The Substances and Sexual Health Lab at Yale

Directed by Dr. Ijeoma Opara, Associate Professor of Public Health, in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at Yale School of Public Health.

Mission

The SASH Lab at Yale is focused on conducting and disseminating strengths-based youth substance use and HIV prevention research. Our mission involves creating programs and solutions that are tailored for specific communities and youth of color.
SASH Lab research priorities include:

(1) Reducing substance use/misuse among racial-ethnic minority youth

(2) Preventing STIs and HIV incidence among racial-ethnic minority youth
(3) Developing prevention initiatives and programs that are shaped by the voices of racial-ethnic minority youth

The SASH Lab is guided by 3 Key Principles

HIGHLIGHTING STRENGTHS AND MOVING AWAY FROM A DEFICIT LENS

INVESTIGATING THE ROLE OF RACIAL-ETHNIC PRIDE IN PREVENTION

ACKNOWLEDGING RACE & GENDER DIFFERENCES IN PREVENTION

News

At a young age, Ijeoma Opara realized that speaking up for herself could save her life. Growing up, she witnessed the health inequities faced by her mother and father, who were frequently in and out of the hospital.

Amien is knowledgeable about sexually transmitted infections (STIs), open to serious conversations about sex, has questionable taste in music, and won’t stop talking about his

Yale School of Public Health Assistant Professor Ijeoma Opara had wanted to create a healthy support network for Black teenage girls since she first joined YSPH in

The award is a NIDA DP1 grant for $3.5 million over five years that will allow her to work within predominantly urban

One seemingly unsolvable puzzle during the holidays is cracking the code for the right amount of alcohol to consume. And by right amount, drinking fans

Nine-year-old Bobbi Wilson was the subject of a police complaint in her hometown of Caldwell, New Jersey while she was working

Bobbi Wilson, 9, was hunting for spotted lanternflies, an invasive species, in New Jersey. A neighbor called the police

Funded scholarship

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In grants and contracts from state and federal agencies and foundations to support scholarship on youth substance use and HIV prevention
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Scholarly publications including academic journals, reports, and policy briefs
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Scholarly presentations including keynotes, panels, and research talks

Recent Publications

Pilot Testing a Multiplayer HIV/STI Prevention Videogame Intervention for Black Adolescent Girls: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

Schools’ Neighborhoods and Characteristics: Implications for Standardized Academic Achievement in Passaic, NJ’s Elementary, Middle and High Schools

THE SASH LAB ANNUAL REPORT FOR FALL 2021 – SPRING 2022