UCSF Prevention Research Center, 550 16th Street, 3rd Floor, San Francisco, CA (2026)

12/17/2025

http://tiny.ucsf.edu/bAKjVo - Acknowledging Gender and S*x.

Curious about the ins and outs re: Trans inclusive language? Our course helps clinic staff and providers create a welcoming environment for transgender people. It is online and free. This course aims to help healthcare providers improve the overall health and well-being of transgender people.

Objectives:

• Demonstrate how to collect the two-step gender and s*x differentiation questions using appropriate language.

• Demonstrate appropriate language to explain to all patients why they are being asked separate questions about their gender and s*x.

• State at least three reasons the two-step gender and s*x method is essential.

• Describe at least three ways in which cultural competence in transgender care affects health outcomes for this population.

• Correctly identify transgender patients and ensure they receive appropriate medical attention.

12/17/2025

🔍 Behind the Scenes of Groundbreaking HIV Research 🔍

The Methods Core is here to support CAPS researchers every step of the way. Whether it’s planning studies, analyzing data, or choosing the best tools, we help make research stronger.

Here’s how we help:
✅ Sample size planning, study design, and data analysis
✅ Qualitative research design and analysis
✅ Selecting biomedical and behavioral measurements
✅ Data management expertise

Our investigators also collaborate on projects needing deeper technical support.

🎥 Learn more in our YouTube playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEKyx7aLX1STfMZpGyimBrlfyg5-Q5fgX

Learn more about the CAPS Methods Core technical support - https://prevention.ucsf.edu/about/caps-structure-and-cores/methods-core

Sign up for our quarterly CAPS/PRC e-newsletter - https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/fa4ZmmA
UCSF Prevention Science on YouTube https://www.youtube.com//
UCSF Prevention Science Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/school/ucsf-dps/
UCSF Prevention Science FB https://www.facebook.com/CAPS.UCSF/
Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/ucsfprevention.bsky.social

12/15/2025

The OC-Light F***l Immunochemical Test (FIT) is widely used in colorectal cancer screening, and CAPS/PRC researchers studied results from over 35,000 tests performed on nearly 21,000 patients. The test effectively identifies high-risk individuals, resulting in high-yield colonoscopy procedures.

The study provides health systems with a perspective on the colonoscopy demand and performance characteristics of OC-Light as a screening tool in large, diverse patient groups.

Video - Colon Screening in English - https://youtu.be/olp_bd9D-aU

http://ow.ly/KTkm50vmyQ9 - Yield of Colonoscopy After a Positive Result From a F***l Immunochemical Test OC-Light. (M. Somsouk, PRC/SIP)

12/15/2025

https://youtu.be/dkie7E3VnoA TOWN HALL VIDEO - User-Friendly Natural Language Processing (NLP) of Free-text Clinical Notes at UCSF: EMERSE and cTAKES. Featuring: William Brown III Ph.D., DrPH, MA , UCSF, and Shivani Meta MPH, UCSF

GOALS of the Workshop

• Learn about NLP tools for research
• Be introduced to user-friendly NLP tools available at UCSF: EMERSE and cTAKES
• Hear about “Use Cases” of NLP for Social Determinants of Health, Diabetes, and Opioid Research
• Help get access to these tools by attending this seminar
• Discuss and get your NLP questions answered

SCHEDULE
Hour 1 - Overview of NLP tools at UCSF. Part 1 https://youtu.be/dkie7E3VnoA
Hour 2 - "Use Case" presentations. Part 2
https://youtu.be/rEvw0zd6T9I
Hour 3 - Access Walk Through, Discussion, and Questions. Part 3 https://youtu.be/LhvgNM3zkkE

Be sure to like, share, and subscribe.
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Contact us https://prevention.ucsf.edu/contact

William Brown III, Ph.D., DrPH, MA, Dr. Brown is an Assistant Professor of Medicine & Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Co-Directorship of the CAPS Methods Core, Founding Director of the Clinical and Observational Data Excellence (CODE) Lab code.ucsf.edu, Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion of the Bakar Computational Health Science Institute, Co-Director of the Data Science Training to Advance Behavioral and Social Science Expertise (DaTABASE) for Health Disparities Research, Associate Director for the Research Coordination and Data management Unit, Research Coordinating Center to Reduce Disparities in Multiple Chronic Diseases (RCC RD-MCD), and Implementation Science Lead for the Center for Digital Health Innovation. He is also on the Board of Directors for the American Medical Informatics Association and the Vice-Chair of its 2022 conference.

