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Kamila A. Alexander, PhD, MSN/MPH, RN

Specialties and Expertise
- Adolescent/Young Adult Care
- Community
- Disparities
- Equity
- Genetics
- Health Behavior
- HIV/AIDS
- Infectious Disease
- Men's Health
- Mental Health
- Public Health
- Quantitative Research Methods/stats
- Resilience/Stress Coping
- Sexual Health
- Social Determinants of Health
- Trauma
- Violence
- Women's Health
Overview
Kamila A. Alexander is an Associate Professor and Associate Director of the PhD and Postdoctoral programs at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. Her research examines the socio-structural determinants of trauma and violence on sexual, mental, and reproductive health outcomes among marginalized young people. As a trained advanced practice public health nurse, Dr. Alexander uses health equity and social justice lenses to examine the complex roles that intimate partner violence, HIV resilience, societal gender expectations, and economic opportunity play in the experience of intimate human relationships. She is recognized for her scientific and community-engaged leadership as a member of the inaugural cohort of Betty Irene Moore Fellowships for Nurse Leaders and Innovators.
Dr. Alexander has been a leader in advancing health equity in interprofessional activities and leadership roles within and outside Johns Hopkins. She is the inaugural Chair of the Nursing Initiative of the Mid-Atlantic Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) Consortium, Lead Faculty for the Violence Working Group at the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, Chair of the HIV/STI Committee of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine, and the Associate Director of the NIH-sponsored Interdisciplinary Research and Training in Trauma and Violence T32 Training Program at Johns Hopkins.
Dr. Alexander earned a B.S. in Exercise Science from Howard University, a BSN and MSN/MPH from Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, and a PhD in Nursing Science from the University of Pennsylvania. Her goals are to not only promote health and prevent morbidities but to lead and create investigations that affect practice and policy on a global scale.
Additional Resources
Below are selected resources. For more information, please see full CV.
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Videos
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Publications/Research
Caplon, A., Alexander, K.A., Kershaw, T., Willie, T.C. (In Press). Assessing Provider-, Clinic-, and Structural-Level Barriers and Recommendations to Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PreP) Uptake: A Qualitative Investigation among Women Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence, Intimate Partner Violence Service Providers, and Healthcare Providers. AIDS and Behavior.
Sherman, A. D. F., Allgood, S., Alexander, K. A., Klepper, M., Balthazar, M., Hill, M., Cannon, C., Poteat, T. C., & Campbell, J. C. (In Press). Transgender and Gender Diverse Community Connection, Help-Seeking, and Mental Health among Black Transgender Women who have Survived Violence: A mixed-methods analysis. Violence Against Women.
Willie, T.C., Alexander, K.A., Caplon, A., Kershaw, T.S., Safon, C.B., Galvao, R.W., Kaplan, C., Caldwell, A., Calabrese, S.K. (2020). Birth Control Sabotage as a Correlate of Women’s Sexual Health Risk: An Exploratory Study. Women’s Health Issues. doi: 10.1016/j.whi.2020.10.003.
Sharps, P.W., Nje-Carr, V., Alexander, K.A. (in press). The Syndemic Interaction of Intimate Partner Violence, Sexually Transmitted Infections, and HIV Infection among African American Women: Best Practices and Strategies. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment, & Trauma. doi: 10.1080/10926771.2019.1667464.
Grace, K. T., Alexander, K. A., Jeffers, N. K., Miller, E., Decker, M. R., Campbell, J., & Glass, N. (2020). Experiences of reproductive coercion among Latina women and strategies for minimizing harm: “The path makes us strong.” Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health. 65(2): 248-256. doi: 10.1111/jmwh.13061.
Alexander, K.A., Willie, T.C., Campbell, J.C., Miller, E., Decker, M.R. (2019). Associations between Reproductive Coercion, Partner Violence and Mental Health Symptoms among Young Black Women in Baltimore, Maryland. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. doi: 10.1177/0886260519860900.
Alexander, K.A., Arrington-Sanders, R., Grace, K.T., Thorpe, R., Doro, E., Bowleg, L. (2019). “Having a Child Meant I had a Real Life”: Reproductive Coercion and Childbearing Motivations among Young Black Men Living in Baltimore. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. Doi: 10.1177/0886260519853400 PMID: 31195889.
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Awards/Honors
2020 Johns Hopkins School of Nursing Dean’s Award – Outstanding Nurse Researcher
2020 Betty Irene Moore Fellowship for Nurse Leaders and Innovators
2018 Johns Hopkins University Catalyst Award, Office of the Provost
2018 New Investigator Award Finalist, Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine
2017 Leadership Program for Women Faculty, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
2017 Student Outreach Resource Center (SOURCE) Faculty Fellow Award for Excellence in Teaching
2015 New Nurse Faculty Fellowship Award, Maryland Higher Education Commission
2012 Wealtha McGurn Research Award, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, Philadelphia, PA
2012 Fontaine Award for Excellence in Fellowship, W. T. V. Fontaine Society, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA