Pilar Hernandez-Con, M.D., MSCE, a graduate student in the Department of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy in the University of Florida’s College of Pharmacy, has been awarded a National Institute on Drug Abuse diversity supplement grant exceeding $200,000. This grant supports her dissertation research on social determinants of health, or SDoH, in individuals with hepatitis C virus, or HCV, infection and those co-infected with HCV and HIV. The supplement was awarded to a parent R01 grant led by Associate Professor Haesuk Park, Ph.D.
The ongoing opioid crisis in the United States has exacerbated the syndemic of HCV and HIV, particularly among people who inject drugs. However, more than 50% individuals with chronic HCV and about 16% of individuals with HIV are unaware of their infection, contributing to the continued spread of these viral infections. Thus, Pilar’s study aims to address this issue by developing and validating a polysocial risk score, or PsRS, using natural language processing and incorporating the PsRS into a prediction model to enhance the identification of individuals with HCV and HCV/HIV co-infection.
Vulnerable populations including individuals with substance use disorders, homelessness, incarceration, and limited health care access are disproportionately affected by the HCV infection and HCV/HIV co-infection. Given that SDoH can drive high-risk behaviors and hinder access to preventive measures and health care systems, effectively integrating SDoH into targeted screening strategies is critical to reducing the prevalence of these infections and mitigating their long-term negative outcomes.
Pilar’s research is poised to make significant contributions to the understanding of the HCV/HIV syndemic and will be instrumental in guiding public health interventions aligned with the World Health Organization’s goal of eliminating HCV and HIV infections by 2030.