Dr. Brown specializes in developing and implementing biomedical informatics-based methods, tools, and interventions (Big Data, mHealth, SMS/text messaging, Natural Language Processing (NLP), Machine Learning (ML), and Federal Data Standards [FHIR, OMOP, UMLS, etc.]) as applied to clinical and behavioral health disparities research, with underserved communities. Using community-based participatory research principles and informatics, he works to reduce chronic illness (i.e., HIV, diabetes) and health disparities, particularly among vulnerable populations (i.e., African-Americans, Latinos, youth, and LGBT). He has been a PI, Co-I, research scientist, or consultant for many HIV, Diabetes, Opioids grants for NIH, AHRQ, Ford Foundation, NSF, and CDC. Dr. Brown’s CODE Lab leverages big data, data standards, mHealth, social media, data harmonization and integration, NLP, ML, and data visualization to improve health. He implements tools to collect data in real-time, integrate data sources, improve the quality of provider-patient communication, and the responsiveness of the clinical care delivery system to the needs of individual patients. Dr. Brown is a committed instructor and mentor, co-directs the T32 DaTABASE program, directs courses on informatics tools and health disparities research, and conducts one-on-one mentoring of scholars at all levels.

Shivani Mehta, MPH Shivani is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and a member of Dr. Brown’s CODE Lab. She has an MPH from Brown School of Public Health in applied epidemiology and biostatistics. She specializes in applying predictive models and machine learning technology in clinical research informatics and was the associate research scientist at a biotech consulting firm. She has expertise in statistical programming in R, systematic literature reviews, Bayesian methods, patient-centered outcomes research, and meta-analysis.

12/10/2025

https://tiny.ucsf.edu/KjQ4xx - UPLIFTS is a collaborative effort between the UCSF Division of Prevention Science (DPS) and the Alliance Health Project, designed to enhance the ability of Community Health Centers to serve LGBTQ+ communities more effectively.

UPLIFTS is here to help Community Health Centers better serve LGBTQ+ communities—because inclusive care saves lives.

UPLIFTS helps Community Health Centers provide inclusive, culturally competent LGBTQ+ care through training, technical assistance.

📍 Who We Are:�A collaboration between UCSF’s Division of Prevention Science & the Alliance Health Project.�

💡 Let’s Build Inclusive Healthcare Together!�

Visit - https://tiny.ucsf.edu/KjQ4xx
📩 E-mail: caps.web@ucsf.edu

12/08/2025

https://tiny.ucsf.edu/DFGZFv - TOMORROW. Prevention with PURPOSE: An Update on Long Acting Lenacapavir for HIV PrEP. Moupali Das, MD, MPH. Vice President of Clinical Development, HIV Prevention and Virology Pediatrics. Gilead Sciences.

Tuesday, December. 9th, 2025
11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Zoom Meeting. Register Here - https://tiny.ucsf.edu/DFGZFv

Moupali Das, MD, MPH, is Vice President, Clinical Development, HIV Prevention and Virology Pediatrics, at Gilead Sciences. She is an Infectious Diseases/HIV trained physician with background in academic medicine and public health. Since joining Gilead Sciences, she has leveraged her clinical HIV and ID expertise, clinical trial design and epidemiology skills, and passion for coaching and mentoring to build and lead high-performing cross-functional teams in HIV treatment and accountable for the overall development strategy and the conception, design and ex*****on of HIV prevention clinical trials from Phase 1 through Phase 4. She oversees the pediatrics team who are deeply committed to ensuring the development of pediatric formulations for Gilead’s virology medications. She is dedicated to ensuring efficient clinical development and global regulatory approvals to support rapid access to innovative products to help end the HIV epidemic for all. She oversees the pediatrics team who are deeply committed to ensuring the development of pediatric formulations for all Gilead’s virology medications.

Moupali has committed her entire educational and professional career to HIV. After completing her A.B. in Biochemical Sciences at Harvard College, medical school and internal medicine residency training at Columbia University and New York Presbyterian Hospital, she came to University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) for fellowship training in Infectious Diseases, HIV prevention fellowship (is a proud CAPS alumna), and to University of California, Berkeley for her MPH in Epidemiology.

Moupali is a stalwart champion accelerating access to innovative products, such as spearheading adding the adolescent indication to Truvada for PrEP and evaluating remdesivir compassionate use in children and pregnant women. For the past approximately five years, Moupali has led the PURPOSE program and HIV Prevention Clinical Development with passion and empathy, revolutionizing how we develop drugs, innovating in the science and health equity, and laying the groundwork for global access.

