Samantha Samon, PhD
Medical Doctoral Student
Oregon Health & Sciences University; School of Medicine
She/her
Description: Reporting back environmental health research results to study participants or impacted communities has been an evolving topic with different perspectives. Prior to the 21st century, it was uncommon to report results from exposure studies due to the ethical concerns of reporting back information without clear health guidelines. However, recently several national organizations, including the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), have highlighted the importance of Reporting Back Research Results (RBRR). There are recognized challenges in returning research results. As such, there is a need for research to inform community engagement, guidelines, and additional educational resources for effective communication of research results to not only individual participants and impacted communities but also Public Health Departments, health care providers, and policymakers. This seminar will give a brief overview of the ethical concerns of returning individual and community-level exposure assessment results and current best practices and science communication strategies for returning results.
About the speaker: Samantha became interested in exposure science and environmental chemistry while at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) where she double majored in environmental chemistry and biology (graduation date: May 2017). Following a post-baccalaureate fellow at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), where she assessed the impact of PBDEs on thyroid and steroid hormones in a rat model, she began a PhD in Toxicology at Oregon State University (OSU). At OSU Samantha worked with Dr. Kim Anderson and Dr. Diana Rohlman to study personal chemical exposure assessment utilizing silicone wristband, and methods to communicate those exposure assessment results. The focus of Samantha’s dissertation was utilizing silicone wristbands in disaster scenarios, with an emphasis on Hurricane Harvey. Papers related to Samantha’s dissertation were acknowledged as an August 2022 NIH extramural paper of the month and 2022 Paper of the Year. Following defending her PhD in April 2022 Samantha spent two years as a postdoctoral associate at Duke University working under Dr. Kate Hoffman and Dr. Heather Stapleton. Currently, Samantha just started her first year of medical school at Oregon Health and Sciences University. In the future she hopes to study how environmental toxins impact the virulence of pathogens.
Friday, November 15, 2024, 12:00-1:15pm Eastern
Field Auditorium, Room 1112, Grainger Hall (9 Circuit Drive, Durham, NC)
This seminar will also be presented live via Zoom. Click HERE to register for the link.
The speaker will present remotely via Zoom.