HBS Colloquium

Dr. Theodore Dimon is the founder and director of The Dimon Institute in New York City. The Institute is based on Dr. Dimon’s pioneering work in a new field: the study of the human mental and physical ‘operating system’ as a holistic entity and how it works in activity. Based on a multi-disciplinary approach that includes work in neuroscience, anatomy, evolution, physiology, psychology, philosophy and mindfulness, Dimon’s work provides a groundbreaking view of human functioning and behavior leading to new foundational principles applicable in the fields of health, education, and child development. Dr. Dimon received both master’s and doctorate degrees in education from Harvard University and is an internationally renowned teacher of mind/body disciplines. He has written five books including Anatomy of the Moving Body, The Body in Motion, Your Body, Your Voice, The Elements of Skill, and The Undivided Self. He lectures internationally and is an adjunct professor in the Clinical Psychology Department at Columbia Teachers College where he teaches a course on mind/body unity and its applications in education and health. More information about Dr Dimon’s work and The Dimon Institute can be found on the website: www.dimoninstitute.org

Perry N Halkitis, Ph.D., M.S. is Professor of Applied Psychology, Public Health, and Medicine, Director of the Center for Health, Identity, Behavior & Prevention Studies, and Associate Dean at New York University. He is also an affiliate of the Center for AIDS Research and Center for Drug Use and HIV Research also at NYU. Dr. Halkitis is highly recognized for his work examining the intersection between the HIV, drug abuse, and mental health in LGBT populations, and is well known as one of the nation?s leading experts on substance use and HIV behavioral research. He is lead editor of two volumes: HIV + Sex: The Psychological and Interpersonal Dynamics of HIV-seropositive Gay and Bisexual Men's Relationships. (American Psychological Association, 2005), and Barebacking: Psychosocial and Public Health Perspectives (2006, Haworth Press). His book, Methamphetamine Addiction: Biological Foundations, Psychological Factors, And Social Consequences was published in 2009, and he is currently working on a new manuscript examining the life experiences of gay men who are long-term survivors of HIV/AIDS, The AIDS Generation (Oxford University Press). Author of over 130 peer-reviewed academic manuscripts, Dr. Halkitis? research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among others. Dr. Halkitis serves on the Committee on Psychology and AIDS of the American Psychological Association (APA), is a member of the Advisory Committee on HIV and STD Prevention and Treatment of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Health Services Research Administration (HRSA), as well as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) College of CSR Reviewers. He is the recipient of numerous awards from both professional and community-based organizations, and is an elected a fellow of The New York Academy of Medicine, The Society of Behavioral Medicine, and the American Psychological Association. Dr. Halkitis received his PhD in 1995 from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, and in 2012 will earn his MPH in the field of epidemiology.

Dr. David Almeida is professor of Human Development in College of Health and Human Development at The Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Almeida has been at Penn State since 2004; prior to this he was a faculty member at the University of Arizona and a research scientist at the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan. He received a B.A. in psychology from the California State University and a Ph.D. in life span developmental psychology from the University of Victoria in 1996. Dr. Almeida’s research examines effects of biological and self-reported indicators of stress on health. Well known in the scientific community for his work in adult development, Dr. Almeida has also made his mark in researching specific populations and contexts, such as the workplace and family interactions and parenting children with developmental disabilities. His research has shown that minor yet frequent daily stressors are often better predictors of important health outcomes than major life events, which have been the focus of research for decades. Dr. Almeida has received continuous funding from the National Institutes of Health since 1996, and has received funding from many other agencies, including the German Research Council, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the W.T Grant Foundation, and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Health Disparities Toolkit for Public Health Agencies to Improve Their Practices

