1ff7 Merrian J. Brooks, DO, MS | Center for Global Health | Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania 1f91
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

Center for
Global Health

Center for Global Health

Merrian J. Brooks, DO, MS

Merrian J. Brooks, DO, MS
More Info

Scholar

  •  Director of Pediatrics and Research at Botswana UPenn Partnership; Attending Physician of Adolescent Medicine Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
  •  Botswana
  •   Adolescent health | global adolescent health | global health equity | Health Disparities | Health Equity | HIV/AIDS | Implementation Science | Mental health | professional research development | Reproductive Justice | Stigma

Languages: English

BIO STATEMENT

Dr. Merrian J. Brooks is a pediatrician and adolescent medicine specialist whose work bridges clinical care, research, and global health. She is a graduate of the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine and holds a master's in clinical research methods from the University of Pittsburgh. She completed a residency in pediatrics at Cooper University Hospital and a clinical fellowship in adolescent medicine at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, followed by an Advanced Fellowship in Pediatric Global Health at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Dr. Brooks is currently an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Adolescent Medicine) at CHOP and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, with a secondary appointment in Psychiatry. She serves as Research Director of the Botswana-UPenn Partnership and Co-Director of the International Core of the Penn Center for AIDS Research (CFAR). She has been based in Botswana at 75% time or more for over six years, where she works as Lead Pediatrician at Princess Marina Hospital, consults in adolescent clinics, trains and mentors University of Botswana MMed and medical students, and advises on adolescent health policy.

She also serves as Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Health at the University of Botswana Faculty of Medicine and as Assistant Director (Botswana-based) of the CHOP David Pincus Global Health Fellowship. Her research focuses on strengthening adolescent mental health services in low- and middle-income country settings, with particular emphasis on the adaptation and implementation of evidence-based interventions for youth living with HIV. She leads the Safe Haven program — an adaptation of the Friendship Bench near-peer lay counselor model delivering problem-solving therapy to adolescents in Botswana — and investigates the intersection of HIV, mental health, stigma, and substance use in vulnerable youth.

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Her scholarship has been supported by the NIH, the International AIDS Society CIPHER program, the Charles Engelhard Foundation, and the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine's Neinstein Award, among others. Dr. Brooks has proved herself to be an outstanding clinician and educator, a disciplined and creative investigator, a devoted advocate for her patients, and a loyal partner to her Batswana colleagues. She is committed to supporting the development of the next generation of academicians in Botswana, expanding BUP research capacity, and advancing sub-specialty care for adolescents across the region.

Recent Global Health Projects

  1. Adaptation and pilot of the Friendship Bench (Safe Haven) in Botswana. Led the adaptation and piloting of a near-peer lay counselor-delivered problem-solving therapy intervention for youth with and without HIV in Botswana, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health (2026). Currently expanding the model to explore a three-arm clinical trial comparing Safe Haven, Safe Haven+, and care as usual.
  2. Community stakeholder feedback on adolescent mental health needs in Botswana. Conducted community-based participatory research to gather stakeholder input on building a community-based mental health program for adolescents, informing the design of lay counselor-delivered services (Community Mental Health Journal, 2022).
  3. Screening for mental health symptoms in youth living with HIV in Botswana. Led a cross-sectional study examining symptoms of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation in adolescents and young adults living with HIV in Botswana, with findings published in the African Journal of AIDS Research (2023).
  4. Implementation of Problem-Solving Therapy delivered by near-peer lay counselors. Evaluated implementation determinants of a lay counselor-delivered PST intervention for youth living with HIV, with results published in Global Implementation Research and Applications (2024).
  5. Intersectional stigma reduction for pregnant women living with HIV. Collaborated on a qualitative study of the adaptation of a facility-level training program using the "What Matters Most" framework to reduce intersectional stigma in Botswana (Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, 2025).
  6. Childhood trauma, mental health, and HIV adherence in Botswana youth. Co-authored a study examining associations between childhood trauma, mental health symptoms, and ART adherence among youth living with HIV (Journal of Child and Adolescent Trauma, 2024).
  7. Evaluation of the Botswana-UPenn Partnership. Co-authored a five-year evaluation of the BUP examining the balance between academic productivity and local health impact, published in BMJ Global Health (2026).
  8. Adolescent mental health and HIV virologic suppression. Contributed to research on the relationship between mental well-being and virologic suppression in adolescents and young adults living with HIV in Botswana (International Journal of MCH and AIDS, 2025).

