an MPH but my bachelor’s was interdisciplinary (“Health and Society”), and I really love anthropology, political science, sociology, etc. The HBS program was unique in combining a lot of disciplines into one training program with an overarching emphasis on health promotion. I also met with several faculty prior to coming and felt like there was a very supportive culture.”

I asked Karen how her training in our program shaped her career. “Going into the HBS program, I had a sense that I wanted to be in academia. My training in HBS solidified this for me. If I could, I would be a perpetual student in HBS.” Karen went on to share that “during my training in HBS, I got invaluable experience in research design, mixed methods data collection and analysis, IRB, applying for grants, analyzing data, and managing an international study team. This allowed me to successfully get a research-focused postdoc, followed by a faculty position.”

Karen’s favorite class was Theory 1 which introduces students to social science theories and was taught by Dr. Jean Scandlyn. Jean stood out to Karen. “I have learned so much from Dr. Scandlyn regarding theory and qualitative methods. Dr. Scandlyn's Theory 1 class truly changed my world view.” Karen also recalled the support she received from other faculty members, “Dr. Sara Yeatman was an excellent dissertation chair who really pushed me to improve my research and writing skills. I attribute much of my success in HBS and afterwards to Dr. Yeatman's mentorship and high expectations. Dr. Sheana Bull has also been instrumental in supporting me throughout my training in HBS and afterward. Dr. Bull has always been an amazing advocate for me and shown strong dedication to my academic success.”   

Karen shared a piece of advice for anyone pursuing their degree in HBS. “This multidisciplinary training program truly is multidisciplinary and the perfect marriage between social science and public health - the training you will receive in the program is phenomenal. If you plan to go into academia afterwards, publish as much as possible and try and get any type of funding you can for your dissertation.”

Amy Vermette is working on her bachelor’s degree in public health. Amy was awarded Health and Behavioral Sciences' Outstanding Public Health Graduate for the Fall 2021 semester and was just named Outstanding Undergraduate BA for the entire College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Amy always knew she wanted a career that involved helping people, but it took a while for her journey in public health to click. Her inspiration to study public health came during a routine health inspection while she was managing a small café. “Anyone who’s ever worked in food service knows how stressful health inspections can be but to my surprise the inspector I was working with that day was incredibly kind, patient and understanding. It completely changed the way I felt about health inspections and the health department, and it made me want to be that person for someone else one day.”

The public health program hasn’t let Amy down. She loves that her peers and professors have common goals. “No matter what anyone’s specific focus of study is, we all share the desire to problem solve for the benefit of the greater good. For me it’s been incredibly encouraging to be surrounded by a group of people all determined to make the world a better, more equitable place.”

Like other students, Amy has been working on her bachelor’s degree in in midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Amy shares, “The pandemic has certainly created some challenges as a student, especially when it comes to remote learning.” While many courses have returned to in-person learning with extra precautions, all of CU Denver’s courses transitioned to remote learning at the onset of the pandemic. Amy shares how this impacted her experience. “I think my biggest disappointment was how remote learning limited communication and conversation between my fellow students. One of the most valuable aspects of the student experience is the ability to share experience and knowledge and I feel like some of that was lost for a while.”

Amy has also found several positive aspects to studying public health during the pandemic. “Experiencing a pandemic while studying public health has also been a uniquely beneficial experience.” She goes on to share, “I also feel grateful to have been actively studying in a field of knowledge so relevant to my current reality. I think being a public health major during the pandemic has actually relieved some of the stress and fear associated with it.”

Out of the courses she has taken so far, Amy has really enjoyed the Ethnicity, Health and Social Justice (PBHL 3002) with Dr. Hyeyoung Oh Nelson. She tells me, “I think the knowledge gained in that class is incredibly important for all students regardless of their major and recommend it to anyone who has time in their schedule.” Amy also looks forward to creating connections with her professors now that classes are back in person.

When Amy completes her degree, she likes the idea of getting her master's degree but her first goal is to get some hands-on experience in the public health field. She could also “see herself pivoting slightly to a more psychology-based career and study path.”

Spenser Wright is in her second year of the Health and Behavioral Sciences (HBS) doctoral program. She previously had earned a bachelor's in Anthropology and Women’s Studies from Tufts University. Prior to starting her doctorate, she worked as a research coordinator and research assistant on a variety of eating disorder and mental health-related studies. She also worked as a counselor at residential and inpatient eating disorder treatment facilities.

