Departmental Affiliations
Primary
Research Interests
Structural determinants of health; empowerment; sex workers; people who use drugs; PrEP; drug checking
Experiences & Accomplishments
Education
PhD
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
2022
MSW
University of Maryland School of Social Work
2015
MPH
Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
2011
Overview
Dr. Nestadt is an Assistant Scientist whose research focuses on social and structural determinants of health among marginalized populations, particularly women who exchange sex and people who use drugs, with an emphasis on social support, empowerment, and social roles. Her current research and community-based intervention work is focused on HIV and overdose prevention and is set in Baltimore City, but she has also worked extensively in international settings. With a background in both social work and public health, Dr. Nestadt conducts work that is person-centered and strengths-based, and she has a strong interest in intervention development and implementation. Her most recent work is primarily quantitative, often utilizing latent variable modeling approaches, such as latent class analysis.
Select Publications
Selected publications:
- Nestadt, D. F., Tomko, C., Schneider, K. E., Kerrigan, D., Decker, M. R., & Sherman, S. G. (2022). Co-occurring threats to agency among female sex workers in Baltimore, Maryland. Journal of interpersonal violence, 37(11-12), NP8818-NP8843.
- Nestadt, D. F., Park, J. N., Galai, N., Beckham, S. W., Decker, M. R., Zemlak, J., & Sherman, S. G. (2021). Sex workers as mothers: Correlates of engagement in sex work to support children. Global Social Welfare, 8(3), 251-261.
- Tomko, C., Nestadt, D. F., Rouhani, S., Silberzahn, B. E., Haney, K., Park, J. N., ... & Sherman, S. G. (2021). Confirmatory factor analysis and construct validity of the internalized sex work stigma scale among a cohort of cisgender female sex workers in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The Journal of Sex Research, 58(6), 713-723.
- Nestadt, D. F., Saisaengjan, C., McKay, M. M., Bunupuradah, T., Pardo, G., Lakhonpon, S., ... & Mellins, C. A. (2019). CHAMP+ Thailand: pilot randomized control trial of a family-based psychosocial intervention for perinatally HIV-infected early adolescents. AIDS Patient Care and STDs, 33(5), 227-236.
- Friedman Nestadt, D., Lakhonpon, S., Pardo, G., Saisaengjan, C., Gopalan, P., Bunupuradah, T., ... & Mellins, C. A. (2018). A qualitative exploration of psychosocial challenges of perinatally HIV-infected adolescents and families in Bangkok, Thailand. Vulnerable children and youth studies, 13(2), 158-169.