An important reason to celebrate Pride Month this year is the progress made over the last several years in research funding and awareness of health disparities disproportionately impacting the lives of sexual and gender minority persons.

Pride Month is an annual celebration in June for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ+) people.

“Pride Month is a space to celebrate and tell those who may feel isolated that they have somewhere they belong,” explains J. Michael Wilkerson, PhD, MPH, associate professor in Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences at UTHealth School of Public Health.

“This is an opportunity to celebrate where we’ve been and where we’re going,” says Wilkerson. “It serves an important function for young people, who look for role models.”

他补充说，骄傲月是“对这个社区各个方面的强大而重要的庆祝活动，并提供了积极的曝光。”

公共卫生在这个社区的健康和意识中起着关键作用。威尔克森说：“在公共卫生努力中，应定期考虑LGBTQ+人的观点和需求，不仅消除健康差异，而且可以改善每个人的整体健康状况。”

Wilkerson is teaching a summer seminar at UTHealth School of Public Health on the “Health of Sexual and Gender Minority Persons (PHW 1251)” that covers health disparities affecting sexual and gender minorities. The course offers insight into this topic and helps students consider how to serve this community.

The seminar covers definitions, measurements, theory, and intervention development. It features input from students about health disparities. “I learn so much from the students,” he admits. “By selecting and presenting peer-reviewed journal articles focused on any aspect of LGBTQ+ health, students explore topics I never considered, such as how a pediatrician provides health care to a young person with gender dysphoria.”

威尔克森（Wilkerson）对最近的研究资金和性别少数人的认识的近期发展感到乐观。beplay苹果手机能用吗他说：“最初的研究beplay苹果手机能用吗重点是与男性发生性关系的男性预防艾滋病毒。”“现在，除了艾滋病毒资金以外，有一个巨大的转变，包括所有性行为和性别少数派。”

他很高兴看到现在研究的研究问题甚至在一年前beplay苹果手机能用吗都不会被考虑。他解释说：“例如，女同性恋健康以及跨性别者的资金不足。我们还解决了针对跨性别社区的暴力行为的提高率。我们仍然面临挑战。作为我的研究的一部分，我考虑beplay苹果手机能用吗了LGBTQ+物质使用和恢复以及适合年级的性教育，但是有机会研究这些问题。”

NIH research

Wilkerson is also hopeful about recent shift and emphasis on education and overall awareness of these issues.

美国国立卫生研究院(NIH)has a Strategic Plan to Advance Research on the Health and Well-being of Sexual & Gender Minorities.” The NIH’s Sexual & Gender Minority Research Office (SGMRO) is making positive strides to expand research activities in sexual and gender minority populations, remove related systemic barriers, and encourage a robust and engaged research workforce.

SGMRO在未来五年中的估计值将在资助的性行为和性别少数群体相关的研究项目中以及专注于与健康相关的研究的研究人员的数量前所未有的增长。beplay苹果手机能用吗

There is an increase in funded research projects related to sexual and gender minority health, and the hosting of scientific workshops to identify research opportunities in understudied groups.

Wilkerson, who serves as a faculty co-coordinator for the health disparities certificate program in the School of Public Health, understands the overarching considerations that impact these groups. These include ability status, age, race, ethnicity, and income level, as well as life situations such as military service, homelessness, and individuals who go through the foster care system.

Wilkerson’s experience includes community health education for over 20 years, coordinating programs in an AIDS service organization, and research focus on the health disparities of sexual and gender minorities, sex education HIV/STI prevention, and substance abuse.

他补充说：“正在取得积极的进步，但仍有工作要做，我们需要学习很多。”

Home to diverse communities that reflect the future population of the U.S., students at the UTHealth School of Public Health are uniquely positioned to gain hands-on experience on local projects with national significance. Our faculty are pioneering radical solutions for imminent public health problems and provide the tools and resources that will push students to think critically and creatively both in and out of the classroom. This is where academic rigor meets real-world application.

Founded in 1967, UTHealth School of Public Health is home to students and faculty from over 54 countries, who bring new perspectives, experiences, and opportunities to our classrooms. The school has built relationships with city governments, new communities, academic institutions, and industries to better support the needs of culturally complex and diverse areas in which we live work, and play.