Featured Projects
Women's Health
Our organization plays a crucial role in advancing women’s health by addressing significant gaps in mental and physical health services, particularly for women from low socio-economic backgrounds in the Inland Empire. Through a focus on prevention, education, and holistic care, we align with broader public health efforts to improve maternal health outcomes and support women’s well-being across all stages of life.
Our initiatives are rooted in community-based approaches, bridging the gap between academic institutions, healthcare providers, public health agencies, and local clinics. By implementing targeted programs for maternal mental health and substance abuse prevention, we strengthen the work of local clinics and advocacy groups addressing these critical issues among pregnant women. Specifically, we focus on reducing tobacco use and depression among low-income minority women. Our specialized resources include culturally competent care training for public health, healthcare administration, and nursing students and accessible mental health screenings for pregnant and postpartum women, ensuring that even the most vulnerable populations receive necessary support.
Below is a list of few publications highlighting our background work on Women’s Health:
Kimunai, E., Mshigeni, S., & Sarwar, E. (2022). Ethical and Practical Implication of COVID-19 Vaccine among Pregnant Women, Journal of Healthcare Ethics & Administration, Volume 8 (1), Pages 1-12. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22461/jhea.1.71633
Becerra M.B., Avina R.M., Mshigeni S., & Becerra B.J. (2020). Low human papillomavirus literacy among Asian-American women in California: An analysis of the California Health Interview Survey. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, Volume 7, 678-686
Kim, Y., Im, S., Dee, V., Brandt, C., & Hong, E. (2019). Feelings, self-care, and infant care reported by Korean women at risk for postpartum depression, International Journal of Nursing, 6(1), 1-11, DOI: 10.15640/ijn.v6n1a1, http://dx.doi.org/10.15640/ijn.v6n1a1
Kim, Y., & Dee, V. (2018). Sociodemographic and Obstetric Factors Related to Symptoms of Postpartum Depression in Hispanic Women in Rural California. Journal of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Neonatal Nursing. 47, 23-31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jogn.2017.11.012
Kim, Y. & Dee, V. (2016). Self-Care for health in rural Hispanic women at risk for postpartum depression. Maternal and Child Health Journal. Advanced online Printing. DOI: 10.1007/s10995-016-2096-8.
Kimunai, E., Kapella-Mshigeni, S. Anderson, P., & Mbi Feh, M. (2016). Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission, Literacy, Ethnicity, Education, and Wealth in Kenya, International Journal of Childbirth Education, Volume 31, Issue 2
Kimunai, E., Kapella-Mshigeni, S. Anderson, P., & Prehn, A. (2014). Demographics and Utilization of Care Indicators among HIV Positive Women in Kenya, Journal of National Black Nurses Association, Volume 25, Issue 2
Kimunai, E., Kapella-Mshigeni, S. Anderson, P., & Prehn, A. (2014). Relationship between Demographics and Breastfeeding Behavior among HIV Positive Women in Kenya, International Journal of Childbirth Education, Volume 29, Issue 2
Health Literacy Capacity Building (HLCP)
HLCP is a multidisciplinary research initiative to address the intersectional domains of influence on low health literacy among at-risk groups and best practices in alleviating such a burden (project Principal Investigator: Dr. Monideepa Becerra). Team members have published several peer-reviewed articles on determinants of low health literacy among vulnerable populations, such as Asian-American and Pacific Islander populations, immigrant Hispanic population, as well as literacy related to women’s health and reproductive issues, such as sexual consent, HIV prevention and barriers to care, and HPV screening. Project co-investigators: Dr. Cindy Fike (retired, CSUSB), Dr. Paulchris Okpala, Dr. Salome Mshigeni, Dr. Benjamin Becerra, Dr. Robert Avina, Prof. Marwa Ahmad, Prof. Devin Arias (also community partner).
Project is partially funded by: CSUSB's Centers and Institutes Seed Grant.
Resulting peer-reviewed research publications:
Becerra MB, Avina RM, Mshigeni S, Becerra BJ. Low Human Papillomavirus Literacy Among Asian-American Women in California: an Analysis of the California Health Interview Survey. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities. 2020 Aug;7(4):678–86.
Ahmad M, Becerra B, Hernandez D, Okpala P, Olney A, Becerra M. “You Do It without Their Knowledge.” Assessing Knowledge and Perception of Stealthing among College Students. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 May 18;17(10):E3527.
Avina RM, Mullen M, Mshigeni S, Becerra MB. “I Actually Don’t Know What HIV Is”: A Mixed Methods Analysis of College Students’ HIV Literacy. Diseases. 2020 Jan 2;8(1):E1.
Becerra BJ, Arias D, Becerra MB. Low Health Literacy among Immigrant Hispanics. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities. 2017 Jun;4(3):480–3.
Becerra MB, Becerra BJ, Daus GP, Martin LR. Determinants of Low Health Literacy Among Asian-American and Pacific Islanders in California. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities. 2015 Jun;2(2):267–73.
Social Justice Leadership Academy (SJLA)
The purpose of SJLA initiative is to address the unique characteristics and types of teaching approaches that promote learning among students, especially those who are underrepresented minorities, as well as address the key determinants of equity gap among the most at-risk groups. Initiatives include the assessment of the efficacy of blended learning, in providing flexibility and engagement, importance of addressing diversity from the students’ perspective, etc., as well as an evaluation of students' academic experiences during the pandemic. Project co-investigators include: Dr. Salome Mshigeni, Dr. Monideepa Becerra, Dr. Jacqueline Romano). As part of this initiative and in collaboration with Faculty Development Program-TRC, the co-PI of this initiative (Dr. Monideepa Becerra) developed and implemented several campus-wide pedagogical initiatives, including social justice pedagogy, critical information literacy leadership institute, etc.
Project is partially funded by: CSUSB's Teaching Resource Center.
Resulting peer-reviewed research publications:
Becerra M, Mshigeni S. A quasi-experimental evaluation of a flipped class in a public health course. Journal of Applied Learning and Teaching. 2022 Mar 10;5(1). Available from: https://journals.sfu.ca/jalt/index.php/jalt/article/view/485
Mshigeni S, Arroyo-Romano J, Becerra M. “We don’t all have the privilege of having our own quiet place”: College Students in a Hispanic Serving Institution during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Latinos and Education. 2022 Mar 23;0(0):1–15.
Mshigeni SK, Okolo S, Mshigeni D, Becerra M. What Diversity Means to Undergraduate Health Science Students. Journal of Higher Education Theory and Practice. 2020 Oct 4;20(6). Available from: https://articlegateway.com/index.php/JHETP/article/view/3131