Disciplines:
Medicine & Neuroscience / Cognitive Science & PsychologyAs the first African American to complete a PhD in Neurobiology at Duke University, psychiatrist Kafui Dzirasa is pushing the limits in more ways than one. His research is focused on rethinking the framework that currently dictates the way we diagnose, view, and treat mental illness. Through his work, Kafui hopes to reveal links between brain circuit malfunction and symptoms of mental illness, with the ultimate goal of producing neuroelectrical stimulation remedies for these diseases. Kafui is currently an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at the Duke University School of Medicine. In 2008, he was recognized as one of Ebony Magazine’s 30 Young Leaders of the Future and his laboratory has been featured on CBS 60 Minutes.
Kafui has served as an Associate Scientific Advisor for the journal Science Translational Medicine, and he was a member of the Congressional-mandated Next Generation Research Initiative. He currently serves on the Editorial Advisory Board for TEDMED, and the Advisory committee for the NIH Director for the BRAIN Initiative.
Kafui has served on the Board of Directors of the Student National Medical Association: a national organization dedicated to the eradication of health care disparities. Through his service as Chapter President, Region IV Director and National Internal Affairs Committee Chair, Kafui has participated in numerous programs geared towards exposing youth to science and technology, providing health education for underserved communities, and organizing clinics to screen for chronic diseases.
Disciplines:
Public HealthKathryn (Katie) Dickerson completed her B.A. in Brain and Cognitive Sciences from the University of Rochester in 2006. She then joined Dr. Mauricio Delgado's lab at Rutgers University-Newark earning her Ph.D. in Behavioral and Neural Sciences in 2011. She moved to Durham and joined the lab of Dr. Alison Adcock at Duke University where she was a post-doc from 2011-2016. She received a KL2 award in 2016 and was promoted to Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Duke University.
Katie is interested in how reward and motivation influence what we learn and remember. She focuses on studying the dopamine system in healthy humans and clinical populations using a combination of behavioral, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and real-time fMRI methods.
Tracie Locklear, Ph.D.,(left) is a research assistant professor at North Carolina Central University, where she leads the university’s Clinical Research Sciences Program.
By Tracie Locklear, North Carolina Central University, Kathryn Dickerson and Kafui Dzirasa, Duke University
Providers and healthcare companies are more aware than ever of the value of having a diverse and inclusive workforce. But they cannot simply post a job opening and hope applicants from underrepresented groups show up at their doorstep, especially at a time when skilled workers are in high demand and in short supply. Leaders need to go further upstream and play an active role in encouraging people from all backgrounds to pursue careers in biomedicine and healthcare.
Read the full article at Modern Healthcare.
This article was produced by Footnote in partnership with Duke Clinical & Translational Science Institute.
Get in touch about this workBy Andy Ryan and Roslyn Murray of Brown University
Providers and healthcare companies are more aware than ever of the value of having a diverse and inclusive workforce. But they cannot simply post a job opening and hope applicants from underrepresented groups show up at their doorstep, especially at a time when skilled workers are in high demand and in short supply. Leaders need […]
By Chris Whaley & Yashaswini Singh of Brown University
Providers and healthcare companies are more aware than ever of the value of having a diverse and inclusive workforce. But they cannot simply post a job opening and hope applicants from underrepresented groups show up at their doorstep, especially at a time when skilled workers are in high demand and in short supply. Leaders need […]
By Andrew Ryan and David Meyers, Brown University
Providers and healthcare companies are more aware than ever of the value of having a diverse and inclusive workforce. But they cannot simply post a job opening and hope applicants from underrepresented groups show up at their doorstep, especially at a time when skilled workers are in high demand and in short supply. Leaders need […]
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