To Professor Karen Tabb Dina, the world and its communities are full of research questions. These research questions, when posed, help us understand patterns of inequality and reach findings that highlight the needs of minority populations. Working primarily with partners in the global south, Professor Tabb Dina learns from them–through dialogue and collaboration–and brings that knowledge back to the global north (Picture above is Professor Karen Tabb Dina, center, with colleagues from the Universidade de São Paulo in Brazil).
Can you talk a little bit about your international experiences?
Before I had decided to pursue a Ph.D., and before I really understood that Social Work was the field I wanted to be in, I was teaching English in Korea. While I was there, I kept seeing everything as a research question. Why at the orphanages were there so many mixed-race children? Why were expats ending their lives at a disproportionate rate? How could I better understand these communities, make sure that their voices are being heard, and use education as a tool for empowerment? So, I initially came back to the U.S. to pursue a Ph.D. in Sociology but realized that Social Work was really the field where I could understand the patterns of inequality of various communities and groups I was seeing around the world. Then, as part of my Ph.D. in Social Work at the University of Washington, I had formal training in global health as a Fogarty Fellow. I was able to attend classes taught entirely in Spanish that took place over webinars in real time with a cohort of students in Peru. After finishing my Ph.D. coursework, I was able to travel to Peru and receive hands on training as a social work researcher. When I was there, Patty Garcia, Dean of the School of Public Health at Cayetano Heredia University (UPCH) in Lima, said, “let the global south teach you.” And that has shaped a lot of my research, and reinforced my understanding of power and power imbalance in successfully moving research forward.
You are a collaborator with the Global Burden of Disease (GBD). For those who do not know GBD, can you explain its focus and goals?
Because of my training in demography, I am involved in the health care section of the Population Association of America, a large consortium of demographers, and so it was very natural when I was invited to apply as a collaborator for the Global Burden of Disease study. I applied and was accepted as a GBD expert collaborator in the fields of maternal mortality and morbidity. As a collaborator, I am responsible for identifying datasets, funneling new data into the GBD from my own research, reviewing the sources of data to address concerns, and critically review estimates in areas like maternal suicide. Funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, GBD provides non-governmental estimates for 188 countries. So you have the United Nations providing a set of estimates, the World Health Organization providing a set of estimates, and then GBD providing a set of estimates. With GBD, there are many experts weighing in with local data that is very specific. I love being a part of something like this and I always invite colleagues that are doing interesting work that we haven’t heard of GBD to be a part of this. You can explore the GBD on the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation website.
Beyond GBD, you have built partnerships in Brazil. What are some of the goals and outcomes of those partnerships?
I have been collaborating with colleagues at the Universidade de São Paulo since 2010. It has been a very fruitful and rewarding partnership. I have learned so much from my colleagues in Brazil and have been able to observe their work on collaborative care to address maternal mental health in OBGYN settings (Image on the left is of a Maternal Health Hospital in Brazil). My colleagues are obstetricians and psychiatrists, because in Brazil they don’t have social work as we do here in the United States. In Brazil, there is education and there is nursing and U.S. trained social work would fall somewhere in between those two. In 2013, I was visiting my colleagues in Brazil at a free public clinic. This clinic was screening women for depression using tablets. So, I brought that idea back here and collaborated on a grant to use a similar method at clinics in Champaign-Urbana. It’s those observations that help us move our local work forward faster.
Another learning outcome is our initiative to build a women’s health collaboration with funding from the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). On January 6th, 2018, we are hosting a pregnancy/postpartum health fair at the Champaign Public Library. In June 2018, we will welcome our colleagues from Brazil to campus to provide capacity training workshops with our advisory board members on clinical research to treat perinatal depression during pregnancy and how to best improve patient outcomes. We are also seeking maternal health researchers and pregnant/postpartum researchers from Illinois to join this event (and possibly continue on for our next study). With these types of partnerships, we are able to bring a different perspective to the conversation and understand issues in a different context.
You received one of Illinois International’s faculty research travel grants. How did that help facilitate your research?
I received the IIP research travel grant. It funded my travel to Brazil to work with colleagues, go to clinics, and meet with the hospital administrators and nurses in person before launching our research study (Image on the left is of Professor Karen Tabb Dina in a Labor Delivery Recovery Room in a Brazilian Hospital). I was able to build relationships and establish trust with them by being on the ground at the planning stage of our new study. While we can work remotely on our own research or on papers, when we are able to be together so much more is possible. While in Brazil, I was able to go to the clinic and work on the grant proposal to develop a protocol for postpartum depression treatment using cellphones. In the area where I was visiting, women who lived in the favelas (Portuguese for “slum”) must walk for something like 45 minutes to an hour down a hill to receive treatment at the hospital, then walk back. If funded, I would work with the counselors and train them to provide SMS messaging and monthly sessions to women. While I was there, my colleagues and I were also able to analyze data for a new paper on the trajectory of suicidal thoughts during the perinatal period. We were even able to use the time to discuss new research ideas. All in one trip. Normally that would have taken us several months to accomplish that much. I can’t put a price on that type of funding–it’s so valuable–because it creates a path to be able to work in person with collaborators.
How do partnerships such as these benefit your work? Students at Illinois? The world?
These partnerships are beneficial in many ways. For example, academically it allows for the dissemination of findings in other languages. With my colleagues, we are able to translate findings into Portuguese, Spanish, and English. The cross-cultural comparison is also so rich and rewarding. To be able to hear what other clinics are doing, have an exchange between clinicians, and see if we can bring that here. From a training perspective, this semester I have 11 student residents working on our team and this partnership broadens their idea of what research collaboration, dissemination, and cross-cultural comparison can mean across different settings. It also spikes student interest on what they can do outside of the U.S. with a degree in social work. It builds understanding of the differences of power and allows them to observe the world’s shared globalization and epidemiological transition.
Upcoming Postpartum Health Expo (mentioned above)
I.D.E.A (Identifying Depression through Early Awareness) Women’s Coalition will host a free Postpartum Health Expo on January 6, 2018, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. in the Robeson Pavilion Rooms A, B, and C at the Champaign Library (200 West Green Street). View and download the PDF event flyer. Come out and browse the information fair. Listen to speakers on birth, pregnancy, depression, and health policy. Click here to RSVP for free boxed lunch and discussion on postpartum depression at 12:00 p.m.
About Karen Tabb Dina
Professor Karen Tabb Dina is an Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She received her Ph.D. in Social Welfare from the University of Washington in Seattle. Dr. Tabb Dina’s current research focuses on identifying major risk factors associated with depressive disorders, and approaches for identifying and assessing depressive symptoms in health care settings to improve health outcomes for women. She is also an expert collaborator with the Global Burden of Disease, where she assists in estimating population morbidity and mortality for 188 countries. Contact Professor Tabb Dina at ktabb@illinois.edu.
About the IIP Grants Program
Illinois International awards grants to faculty and staff to support internationally-focused events and activities, as well as international travel for conferences. Proposals are now being accepted. Learn more about the IIP Grants.