QMC Spring 2023 Speaker Series: Presentation by Paul Wesson (Zoom)

Friday, February 24, 12:00pm – 1:00pm: Paul Wesson, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco

Dr. Paul Wesson is an epidemiologist focused on quantifying the health burdens of (and disparities related to) hard-to-reach and socially marginalized populations, particularly as they relate to infectious diseases. His research expertise includes developing and using data driven methods for sampling hard-to-reach and “hidden” populations, population size estimation methods, and using advanced epidemiologic and statistical techniques to study the social determinants of health. He sees his research as existing at the nexus of infectious disease, data science, and social epidemiology; as such, he incorporates theories and principles from social epidemiology to inform and guide his study designs and analyses (e.g. intersectionality, minority stress theory).

Specifically, as an HIV researcher, his research agenda relates to the unique challenges of sampling hard-to-reach populations for HIV surveillance, and leverages information from the sampling process (and survey data) to generate estimates of the population size. Valid estimates of the population size are a key component of biomedical informatics and epidemiological analyses (providing a denominator for the population at risk) and inform how and where limited public health resources should be targeted. As part of his research on population size estimation, he has also developed novel population size estimation methods to correct for known biases. Additionally, Paul is interested in extending his research to include geo-spatial analysis and clinical data to further examine contextual and structural determinants of disparities in health outcomes.

Read more about Paul Wesson on his personal website.

Register