2018-19 Graduate Students
Henning Ander
Henning is a graduate of Rollins College where he majored in mathematics. He has broad interests within medicine and hopes to tie in clinical research with the study of mental health. He hopes to combine his research interests in psychosocial, physical, and functional forms of medicine. While in the M.A. program, he will work with Professor Dominique Béhague.
Summer Brown
Summer graduated from Vanderbilt University as a student-athlete with a double-major in English and Medicine, Health and Society and a minor in Chemistry. Her research in the BA/MA 4+1 program will focus on analyzing and critiquing literature that effectively and efficiently communicates health information, diagnosis, and treatment plans between a doctor and patient. While in the M.A. program, she will be working with Professor Kym Weed.
Brittany Cox
Brittany graduated from Emory University in 2016 with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Sociology. Her research interests include food deserts in America, specifically, how low fruit and vegetable consumption affects the health of people who live in these areas. She is also interested in learning about effective interventions to promote access to healthy foods and education on how to easily incorporate them into one’s diet. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Dr. David Schlundt.
Mary Claire Dachille
Mary Claire graduated with honors from Vanderbilt University where she majored in Sociology. Her research focuses on the quality of life of injured student-athletes and how there are deeper links of depression and anxiety disorders from traumatic career ending injuries. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Dr. Lauren Gaydosh.
Jennifer Edobi
Jennifer is an American born Nigerian from Union, New Jersey. She graduated from Vanderbilt University as a student-athlete in track and field with a major in Medicine, Health and Society and a minor in Psychology. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Professor Martha Jones.
Samuel Edwards
Samuel graduated from Vanderbilt University where he majored in Medicine, Health and Society. His research focuses on understanding how those with chronic illnesses and those surrounded by chronic illness or trauma perceive what it means to be healthy. While in the M.A. program, he will work with Dr. Hector Myers
Merna El-Rifai
Merna is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where she majored in Medicine, Health, and Society and Psychology. Her research interests include health policy, specifically policies that target health disparities and improve the quality and accessibility of care. Merna is also interested in the mental health of immigrant populations in the US and how acculturation may affect mental health. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Professor Hector Myers.
Sahar Fakhruddin
Sahar is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where she majored in Medicine, Health, and Society and minored in Corporate Strategy. Her research interests include the intersection between immigration and health policy, specifically looking at immigrant health disparities through the lens of biopower and critical race theory. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Professor Kenneth MacLeish.
Briana Gochett
Briana is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where she majored in Medicine, Health, and Society and minored in Psychology. Her research focuses on physician boundary violations, the patient-physician relationship, and professional development resources for healthcare professionals. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Dr. Jonathan Metzl.
Daniel Hecht
Daniel is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where he majored in Medicine, Health, and Society and minored in Chemistry. He is interested in researching how the political leaning of a state impacts the access to mental health resources in low-income communities. While in the M.A. program, he will be working with Professor Martha Jones.
Kylie Hardin
Kylie graduated from Vanderbilt University, where she majored in Medicine, Health, and Society and minored in Biology and English. Her research interests include understanding the influence of different forms of media on the way patients conceptualize and engage with the medical encounter. While in the MA program, she will work with Professor Kym Weed.
Maggie Mang
Maggie is a graduate of Emory University where she majored in philosophy and biology. She has broad interests in critical health studies, philosophy and history of science and medicine, feminist studies, and biopolitics. While in the M.A. Program, she will work with Professor Aimi Hamraie.
Jeremy Mani
Jeremy is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where he majored in Medicine, Health, and Society and minored in Psychology and Spanish. His research interests include an evaluation of mental-health triage checklists for targeting opioid addiction in emergency departments. While in the M.A. program, he will work with Professor Derek Griffith.
Manisha Mishra
Manisha is a graduate of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she majored in Biology and Medical Humanities and minored in Chemistry. Her research interests include the doctor-patient relationship, medical pedagogy, clinical empathy, and bioethics. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Professor Jonathan Metzl.
Jordan Moody
Jordan is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where she majored in Medicine, Health, and Society and Women’s and Gender Studies and minored in French. Her current research focuses on the integration of global health, justice, spirituality and communities of faith, and social activism. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Professor Aimi Hamraie.
Wilfred Morse
Wil is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where he majored in Medicine, Health and Society and Economics. He is currently a full-time healthcare consulting intern at KraftCPAs PLLC. Through his internship, Wil works with hospitals and healthcare institutions to increase efficiency and decrease healthcare costs. While in the M.A. program, he will work with Dr. JuLeigh Petty.
Qianhui (Loro) Pi
Loro is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where she double majored in Anthropology and Medicine, Health, and Society. Her research focuses on the phenomenon of global medical brain drain and ethical policy making. While in the MA program, she will work with Professor Kym Weed.
Rebecca Rahimi
Rebecca is a graduate of California State University, Northridge where she majored in English literature. Her research centers on the roles of storytelling, nostalgia, and home in forming the identities of Iranian Revolutionary migrants and their American-born children. While in the MA program, she will work with Professor Kenneth MacLeish.
Mathias Schreiner
Mathias graduated from Vanderbilt University where he majored in Neuroscience and Russian. His current research uses cost-utility analysis to guide clinical health decision-making. While in the MA program, he will work with Professor Jonathan Metzl in MHS and Professor Ashley Leech in the Health Policy department.
Lauren Taylor
Lauren is a graduate of Clemson University, where she majored in Sociology. Her research interests include social determinants of health, health disparities, medical sociology and health policy. Her current research focuses on evaluating financial burdens and cost-related nonadherence in patients with chronic blood cancers. While in the M.A. program, she will work with Professor Tara McKay in MHS and Professor Stacie Dusetzina in the Health Policy department.
Grayson Thompson
Grayson is a graduate of Vanderbilt University where he majored in Molecular and Cellular Biology and Medicine, Health, and Society. He is interested in studying gun violence and gun control legislation in the Nashville area. While in the M.A. program, he will work with Professor Derek Griffith.
Elsa Young
Elsa graduated from Vanderbilt University where she double-majored in Molecular Biology and Medicine, Health, and Society. Her research interests include the social determinants of malnutrition as well as the intersection of agriculture and nutrition, with a specific focus on Latin America. While in the MA program, she will work with Dr. Kym Weed.