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Caitlin
Elizabeth
Kennedy
,
PhD

Program Director, Social and Behavioral Interventions
Professor

Caitlin Kennedy PhD ’09, MPH ’04, is a social and behavioral scientist with a focus on sexual and reproductive health and HIV prevention, and resource-limited settings.

Contact Info

615 N. Wolfe Street, Room E5547
Baltimore
Maryland
21205
US        
410-614-7553

Research Interests

HIV prevention; behavioral interventions; combination HIV prevention; positive health dignity and prevention; PHDP; cash transfers; pre-exposure prophylaxis; PrEP; community empowerment; HIV testing; HIV care and treatment; serosorting; sex workers; men who have sex with men (MSM); people living with HIV; fishing communities; qualitative research; systematic review; meta-analysis; guidelines; World Health Organization; sub-Saharan Africa; India; Uganda; Tanzania; Swaziland; Botswana; Togo;
Experiences & Accomplishments
Education
PhD
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
2009
MPH
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
2004
BA
Swarthmore College
2000
Overview
I am an Associate Professor, Director of the Social and Behavioral Interventions program, and Associate Chair in the Department of International Health. As a social and behavioral scientist trained in both qualitative and quantitative methodologies, I apply these methods to the development and evaluation of innovative HIV prevention interventions and strategies to improve the health and well-being of people living in resource-limited settings.

I am particularly interested in (1) understanding the complexities of HIV risk and the development of tailored services and combination HIV prevention and care strategies for key populations, such as sex workers and men who have sex with men (MSM), and highly affected populations where unique economic and social patterns create heightened HIV risk, such as fishing communities along East Africa’s great lakes; (2) interventions with structural components that attempt to change the underlying drivers of HIV risk, such as conditional or unconditional cash transfers for young women or community empowerment interventions for sex workers; (3) positive health, dignity and prevention (PHDP) approaches that work with people living with HIV to improve health and reduce onward transmission risk; and (4) social and behavioral aspects of new biomedical HIV prevention strategies, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for sex workers.

I am also committed to seeing research translate into policy, particularly through my extensive involvement in systematic reviews and World Health Organization normative guidelines. I have contributed to over a dozen WHO guidelines, primarily in the fields of HIV and sexual and reproductive health.
Honors & Awards
Golden Apple, 2019
Excellence in Advising Award. Johns Hopkins Center for Global Health, 2011 and 2018
SOURCE faculty community service award. Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. 2010
Select Publications
Selected recent publications
  • Kennedy CE, Zhao T, Vo AV, Nakubulwa R, Nabakka P, Jackson J, Rosen JG, Chang LW, Reynolds SJ, Quinn TC, Nakigozi G, Kigozi G, Kagaayi J, Nalugoda F, Ddaaki WG, Grabowski MK, Nakyanjo N. High Acceptability and Perceived Feasibility of Long-Acting Injectable Antiretroviral Treatment Among People Living with HIV Who Are Viremic and Health Workers in Uganda. AIDS Patient Care STDS. 2023 Jun;37(6):316-322. doi: 10.1089/apc.2023.0017. PMID: 37294280.
  • Kennedy C, Brahmbhatt H, Likindikoki S, Mbwambo J, Beckham S, Kerrigan D. Exploring the potential of a conditional cash transfer intervention to reduce HIV risk among young women in Iringa, Tanzania. AIDS Care. 2014;26(3):275-81.
  • Ddaaki W, Strömdahl S, Yeh PT, Rosen JG, Jackson J, Nakyanjo N, Kagaayi J, Kigozi G, Nakigozi G, Grabowski MK, Chang LW, Reynolds SJ, Nalugoda F, Ekström AM, Kennedy CE. Qualitative Assessment of Barriers and Facilitators of PrEP Use Before and After Rollout of a PrEP Program for Priority Populations in South-central Uganda. AIDS Behav. 2021 Nov;25(11):3547-3562. doi: 10.1007/s10461-021-03360-3. Epub 2021 Jul 9. PMID: 34240317; PMCID: PMC8603943.
  • Kennedy CE, Yeh PT, Verster A, Luhmann N, Konath NM, Mello MB, Baggaley R, Macdonald V. Counselling behavioural interventions for HIV, STI and viral hepatitis among key populations: a systematic review of effectiveness, values and preferences, and cost studies. J Int AIDS Soc. 2023 May;26(5):e26085. doi: 10.1002/jia2.26085. PMID: 37221978; PMCID: PMC10206411.
  • Kerrigan D, Kennedy C, Morgan-Thomas R, Reza-Paul S, Mwangi P, Win, KT, McFall A, Fonner V, Butler J. A community empowerment approach to the HIV response among sex workers: Effectiveness, challenges, and considerations for implementation and scale-up. The Lancet. 2014 Jul 21. S0140-6736(14); 60973-9.
Projects
The Effect Of ART On Sexual Risk Behavior In India
Interpretations of HIV Campaign Messages in Tanzania and Botswana
Formative Research to Define a Combination HIV Prevention Package in Iringa Tanzania
Understanding HIV-related vulnerability among sex workers and their regular partners in the Dominican Republic
Addressing positive health, dignity and prevention (PHDP) needs of HIV-infected MARPS in Swaziland and the Dominican Republic
To Provide Scientific Support to DMSC in Conducting Their Demonstration Project
To Assist with Multiple Aspects of Updating the WHO 2006 Guideline
The Evidence Project
CHWs, mHealth, and Combination HIV Prevention in a Hotspot: A Randomized Trial
Understanding HIV Risk and Service Use in Hotspot Ugandan Fishing Communities