Raminta Daniulaityte, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at the College of Health Solutions, ASU. Native of Lithuania, she completed her graduate education in anthropology and social work at the University of Alabama. She conducted her dissertation research in Guadalajara, Mexico. Dr. Daniulaityte joined ASU in 2020. She has extensive experience conducting National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)-funded research, including community-based, natural history studies to characterize trajectories of illicit drug use, mixed methods research to inform epidemiology of emerging drug use trends, and web-based research to track changing practices of cannabis, novel synthetic opioid and other drug use. Dr. Daniulaityte has experience in leading interdisciplinary collaborations to advance innovation and timeliness in drug use epidemiology research.

rdaniula@asu.edu

Ph.D. Student  - Population Health (Third Year)

Research Interests:  Harm reduction, stigma, factors impacting changes in patterns of drug use

Kaylin is passionate about improving the lives of  people who use drugs. Her educational background is in forensic science and  emergency management. She also has experience working as an autopsy technician with the Maricopa County Office of the Medical Examiner where she was inspired to pursue a PhD in Population Health to research ways to help prevent opioid overdoses after experiencing the third wave of the opioid epidemic first-hand. Currently, Kaylin's research at the lab is centered on harm reduction in the form of drug checking services. 

 krsweene@asu.edu

Ph.D. Student - Population Health (Second Year) 

Research Interests: Opioid use trends in Phoenix, harm reduction, stigma, recidivism rates in incarcerated individuals

Madeline's educational background is in psychology and auditory and language neuroscience. She also has experience working as a behavioral health technician, as well as work through her more recent roles as a Jail/Opioid transition specialist for Maricopa County Jails and neuropsychological testing. Her focus for her PhD is to better understand gaps within levels of care for individuals who use substances and how to implement preventative measures for recidivism. Currently, Madeline work at the lab centers on understanding how  social stigma impacts individuals who use methamphetamine and opioids.

mlhooten@asu.edu

Ph.D. Student - Population Health (Second Year)

Research Interests: Health policy, health advocacy, nursing and substance use disorders

Patricia is a PhD Student, graduate research assistant, as well as  a registered nurse.  She earned her associates degree in nursing from Central Arizona College, her BSN and MSN from Northern Arizona University and is now pursuing a PhD in Population Health at Arizona State University. Patricia has experience in teaching undergraduate and entry level nurses and continues to work  as a bedside nurse while pursuing her current degree. During her time working as a bedside nurse in the hospital with medically compromised psychiatric patients, she developed a passion for working with patients with a substance use disorder. As a result, she decided to pursue a PhD in Population Health and work as a member of Social Determinants of Drug Use research team. She hopes to utilize her experience and education to work in academia as well as in health policy and advocacy.

pltimmon@asu.edu

Master's Student - Health Informatics (M.S.) (UPDATE: Lance graduated in May 2023!) 

Research Interests: Fentanyl contamination, factors contributing to opioid overdose

Lance is passionate about applying data analytics to improving population health outcomes. Currently, Lance is actively engaged in substance use disorder (SUD) studies while pursuing a Master of Science in Health Informatics. His published work includes “Drug overdose deaths in Arizona during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic” and “Characteristics of non-pharmaceutical fentanyl-related overdose deaths in Arizona, July 2019 – June 2020”, both components of Arizona’s State Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System April 2021 Report, as well as “Tramadol in seized drugs containing non-pharmaceutical fentanyl: crime lab data from Ohio, USA”. Most recently, Lance’s SUD studies have focused on fentanyl contaminated stimulants, specifically methamphetamine and cocaine.

lruther@asu.edu

Undergraduate Student  (UPDATE: Elizabeth graduated in May 2022!) 

Research Interests: Substance use and HIV, ways to improve medical service delivery for people who use drugs

Elizabeth is a premedical student pursuing a degree in Health Sciences at Arizona State University.  In addition to working in the CBRD lab, she also works as an EMT where she was inspired to be involved in substance use research surrounding the intersection of HIV and substance use disorders. Elizabeth hopes to find ways to improve the field of psychiatry and substance use as a  future physician.

ejpalme3@asu.edu