Esteban J. Valencia, MPH

Hello!

My name is Esteban (They/Them) and I am a third-year PhD Student in Population and Public Health at the University of British Columbia, working under the supervision of Dr. Patricia Janssen. Presently, my research interests revolve around three related lines of inquiry:

1. How do criminal-legal system policies and practices affect population health outcomes, particularly along axes of race and ethnicity, gender, and geography?
2. How can we leverage epidemiologic and demographic research methods to advance the health and welfare of incarcerated peoples?
3. How can we adapt quantitative research methods to better align with the needs of community-based and community-driven research?

Dissertation Research

My dissertation will examine the complex health and service needs of provincially incarcerated women in British Columbia, and is organized around three aims:

1. To describe how the prevalence of physical, mental health, and substance-use related morbidities have changed over time – particularly in relation to shifting correctional healthcare policy and the COVID-19 pandemic.
2. To characterize the clustering of individual morbidities into unique profiles of health and service needs.
3. To review how centeralizing correctional heatlhcare governance within Ministries of Health can improve the identification of healthcare needs among provincially incarcerated people.

The overall goal of my research is to inform the development of responsive, coordianted support services for women entering and exiting the provincial carceral system. This work is supported by a 2023 CIHR Health Systems Impact Fellowship in partnership with BC Mental Health and Substance Use Services.

Professional Background

Over the course of my professional career, I have worked in both academic research settings and governmental health agencies.

Currently, I serve as a data analyst at the Centre for Gender and Sexual Health Equity (CGSHE). In this capacity, I support research faculty, students, and staff in designing and implementing statistical analysis plans relating to two community-based cohort studies: An Evaluation of Sex Workers Health Access (AESHA) and Sexual Health & HIV/AIDS: Longitudinal Women’s Needs Assessment (SHAWNA). Additionally, I lead the development of CGSHE’s geospatial data infrastructure and support geospatial analyses across both AESHA and SHAWNA cohort studies.

Prior to joining UBC, I earned my MPH in Epidemiology, with a concentration in Maternal and Child Health, from the University of Washington. I also received a graduate certificate in Demographic Methods from the UW Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology.