Our Team

Janet received her Masters of Education from Stanford University and trained at the Center for AIDS Prevention Studies at UCSF. Janet went to Guatemala on a Fulbright Scholarship and then became a fellow at the CDC outpost at the Universidad del Valle studying the TB and HIV pandemics in rural Guatemala. 

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In many ways Janet was the heart of CUSH. She will be greatly missed by the whole CSUH team.

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Full bio

As a psychiatrist and epidemiologist, Alex brings quantitative methods to bear on policy-oriented research at the intersection of substance use, mental health, HIV, and the carceral system. He is passionate about harm reduction and health justice and is engaged with projects to understand and overcome clinical and structural barriers to care for marginalized populations in San Francisco, nationwide, and internationally.

Grace received her Bachelor of Public Health from the University of Waterloo and MPH in Epidemiology from the University of Toronto. She is passionate about health equity and social determinants of health and previously worked at the Public Health Agency of Canada analyzing Canadian youth acute toxicity deaths using coroner and medical examiner data. In her free time, Grace enjoys trying new restaurants and travelling.

Samir is a recent graduate of Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo where he received a Bachelors in Community and Public Health and a minor in Biology. He has a background in social work and increasing health access among immigrant populations in the Central Coast, and is now interested in applying a harm reduction theory to increase health equity among local communities. In his spare time, Samir likes to grab some fresh air and get lost on hiking trails, devour a book on the beach, or do some food exploration with his dog Simba.

Kat is a recent graduate of Boston University, where she received a Bachelors of Science in Human Physiology with a minor in Public Health. She has a background in maternal and child health, and is excited to switch focus to harm reduction and academic detailing. In her free time, Kat is often found channeling her inner grandma by crocheting or recklessly spending money to grow her novel collection.

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Rebecca is a board-certified family nurse practitioner, who completed her Master’s of Science in Nursing at UCSF in 2014. She has made her professional home at the intersection of HIV prevention, harm reduction, and primary care, and is energized by her community on a daily basis. Rebecca lived in Spain when she was 14 with her family and blames her parents for her ongoing wanderlust.

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Ella graduated from UC Berkeley with a BA, double majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies and Social Welfare. Her previous experience includes working in an inpatient psychiatric facility as a mental health case worker and shift supervisor where she provided substance use and mental health counseling for patients under LPS conservatorship. Ella has experience working in social movements where she worked in political education and provided dyad-model peer counseling with community organizers. Ella is interested in pursuing a career in public health research and mental health work and is dedicated to bettering the health of our substance-using and unhoused populations. In her free time Ella loves to bike, attend movie screenings and free concerts in the Bay, and cook!

Dr. Leslie Suen (she/her) is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the UCSF Division of General Internal Medicine at San Francisco General Hospital. Dr. Suen works as a primary care and addiction medicine physician and health services researcher. Her research focuses on using implementation science to improve health systems, policies, and outcomes for people with substance use disorders.

John is a research clinician at CSUH. He earned his Masters of Nursing at Samuel Merritt University in 2013 and is a board-certified family nurse practitioner. His interests include working with marginalized populations to improve their outcomes regarding substance use and access to health care. He also works to reduce the stigma associated with drug use. John has a Miniature Pinscher, Petal, who is the apple of his eye.

Dr. Ayesha Appa is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of HIV, Infectious Diseases, and Global Medicine at San Francisco General Hospital and a clinician investigator triply board-certified in Infectious Diseases, Addiction Medicine, and Internal Medicine. Her research program is centered on the integration of care for substance use disorders and HIV/serious infections, with an emphasis on implementing practical healthcare models.

Finn graduated from UCSF with a M.S. in Advanced Public Health Nursing. They've originally from Philadelphia, where a community of HIV activists introduced them to harm reduction. Finn continues to stay involved in harm reduction work in the Bay Area and is especially passionate about wound care, STI prevention, and peer-led public health interventions. When not working, Finn is either knitting fisherman's sweaters while listening to horror fiction podcasts or is off in the redwoods practicing traditional archery and going on bike camping adventures.

Allie recently graduated from UC Berkeley with a B.A. in Anthropology and a minor in Public Policy. Her research interests include medical anthropology, poverty, and public health-- topics she hopes to explore through her work on the Harness and HiNT studies. Allie hopes to use her time at CSUH to make a positive impact on San Francisco communities and to explore her own passion for health research. In her free time, Allie enjoys backpacking, taking pictures of her cat Jelly Bean, and making music playlists for every mood.

Fareshta is a recent graduate from UC Berkeley's MPH program, specializing in Infectious Disease & Vaccinology. She previously worked with the Virginia Department of Health on COVID-19 containment and interned with CPHR on their CDC-funded National HIV Behavioral Surveillance studies, focusing on the MSM community. Her interests lie in applied epidemiology and community engagement to address infectious diseases, particularly amongst marginalized communities, with a strong focus on social change through harm reduction principles and trauma-informed care. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, cooking, and exploring new cafés.