Moupali received the 2025 Mani L. Bhaumik Breakthrough of the Year Prize on behalf of Gilead Sciences team members working on lenacapavir, along with scientist Wes Sundquist and global advocate, Yvette Raphael.

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adz2598
https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-lede/the-drug-that-could-revolutionize-the-fight-against-hiv

This presentation is hosted by CAPS/DPS Town Hall and the CAPS Developmental Core.

Town Hall Co-Chairs: Parya Saberi, PharmD and John Sauceda, PhD, MSc, CAPS Dev Core Co-Directors

A CAPS/DPS Town Hall.

12/08/2025

🏳️‍🌈 Dive into understanding LGBTQ+ communities and their unique health needs with our resource!

📚 Whether you're a researcher or service provider, it's crucial to recognize the impact of s*xual orientation and gender identity. Check out our factsheet for insights on why this matters, tips for inclusivity in your work, language essentials, and helpful resources.

🌟 Crafted in collaboration with the University of Maryland Prevention Research Center - University of Maryland School of Public Health.

Click the link below to learn more! 🌈 Link to the factsheet: http://tiny.ucsf.edu/TqpFmv

12/05/2025

https://youtu.be/XqNDYq-BefQ Getting Critical: Centering Racism in HIV and Other Health Equity Research. CAPS/PRC Town Hall, the CAPS Anti-Racism Working Group, and the CAPS VP Program present: Lisa Bowleg, Ph.D.

This talk will delve into what it means to center structural racism in research.

Planned topics of discussion include conceptual and theoretical issues, considering the racial frame that shapes most social and behavioral research, disciplinary limitations, why structural racism is avoided, some methodological issues, and ideas for a way forward. Dr. Bowleg’s presentation will be followed by Q & A.

Lisa Bowleg, Ph.D., is a Professor of Applied Social Psychology in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at The George Washington University (GW), and Director of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Core of the DC-Center for AIDS Research. She is also the Founding Director of the GW Institute for Intersectionality Equity Research and Policy, and President of the Intersectionality Training Institute, two new institutes that will launch in Fall 2021. She is a leading scholar of the application of intersectionality to social and behavioral science research, as well as research focused on HIV prevention and s*xuality in Black communities.

Dr. Bowleg’s mixed-methods research focuses on (1) the effects of social-structural context, masculinity, and resilience on Black men’s s*xual HIV risk and protective behaviors; and (2) intersectionality, stress, and resilience among Black le***an, gay, and bis*xual people. She has served as a principal investigator of four NIH-funded R01 studies.

Tor Neilands, Ph.D., will introduce and chair the session.

12/05/2025

🌟 INSIGHTS Lecture Series: Innovative HIV Research in Non-Traditional Settings 🌟

Are you curious about groundbreaking ways to improve HIV care outside of clinics? Join us for the INSIGHTS Lecture Series by the CAPS Developmental Core! This series highlights innovative HIV research happening in non-traditional settings like pharmacies, mobile vans, patients' homes, and community spaces.

Discover how these approaches are making HIV prevention and treatment more accessible and effective—helping enhance PrEP and ART adherence without relying on clinic visits.

Watch the full playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEKyx7aLX1SSLtuRYLpUXFFvj-bVee-VE

Brought to you by the UCSF CFAR Boost Award.

12/03/2025

http://tiny.ucsf.edu/QTIag2 - Stay informed on the latest in Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Prevention with our research! Discover groundbreaking studies and connect directly with our investigators.

Dive in to learn more about the important work being done.

✅ We Are Family: Testing, Linkage, and Engagement in Care among African American Gay, Bis*xual, and Trans Youth in the House Ball Community. Investigators: Emily Arnold (PI), Parya Saberi, Susan Kegeles, Torsten Neilands, Lance Pollack, Michael Benjamin (CAL-PEP), Gloria Lockett (CA -PEP).

✅ The Bruthas Project: S*xual Health Promotion Counseling Sessions. Investigators: Emily Arnold (Academic PI), Gloria Lockett (Community PI), Susan Kegeles, Don Operario (Brown University), Tor Neilands, Lance Pollack, and Stephanie Cornwell (CAL-PEP).

✅ The LetSync Project: Creating a mHealth Tool for Enhancing HIV Care Engagement in the Dyadic Context. Investigators: Judy Tan (PI), Tor Neilands, Susan Kegeles, Parya Saberi, Emily Arnold.

✅ The PACE Study: Pacing Alcohol Consumption Experiment for Gay Bar Patrons in San Francisco and Oakland, CA. Investigators: Edwin Charlebois (PI), Albert Plenty, Jessica Lin, Alicia Ayala, Jennifer Hecht (San Francisco AIDS Foundation).

✅ DuoPACT: A couples-based approach to improving engagement in HIV care. Investigators: Mallory Johnson (PI); Monica Gandhi, Tor Neilands, Kimberly Koester, Kristi Gamarel.

✅ DuoPACT Stigma Paper. A Mixed-Methods Study of Relationship Stigma and Well-Being Among S*xual and Gender Minority Couples. Investigators: Kristi Gamarel, Willi Farrales, Luz Venegas, Samathan Dilworth, Lara Coffin, Tor Neilands, Mallory Johnson, Kimberly Koester.

✅ Couples-Focused Intervention to Improve Engagement in HIV Care: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial. Investigators: Alyssa Tabrisky, Laura Coffin, David Olem, Tor Neilands, Mallory Johnson.

✅ Texas PrEP Intervention Study. Investigators: Susan Kegeles & Greg Rebchook (P*s), Robert Williams, Scott Tebbetts, Andres Maiorana.

✅ Multilevel HIV Prevention Intervention with MSM in Peru. Investigators: Susan Kegeles, Andre Maiorana, Carlos Caceres (Cayetano Heredia Universityo, Perú).

✅ Chetana-PN: Adapting an Effective Intervention for Enhancing Engagement in HIV Care to Meet the Needs of Key Populations in India. Investigators: Maria Ekstrand, (PI-UCSF), Wayne Steward (PI-UCSF), Dr. Venkatesan Chakrapani (Co-I, Humsafar Trust), Alpana Dange (Co-I, Humsafar Trust), Shruta Rawat (Site PI, Humsafar Trust), Dr. Krishnamachari Srinivasan (Consultant)

We've got updates on our HIV bio-behavioral research that you won't want to miss out on. Sign up for our quarterly CAPS/PRC e-newsletter - https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/NUtGask

Sign up for our quarterly CAPS/PRC e-newsletter - https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/fa4ZmmA
UCSF Prevention Science on YouTube https://www.youtube.com//
UCSF Prevention Science Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/school/ucsf-dps/
UCSF Prevention Science FB https://www.facebook.com/CAPS.UCSF/
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UCSF Prevention Science Home - https://prevention.ucsf.edu/

12/03/2025

Stronger Together: Capacity Building Assistance (CBA) for HIV Prevention & Care at UCSF CAPS!

Our CBA program is designed to support organizations, health departments, and community groups working in HIV prevention and care. ��We provide individualized training, consultation, and skills building to help strengthen programs, improve services, and make a bigger impact in communities.

Who is this for?
📍Health department jurisdictions
📍Community-based organizations
📍HIV service providers
📍Anyone working to improve health outcomes in their community

What do we offer?
✓ Individualized training
✓ Consultation
✓ Demonstration
✓ Skills building
✓ Information sharing
✓ Resource development and sharing (e.g. webinars, summits, and institutes)
✓ Communities of Practice to facilitate opportunities for reciprocal learning among peers.

How to Access Services �CDC-sponsored CBA services: Submit a request through the CBA Tracking System:�https://wwwn.cdc.gov/CTS/CTSMVC/Account/Login�Other Assistance: Submit a request at �https://prevention.ucsf.edu/contact

12/01/2025

The Power of Connection in Medicine.

When it comes to improving health, the value of human connection is often overlooked. Programs like Curry’s Peer Program are changing that – not with big budgets, but with heart.

UCSF researchers found that the program works because of its informal, agenda-free approach. Clients see their peers as friends, not professionals “talking down to them.” This trust helps clients build confidence and feel genuinely cared for – something they often don’t experience in traditional health care settings.

Surprisingly, most clients in the program already had doctors and therapists. What they lacked wasn’t medical care – it was social connection. Unfortunately, many health care providers don’t ask about loneliness or isolation, even though studies show patients are open to talking about it.

Dr. Ashwin Kotwal and other UCSF experts highlight the growing need for social prescribing – connecting patients with community resources like peer programs, support groups, or even volunteering opportunities. One example: a woman in her 90s, struggling with loneliness, found a new sense of purpose after volunteering for the Friendship Line. With that connection, her outlook on life completely changed.

These programs might not have the flash of high-tech solutions, but they’re making a *real* difference in people’s lives.

Let’s start recognizing the power of human connection as good medicine.

Read more about DPS/CAPS/PRC work on loneliness and isolation here: https://magazine.ucsf.edu/prescription-loneliness

Social Connections and Aging Lab - https://socialconnectionsandaging.ucsf.edu/

UCSF Prevention Research Center

12/17/2025

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