Brittany Smalls, PhD, MHSA, MSHPsych

As a health services researcher with training in anthropology and health psychology, my expertise involves the social and cultural aspects of health behavior. I have leveraged this background and expertise to assess how the social environment affects health behaviors and outcomes for vulnerable populations with complex chronic conditions. My transdisciplinary background and diverse work experiences have prepared me to undertake complex and innovative research focused on vulnerable populations managing cardiometabolic disorders. In addition to my research, I have participated in various research and leadership training activities focused on health disparities and addressing health inequities among vulnerable populations, including being selected as an Advanced Health Disparities Scholar for the AZ-PRIDE program as well as being selected as a Fellow for both the American Psychological Association’s Leadership and Education Advancement Program (APA LEAP) and the NIH/National Medical Association Career Development Program. I am also a current participant in the APA Leadership Development Program and the Faculty Accomplished Community that Cultivates Equity and Success in Science (ACCESS;1R25GM147296-01) Program. These opportunities have provided invaluable skills that have been integral in my role as a mentor and facilitator for career development activities at the University of Kentucky. Such roles include Core Faculty for the UK Center of Health Equity Transformation; Co-Director for the UK CCTS DREAM Scholars Program, which supports underrepresented early-stage investigators and trainees who have committed their careers to health disparities research; and as a mentor for the Community Leadership Institute of Kentucky (CLIK), where I mentor community leaders on how to conduct research and employ community-based programs. In these roles, I provide mentorship and support to those seeking to engage in research and provide guidance on the development of scholarly work (e.g., peer reviewed publications, conference abstracts, grants). My commitment to mentorship has been recognized by my mentees, who nominated me for the UK College of Medicine Academy of Medical Educator Excellence in Medical Educator Award in Mentoring, which I was honored to receive in 2020. In addition to this award, in 2023, I was awarded the5-year NIDDK Investigator Award to Support Mentoring of Early Career Researchers from Diverse Backgrounds (1K26DK138370-01). As for my research, I recently completed NIH K01 award where I have focused my research on utilizing social network analysis to understand the role of social support as it relates to diabetes self-care behaviors among older rural dwelling adults living in Appalachia Kentucky (5K01DK116923-05). My K01 provided me with intimate exposure to the behaviors, attitudes, and decision-making process of older adults, which has resulted in a NIH R01 (MPI: Smalls, Kruse-Diehr; 1R01DK135885-01) that uses a factorial study design to better understand what components of a peer coaching intervention best supports older adults living with T2D in rural Appalachia. At present, my research is focused on using implementation science to leverage community-based interventions to address health disparities related to diabetes-related self-care among vulnerable populations in Kentucky.