Dr. Inga Dora Sigfusdottir is a Research Professor in the Department of Health and Behavior Studies at Teachers College, Columbia University, and a Professor at Reykjavik University, Iceland. Most of her scientific work can be described as sociological research on youth and adolescents and their health and well-being. Her work has focused on the study of risk and protective factors in the prevention of adolescent delinquency and, more recently, health-related behaviour, particularly substance use. She is currently the PI of an interdisciplinary group of scholars in the US and Europe, which is developing a longitudinal, bio-social study of Icelandic children. She has written three books (all in Icelandic) on adolescent lifestyle and leisure activities and over 40 published articles in international journals. In conjunction with her research activities, she has provided academic leadership as both the founder and CEO of a social science research institute, the Icelandic Centre for Social Research and Analysis (ICSRA) and as the Founding Dean of the School of Health and Education, Reykjavik University. At ICSRA she and her colleagues built a nationwide, annually-updated database on various aspects of health and behavior among school-age children and adolescents. She has authored numerous reports and provided leadership in the area of Icelandic social research and social policy.

Dr. Sloan’s principal work focuses on identifying the autonomic nervous system mechanisms linking psychological risk factors such as depression, hostility, and anxiety to heart disease. Funded research studies address various aspects of this problem. In addition, Dr. Sloan and colleagues have explored and criticized the purported links between religion, spirituality, and health that have appeared in popular and medical publications. They have examined the empirical basis of the claim that religious activity promotes health and identified significant ethical, practical, and even theological problems associated with making religious activity an adjunctive medical procedure. He is the author of Blind Faith: The Unholy Alliance of Religion and Medicine (St. Martin’s Press).

Ruth Watson Lubic is a nurse-midwife and applied anthropologist. Known for her work in developing the freestanding birth center model, Dr. Lubic has received honorary degrees and special recognitions from eight universities and is the first nurse to have received a MacArthur Fellowship. She served for two years as an Expert Consultant to the Assistant Secretary for Health in Washington. She has published widely, is a member of the National Academy of Sciences? Institute of Medicine and in 2001 received its prestigious Lienhard Award. The American Academy of Nursing, also in 2001, named her a Living Legend. The American College of Nurse-Midwives honored her with its highest recognition, the Hattie Hemschemeyer Award. She has been made an Honorary Member of Alpha Omega Alpha, the medical honor society. In 2006, the American Public Health Association conferred its Martha May Eliot Award. At an international Strengthening Midwifery Symposium held in Washington in 2010, and sponsored by eight international organizations, including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the International Confederation of Midwives, Dr. Lubic was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Dr. Olugbenga Ogedegbe is an Associate Professor of Medicine and the Director of the Center for Healthful Behavior Change in the NYU School of Medicine's Division of General Internal Medicine. The programmatic focus of Dr. Ogedegbe's research is the translation and dissemination of evidence-based behavioral interventions targeted at cardiovascular risk reduction. His work focuses on translational behavioral medicine, addressing the T2/T3 gaps in translation research. Dr. Ogedegbe has extensive experience in the implementation of clinical trials of behavioral and lifestyle interventions targeted at medication adherence and blood pressure control in primary care practices and community-based settings. He is Principal Investigator on several NHLBI-funded R01 community and practice-based clinical trials, Project Leader on two NCMHHD-funded Health Disparities Center, and Co-Investigator on several NIH-funded trials in diabetes management and sleep disorders. Dr. Ogedegbe has served on several NIH study sections, is a permanent member of the Behavior Medicine Intervention and Outcomes study section and several special emphasis panels at the NHLBI, NCI, and the NCMHHD, as well as a member of the Eighth Joint National Committee on the Detection, Evaluation, Prevention and Treatment of Hypertension, and The Institute of Medicine Committee on Living Well with Chronic Disease.

Karina W. Davidson PhD, and her colleagues recently completed a multi-site, multi-project NIH contract exploring the etiology, course and randomized controlled treatment of depressive symptoms in patients with acute coronary syndromes. She is currently conducting an NHLBI-funded randomized controlled trial to test if enhanced depression treatment vs current depression treatment improves survival in ACS patients at 5 sites across the U.S. She is also testing a telephone-based problem solving treatment to improve cardiovascular disease patient compliance with medical recommendations. Other research activities include leading the Cochrane Behavioral Medicine Field, an international effort to review and synthesize evidence for behavioral medicine interventions.