Phillip is a board-certified and practicing internist, infectious disease specialist, and addiction medicine specialist. He attended or trained at Brown University, Columbia University, the University of California San Francisco, and the University of Washington.

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Full bio

Vanessa McMahan, PhD is a Research Scientist at CSUH. She received her doctorate and Master of Science from the University of Washington in Health Services. She is dedicated to harm reduction and evaluating programs to improve well being among marginalized communities. Previously, Vanessa coordinated PrEP studies among people who use methamphetamine and has volunteered with syringe services programs since 2000.

Emily graduated from UC Berkeley with BAs in Molecular & Cell Biology and English, and she received her MPH from the University of San Francisco. Before joining CSUH, Emily worked in supportive housing where she found a passion for harm reduction and end-of-life care. In her free time she likes to read in the park and dance in her kitchen. 

Judy received her BS in Human Science from Georgetown University and MPH in Epidemiology/Biostatistics from UC Berkeley. She has a passion for health equity, which threads through her previous work in youth opioid prevention and environmental health as well as her current work in harm reduction. When she is not working, Judy enjoys sourdough baking and any type of physical activity, most recently pickleball.

Brian is a San Francisco and Bay Area native. He received a BA from UC Berkeley, an MPH from Harvard, and a Doctor of Occupational Therapy from USC. When not he’s not at work he likes to write. Maybe someday all his writing will culminate in a book! But just maybe.

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Andrew received his BS in Public Health from San Francisco State University as well as a BA in Music. He currently works at CSUH as a Recruitment Assistant. He plans to pursue a Master's in Public Health and continue his work towards health equity and social justice. In his free time, he enjoys live music, all things pop culture and brewing kombucha at home.

Jennifer is born and raised in San Francisco and graduated with her BS in Global Public Health with minors in Biology and Health Humanities from the Dominican University of California in Spring 2023. She is passionate about health outcomes in marginalized communities and is interested in community based participatory research.  During her undergraduate career, she had worked with a variety of local community organizations, getting involved in supporting harm reduction and peer counseling programs. After graduating she participated in the Summer HIV/AIDS Research Program (SHARP) at the San Francisco Department of Public Health & UCSF and was most recently a Population Health Fellow under the Community Health Equity & Promotion Branch. In her free time, you can find her cooking, baking or trying the newest food/boba craze in the bay area!

Iddoshe grew up in Utah and Kentucky and after graduating from Harvard College, spent several years working in Japan and the UK, most recently in market research for a major social media app. In 2023, she relocated to the Bay Area to shift to a career in healthcare and is especially interested in addressing racial disparities in health outcomes. When not at CSUH, Iddoshe teaches prenatal yoga and volunteers as a doula at San Francisco General Hospital. 

John earned an AS in Business from Cape Cod Community College and a BA in Sociology from San Francisco State University. Since joining the San Francisco Department of Public Health in 2004, his work has centered on community-based outreach and recruitment, particularly in HIV prevention and substance use research through a harm reduction approach.

John is currently completing nursing prerequisites and has a strong interest in pursuing pediatrics and end-of-life care. In his free time, he enjoys exploring films from the Telluride Film Festival, hiking in Tahoe, and being a general sun worshipper.

Xochitl received her BA in Health and Societies and Master of Public Health from the University of Pennsylvania. Previously, she worked as a Research Coordinator for Penn’s Center for Public Health Initiatives, contributing to various projects on digital health privacy, adolescent health, and harm reduction. In her free time, Xochitl enjoys outdoor activities and Latin dancing.

Nicky is a Research Scientist at CSUH. She received her doctorate from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. She is interested in using applied epidemiology to help develop and advocate for policy change and interventions that support the health of patients who have been marginalized by the current state of healthcare infrastructure, in particular those who have suffered from substance use disorders, HIV, tuberculosis, justice-involvement, and homelessness. In addition to continuing to pursue community-based participatory research, she hopes to work in collaboration with community and political leaders to design and implement effective policy interventions that target the root causes of health disparities.

Milo is a Senior Research Scientist at CSUH and an Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health Systems at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). He obtained his Ph.D. in Epidemiology and Translational Sciences at UCSF and his MPH in Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of California Berkeley.

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Full bio

Born and raised in San Francisco, Sophia Tavasieff has spent the last few years pursuing her BA in Sociology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. Having lived in two cities with acute housing crises and overdose epidemics, Sophia is very passionate about harm reduction practices and systematic change that respects and uplifts our unhoused neighbors, and is thrilled to be channeling that passion into her work as a Recruitment Assistant with the Center on Substance Use and Health. She is currently pursuing her Community Heath Worker Certificate at CCSF and looks forward to pursuing an MSW or MPH in the coming years. When Sophia is not at CSUH, she enjoys performing comedy, clown, improv, and dance; gardening; spending time with her many cats; and exploring vegan and vegetarian restaurants around the city. 

Petal’s research interests include determining canine tolerability of squeak versus crinkle toys and cheese versus other treats. Her favorite toy is a round, squeaky gingerbread man who lost his nose on the first day. In her spare time, Petal likes to lick her Dad’s head.

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