Before applying to HBS, she tells me that she was “very interested in the ethics and efficacy of involuntary eating disorder treatment while working at an inpatient eating disorder treatment facility in Denver.” It was important to her to find a program that would support her in that area of study. She briefly enrolled in a post-baccalaureate program to become a registered dietitian, but quickly discovered that it wasn’t quite the right fit. She eventually came across HBS in an online search. Before applying, “I reached out to Dr. Karen Spencer to learn more about her work and HBS, and to try to get a better sense of whether or not my research interests would be a good match for this program. I came away from that meeting feeling really excited about HBS and decided I didn’t want to apply anywhere else.”

Spenser continues to work closely with her advisor, Karen Spencer, PhD. She tells me a bit more about this experience. “Last year, I worked with her [Karen] as a research assistant on a project about hospice and palliative care. She has also been a really helpful source of guidance and encouragement as I’ve worked on some preliminary research for my dissertation.”

While Spenser is still in the middle of her coursework, she has also been busy with her own research. She tells me a bit more about her work. “My research is focused involuntary eating disorder treatment, which is when a person is legally committed to eating disorder treatment against their will. Specifically, I’m interested in how medical and legal professionals make decisions around involuntary eating disorder treatment, and the impact it has on patients and on approaches to treating eating disorders more generally.” She is also continuing research she started prior to the program with a researcher at Brandeis University, Joanne Nicholson, PhD, on a project about autism and employment.

Spenser had great advice for prospective students looking to apply for a doctoral program. “I would encourage potential applicants to set up informational meetings with faculty in the department whose research interests are relevant to their own, and to talk to students who are currently in the program. I think it’s important to figure out about kinds of support and learning environment a program offers, and then think about how well that support and environment is going to work for you – it’s about finding a good fit.”

Karen Lutfey Spencer, PhD, Professor in the Department of Health and Behavioral Sciences, grew up in Denver. She shares that in the two decades she spent away, “the city really metamorphized away from being a cow town in the time I was gone, but I love the mountains and the opportunities to enjoy the outdoors. My husband and I spend a lot of time around the state, camping, riding bikes, hot springing, visiting friends and hanging out with our blue heeler.”

Karen was trained in sociology. Her first job was in a sociology department, but she has always found herself part of a multidisciplinary environment, starting with a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation postdoc. After working in a soft money position, she joined the Health and Behavioral Sciences department in 2012. Karen shares, “Since health is such a multifaceted issue, I have found it gratifying and intellectually stimulating to consider it from a multidisciplinary perspective. I have benefitted enormously from spending time with colleagues in economics, anthropology, biostatistics, psychology, medicine, ethics, and political science, so staying with a department like HBS was a natural decision.”

Karen’s work centers on healthcare processes and outcome disparities that arise from systems that we tend to assume improve health. She relates, “I have used qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate a range of conditions, including coronary heart disease, diabetes, schizophrenia, and end-of-life. For the past several years I have been focused on using in-depth interviews with patients, caregivers, providers, and doulas to study how people make end-of-life hospice decisions.” Karen has made important contributions to the field of medicine such as challenging practitioners to rethink concepts like “patient compliance,” which strips patients of the ability to make decisions about their own care. For a full discussion of this work check out this article.

Out of the many classes Karen has taught, she tells me that the graduate Applications course is one of her favorites to teach. The Applications course offers students the opportunity to focus on their individual research interests in preparation for writing their dissertation prospectus/proposal. Karen relates, “It’s humbling but also stimulating to try to learn about new topics and provide feedback even when a dissertation is not in my area of expertise. I really like seeing students developing their projects and helping support them as they transition out of traditional coursework and into the less structured arena of dissertating (and beyond!).” I took this course with Karen and benefitted tremendously from her mentorship during and after the course.

Karen shares that at the undergrad level she has “recently gotten very excited about asynchronous learning and have been teaching Social Determinants of Health (PBHL 4040) online. I enjoy trying to match material formats to what I think students might be most likely to use successfully in a self-directed format. (I’m working hard on my video editing skills.)”

When I asked Karen if she has advice for someone who is considering a PhD she tells me, “My main advice is to really consider why you need or want a PhD. There is a lot of romance around having those initials behind your name, but the reality can mean something very different. I would encourage anyone considering it to talk with people about their experiences and the career/life consequences.”

The Health and Behavioral Sciences Scholarship funds scholarships for HBSC and PBHL students. Any amount counts! If you are interested in donating, click here. 

You can check out our previous newsletters here!

Newsletter Editor: Shawna Bayerman