Center for
Global Health

International Scholar

Languages: English (native)

Bio statement

My academic interests are in furthering the use epidemiological methods to improve the health of populations. This includes mentorship and practice in generating evidence to improve our understanding of risk factors for disease, access/linkage to diagnosis and care, program evaluation, and effective communication of evidence to improve program implementation. I have worked in 12 countries, supporting research on maternal child health, HIV prevention, TB-HIV diagnostics, cancer care, gender violence and mental health. I also managed a Data Acquisition Core team aimed at improving routine data collection for Non-Communicable Disease research, and served as Country Operations Officer for the Botswana-UPenn Partnership.

Recent global health projects

1. RCT to reduce stigma and improve treatment adherence in HIV+ pregnant women in Botswana

This randomized controlled trial will test Mothers Moving towards Empowerment (MME): a contact based stigma intervention to counter the culturally-salient aspects of HIV stigma and improve anti-retroviral therapy (ART) adherence in Botswana.
Role: Co-Investigator

2. Improving Quality of HIV Care Services in Botswana / Strengthening Inter-Professional Education in HIV (STRIPE HIV Botswana)

The project goal is to ensure that pre-service medical and nursing students and early career professionals are prepared to translate lessons and learnings from the classroom to the high-burden clinical settings and are equipped to provide high-quality HIV care while employing an interprofessional team-based approach. In-person training modules for late pre-service and early in-service participants were developed in 2019-2020; Adaptation and implementation of online distance training occurred in 2021.
Role: Project Manager / Administrative Director

Selected publications

Yang L H, Poku O B, Misra S, Mehta H T, Rampa S, Eisenberg M M, Yang L S, Cao T X D, Blank L I, Becker T D, Link B G, Entaile P, Philip R. Opondo M, Arscott-Mills T, Ho-Foster A R and Blank M B; Stigma, Structural Vulnerability, and “What Matters Most” Among Women Living With HIV in Botswana, 2017; American Journal of Public Health; 34110916; 10.2105/ajph.2021.306274; https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306274;

Joseph Motsumi M, Mashalla Y, Sebego M, Ho-Foster A, Motshome P, Mokokwe L, Mmalane M and Montshiwa T; O36: DEVELOPING A TRAUMA REGISTRY IN A MIDDLE INCOME COUNTRY – BOTSWANA; British Journal of Surgery; 2021; 10.1093/bjs/znab117.036; https://doi.org/10.1093/bjs/znab117.036; https://academic.oup.com/bjs/article/108/Supplement_1/znab117.036/6255813

Misra S, Mehta H T, Eschliman E L, Rampa S, Poku O B, Wang W-Q, Ho-Foster A R, Mosepele M, Becker T D, Entaile P, Arscott-Mills T, Opondo P R, Blank M B and Yang L H; Identifying “What Matters Most” to Men in Botswana to Promote Resistance to HIV-Related Stigma; Qualitative Health Research; 33764233; 10.1177/10497323211001361; https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/10497323211001361;

Yang L H, Ho-Foster A R, Becker T D, Misra S, Rampa S, Poku O B, Entaile P, Goodman M and Blank M B; Psychometric Validation of a Scale to Assess Culturally-Salient Aspects of HIV Stigma Among Women Living with HIV in Botswana: Engaging “What Matters Most” to Resist Stigma; AIDS and Behavior; 2020; 2020/08/24; 10.1007/s10461-020-03012-y; https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-020-03012-y;

Ramogola-Masire D, Poku O, Mazhani L, Ndwapi N, Misra S, Arscott-Mills T, Blank L, Ho-Foster A, Becker T D and Yang L; Botswana's HIV response: Policies, context, and future directions; Journal of Community Psychology; 2020; 10.1002/jcop.22316; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jcop.22316;

Poku O B, Ho-Foster A R, Entaile P, Misra S, Mehta H, Rampa S, Goodman M, Arscott-Mills T, Eschliman E, Jackson V, Melese T, Becker T D, Eisenberg M, Link B, Go V, Opondo P R, Blank M B and Yang L H; ‘Mothers moving towards empowerment’ intervention to reduce stigma and improve treatment adherence in pregnant women living with HIV in Botswana: study protocol for a pragmatic clinical trial; Trials; 2020; 2020/10/07; 10.1186/s13063-020-04676-6; https://doi.org/10.1186/s13063-020-04676-6;

Molebatsi K, Wang Q, Dima M, Ho-Foster A, Modongo C, Zetola N and Shin S S; Depression and delayed tuberculosis treatment initiation among newly diagnosed patients in Botswana; Global Public Health; 2020; 10.1080/17441692.2020.1826049; https://doi.org/10.1080/17441692.2020.1826049;

Wang Q, Dima M, Ho-Foster A, Molebatsi K, Modongo C, Zetola N and Shin S S; Association between HIV status and mental health disorders among newly diagnosed tuberculosis patients in Botswana; Annals of Epidemiology; 2019; 2019/12/01/; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annepidem.2019.08.016; http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S104727971930780X;

Becker T D, Ho-Foster A R, Poku O B, Marobela S, Mehta H, Cao D T X, Yang L S, Blank L I, Dipatane V I, Moeng L R, Molebatsi K, Eisenberg M M, Barg F K, Blank M B, Opondo P R and Yang L H; "It's When the Trees Blossom": Explanatory Beliefs, Stigma, and Mental Illness in the Context of HIV in Botswana; Qual Health Res; 2019; Feb 9; 2019/02/12; 30739566; 10.1177/1049732319827523; https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/104973231982752

Last Updated: 21 February 2022