Publications 

Brooks MJ, MacLean SA, Eschliman EL, Poku OB, Molebatsi K, Ahmed C, Morakanyane P, Entaile P, Monyane-Pheko M, Morapedi K, Phoi O, Tshume O, Benton TD, Matshaba M, Lowenthal ED. Piloting a Near-Peer Lay Counselor Based Problem Solving Therapy Intervention for Youth With and Without HIV in Botswana: An Adaptation of the Friendship Bench. J Adolesc Health. 2026 Apr;78(4):639-647. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2025.12.260. Epub 2026 Feb 7. PMID: 41653177; PMCID: PMC13175587.

Ahmed, C.V., Van Pelt, A.E., Buttenheim, A.M., Poku,O., Rice, B, Lowenthal, E, Brooks, MJ.. Implementation Determinants of Problem-Solving Therapy Delivered by Near-Peer Lay Counselors for Youth Living with HIV in Botswana: Lay Counsellor Perspectives. Glob Implement Res Appl (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43477-024-00126-6

Boshe, J., Brtek, V., Beima-Sofie, K., Braitstein, P., Brooks, M., Denison, J., Donenberg, G., Kemigisha, E., Memiah, P., Njuguna, I., Poku, O., Roberts, S.T., Shayo, A., Dow, D. Integrating Adolescent Mental Health into HIV prevention and treatment programs:  Can Implementation Science Pave the Path Forward. Accepted AIDS and Behavior. Accepted September 2022

Yang, L.H.,* Eschliman, E.L.,* Mehta, H., Misra, S., Poku, O.B., Entaile, P., Becker, T.D., Melese, T., Brooks, M.J., Eisenberg, M., Stockton, M.A., Choe, K., Tal, D., Li, T., Go, V., Link, B.G., Rampa, S., Jackson, V., Manyeagae, G.D., Goodman, M., Arscott-Mills, T., Opondo, P.,  Ho-Foster, A., & Blank, M.B. A pilot pragmatic trial of a “What Matters Most”-based intervention targeting intersectional stigma related to being pregnant and living with HIV in Botswana. Accepted for publication by AIDS Research and Therapy. Accepted June 2022

Brooks MJ, Nicola Willis, Rhulani Beji-Chauke, Ontibile Tshume, Onkemetse Phoi, Elizabeth Lowenthal, Dixon Chibanda, Rashida A Ferrand. Principles for delivery of youth lay counselor programs: Lessons from field experiences. [Perspective] Journal of Global Health, In Press, Accepted March 2022 

Brooks MJ, Phetogo BK, Schwennesen H, Phoi O, Tshume O, Matshaba M, Lowenthal E. Building a Community Based Mental Health Program for Adolescents in Botswana: Stakeholder Feedback. Community Ment Health J. 2021 Nov 26:10.1007/s10597-021-00915-5. doi: 10.1007/s10597-021-00915-5. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34826035; PMCID: PMC9172915.

Brooks, M., Phetogo, B., Monyane-Pheko, M., Phoi, O., Tshume, O., Tembwe, T., et al. (2021): Feasibility of integrating mental health screening into youth HIV Care in a Low-Middle Income Country Setting. Advance. [Preprint]. https://doi.org/10.31124/advance.16602212.v1

Drisana Henry, Sarah Wood, Neo Moshashane, Kehumile Ramontshonyana, Christina Amutah, Pegah Maleki, Claire Howlett, Merrian J. Brooks, Aamirah Mussa, Dipesalema Joel, Andrew P. Steenhoff, Aletha Y. Akers, Chelsea Morroni,. Facilitators and Barriers to Implementation of Long-Acting Reversible Contraceptive Services for Adolescent Girls and Young Women in Gaborone, Botswana, Journal of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, (March 2021). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpag.2021.03.005. (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1083318821001558)

Brooks, M, Fields, E. Community Partnered Participatory Research Methods as told for racial justice and health equity [Perspective], (Dec 2020) Accepted Perspectives in Public Health

Brooks M, Leskovask,J, Mulvey, E, Miller, E. Motivational interviewing for probation officers: a case study from a small-sized county. Sept 2020. Juvenile and Family Court Journal (In Press)

Galagali, P, Brooks M. Psychological care in low-resource settings for adolescents. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry. June 2020. Epub ahead of print.. DOI: 10.1 177/1359104520929742

dd0 Pitts, B, Alasma, M., Brooks,M, Galagali, P, McKinney, R. McManus, P, Pinto, M, Radovic, R, Richarson, L. Improving Integration of Behavioral Health Into Primary Care for Adolescents and Young Adults a position statement of the society for adolescent health and medicine [Society Statement]. Journal of Adolescent Health. 2020 Jul; 67 (2): 302-306. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.05.016.

 

Last Updated: 18 May 2026

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