Migration and Reproductive Health Risks among Latino Youth

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Alexandra Minnis is a full-time Assistant Adjunct Professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She received a Ph.D. in epidemiology and an M.P.H. in epidemiology and biostatistics at UC Berkeley. This application for a five year Mentored Research Scientist Development Award includes training and mentoring in demography and in qualitative research methods with the objective of integrating these multidisciplinary approaches with epidemiology to conduct research on migration and reproductive health among Latino immigrant youth in the San Francisco Bay Area. Dr. Minnis has assembled a team of nationally known scientists at UCSF, the University of California, Berkeley, and the Mexican National Public Health Institute, who are enthusiastic about her training and research plan and are committed to the successful completion of this application. Through ethnographic interviews and a prospective cohort study with youth aged 15-24, recruited from San Francisco's Mission District, Dr. Minnis intends to 1) identify individual- and population-level characteristics and patterns of migration that are associated with high-risk reproductive health behaviors and outcomes, including sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy; 2) evaluate gender differences in migration patterns and changes in sexual behaviors, fertility preferences, and reproductive health outcomes; and 3) assess what aspects of the social context of immigration (e.g., size of social network, and age and ethnic diversity of friends) and/or the strength of social ties modify the relationships between characteristics and patterns of migration and reproductive health risks. In addition, Dr. Minnis will examine the feasibility of longitudinal follow-up of immigrant youth and identify the primary sending communities in Mexico and Central America for youth who reside in the San Francisco Bay Area. Thus, she will be prepared to develop bi-national research that builds on the work proposed here. Dr. Minnis is strongly committed to an academic career. She plans to conduct research on the structural and behavioral determinants of adverse reproductive health outcomes among immigrant Latino youth, with the objective of identifying effective strategies for public health intervention.