Departmental Affiliations
Primary
Center & Institute Affiliations
Amy Knowlton, ScD ’97, MPH '92, researches how marginalized African Americans’ relationships and support networks affect their community’s health and well-being.
Contact Info
624 N. Broadway, Hampton House 286
Baltimore
Maryland
21205
US
410-502-4333
Research Interests
Social support networks; informal/ unpaid caregiving relationships; HIV/AIDS; illicit and opioid drug use/addiction; vulnerable, disadvantaged, under-resourced; Black/ African American race/ethnicity; community based health research; health disparities; mental health and distress; adherence to medical regimens; emergency medical services utilization; community-based sobering and stabilization services; palliative and end-of-life care preferences; patient-caregiver-provider engagement, shared decision making and collaborative care; advanced care planning; home- and community-based models of care; self-management of chronic conditions; quality of care; patient-centered, family-focused healthcare; mindfulness-based intervention
Additional Links
Experiences & Accomplishments
Education
ScD
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
1997
MPH
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
1992
BA
Beloit College
1986
Overview
Using a community strengths-based orientation important for health equity, my research focus is the role of support networks and unpaid caregiving relationships in under-resourced communities' health behaviors and well-being. Most of my work has focused on care of (stigmatized) Black persons living with HIV who use drugs and often experience chronic pain. Major interests are structural approaches to linking persons with co-occurring complex conditions to resources and community-based care. Long-term goals are to strengthen main relationships to foster collaborative management of health conditions and promote Black community norms and capacity for health, and health equity.
My work has identified intervenable aspects of relationships predictive of improved health behaviors and outcomes among persons with serious conditions and their caregivers. A prior academic-interagency collaborative study trained paramedics to identify substance using EMS patients and link them to community-based care. Currently I am collaborating on mindfulness-based interventions tailored to Black caregiving relationships.
My work has identified intervenable aspects of relationships predictive of improved health behaviors and outcomes among persons with serious conditions and their caregivers. A prior academic-interagency collaborative study trained paramedics to identify substance using EMS patients and link them to community-based care. Currently I am collaborating on mindfulness-based interventions tailored to Black caregiving relationships.
Select Publications
Recent peer-reviewed publications
- Mitchell MM, Hansen ED, Tseng TY, Shen M, Rushton C, Smith T, Hutton N, Wolfe J, Bone L, Keruly J, Wissow L, Catanzarite Z, Knowlton AR. Correlates of Patterns of Health Values of African Americans Living With HIV/AIDS: Implications for Advance Care Planning and HIV Palliative Care. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2018 Jul;56(1):53-62.
- Hansen ED, Mitchell MM, Smith T, Hutton N, Keruly J, Knowlton AR. Chronic Pain, Patient-Physician Engagement, and Family Communication Associated With Drug-Using HIV Patients' Discussing Advanced Care Planning With Their Physicians. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2017 Oct;54(4):508-513.
- Denison JA, Mitchell MM, Maragh-Bass AC, Knowlton AR. Caregivers' Support Network Characteristics Associated with Viral Suppression among HIV Care Recipients. AIDS Behav. 2017 Dec;21(12):3599-3606.
- Mitchell MM, Nguyen TQ, Maragh-Bass AC, Isenberg SR, Beach MC, Knowlton AR. Patient-Provider Engagement and Chronic Pain in Drug-Using, Primarily African American Persons Living with HIV/AIDS. AIDS Behav. 2017 Jun;21(6):1768-1774.
- Aboumatar H, Naqibuddin M, Chung S, Adebowale H, Bone L, Brown T, Cooper LA, Gurses AP, Knowlton A, Kurtz D, Piet L, Putcha N, Rand C, Roter D, Shattuck E, Sylvester C, Urteaga-Fuentes A, Wise R, Wolff JL, Yang T, Hibbard J, Howell E, Myers M, Shea K, Sullivan J, Syron L, Wang NY, Pronovost P; BREATHE Study Patient Family Partners Group. Better Respiratory Education and Treatment Help Empower (BREATHE) study: Methodology and baseline characteristics of a randomized controlled trial testing a transitional care program to improve patient-centered care delivery among chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients. Contemp Clin Trials. 2017 Nov;62:159-167.
Projects
Peer and Family-Based Social Support For HIV Treatment Adherence in South Africa
Beacon Study: Informal Caregiving & Medical Adherence among HIV+ Injection Drug Users
BEACON