Engaging Youth in Mental Health Approaches in Kenya and the U.S.

Dr. Fernando Wagner

Professor

UM School of Social Work

Dr. Fernando A. Wagner is a professor at the University of Maryland School of Social Work. He is interested in the development of methods, knowledge, and community-based participatory interventions promoting wellness and public mental health, and has led research in the U.S. and Mexico for more than 35 years.

Dr. Wagner earned his Doctor of Science degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health (Mental Hygiene, 1999), where he also completed a year of postdoctoral training in psychiatric epidemiology (2000), and a Master of Public Health (1993). He has received important awards, such as the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship (1992-93), the Morton Kramer Award (Johns Hopkins University, 1998), the WHO/CPDD/NIDA International Award (2002); as well Faculty of the Year (2007,) Investigator of the Year (2008), and the Golden Apple Award (2010) during his tenure at Morgan State University from 2002 to 2017.

Inducted to the National Public Health Honor Society (2007), he is first author or coauthor in prestigious scientific journals such as the American Journal of Public Health, Neuropsychopharmacology, the American Journal of Epidemiology, Drug and Alcohol Dependence, Addictions, and Preventive Medicine.

Dr. Peter Memiah

Associate Professor

UM School of Medicine

Dr. Peter Memiah is an associate professor in the division of epidemiology and prevention at the University of Maryland and the Director for Quality Improvement for CIHEB. He is also a fellow in the HIV Intervention Science Training Program (HISTP), an NIH-funded multidisciplinary training program seeking to develop and facilitate the growth of scientists conducting technology driven, HIV-related dissemination, and implementation research. He has more than 60 publications in peer-reviewed journals.

An internationally recognized expert in Gender-Based Violence, Continuous Quality Improvement and Adolescent Health. As a consultant, he has led evaluation planning processes for nonprofit, private, and public agencies, including evaluations for UNICEF on Adolescent and Youth HIV/Sexual Reproductive Health; Norwegian Lutheran Mission on health care capacity-building project for improved public health services; Kenya Ministry of Health on Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission (eMTCT) implementation; and United Nations Trust Fund on Gender-Based violence. He has led the development of several country guidelines including Development of the Kenya QI Framework and curriculum on HIV/MNCH and the Kenya eMTCT Strategic Plan 2016-2021.

Dr. Memiah has contributed towards the development of HIV Quality Improvement policies in different countries. He has served as the Principal investigator of several grants addressing adolescent health, workforce development in low- and middle-income countries, and the intersection between HIV and non-communicable diseases. He is also currently leading the nationwide evaluation of the differentiated care service delivery model and its cost-effectiveness for Kenya Ministry of Health.