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photo of Aimee Afable

Aimee Afable, PhD, MPH

Associate Dean for Community Engagement and Associate Professor
Department of Community Health Sciences

Academic Qualifications:
  • MPH, Tulane University School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine
  • PhD, Tulane University School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine
  • Post-Doctoral Fellowship, University of California, San Francisco

Dr. Afable is Associate Professor of Community Health Sciences, SUNY Downstate School of Public Health. She received her B.A. with Honors in International Relations from Brown University (1995). She received her M.P.H. and Ph.D. in public health from Tulane University (2003). Following her doctoral studies, Dr. Afable was a Post-Doctoral Scholar at the Institute for Health Policy Studies (2005-2007), University of California, San Francisco. For over 14 years, Dr. Afable’s research has critically examined conceptual frameworks used to understand health disparities and health inequities. Her work has documented the declining health advantage with increasing stay among US immigrants, and has questioned the validity of the Healthy Immigrant Paradox. More recently, she is studying the causal role of physiologic stress response in race/ethnic disparities in poor metabolic and perinatal outcomes. Dr. Afable is also dedicated to serving Downstate and our local Brooklyn community. She is an investigator member of the Research Core of the Brooklyn Health Disparities Center. She is a board member of Live Light Live Right, the only tertiary-care childhood obesity program serving Brooklyn. She is evaluation consultant to Kings Against Violence Initiative (KAVI), a youth violence intervention program in Central Brooklyn.

Courses Taught:
  • CHSC 5202: Issues in the Health of Immigrant Populations
  • CHSC 5206: Program Design and Evaluation
  • CHSC 7203: Program Planning: Theory, Practice, and Research
  • CHSC 7306: Advanced Seminar in Urban Health
  • HPMG 5306: Policy Studies in Urban and Immigrant Health
Selected Peer Review Publications
  • Kendall C., Afable-Munsuz A., Speizer I., Avery A., Schmidt N & Santelli J.  Understanding pregnancy in a population of inner-city women in New Orleans: Results of qualitative research, Social Science & Medicine, 2005, 60(2):297-311.
  • Afable-Munsuz A. & Brindis C. Acculturation and the sexual and reproductive health of Latino youth in the U.S.: A literature review. Perspectives in Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2008, 38(4): 208-219.
  • Afable-Munsuz A, Liang SY, Ponce NP and Walsh J.  Acculturation and Colorectal Cancer Screening among Older Latino Adults: Differential Associations by National Origin.  Journal of General Internal Medicine, 2009, 24(8):963-70.
  • Afable-Munsuz A, Ponce N, Perez-Stable E, Rodriguez M. Immigrant generation and physical activity among Mexican, Chinese and Filipino adults in the U.S. Social Science & Medicine, 2010, June, 70 (12): 1997-2005.
  • Afable-Munsuz A, Pasick R, Nguyen K, Perez-Stable E.  Understanding Filipina women’s health orientation and the implications for colorectal cancer screening. Diversity in Health and Care, 2011, 8 (3).
  • Afable-Munsuz AGregorich SEMarkides KSPérez-Stable EJ. Diabetes Risk in Older Mexican Americans: Effects of Language Acculturation, Generation and Socioeconomic Status.  J Cross Cult Gerontol. 2013 Sep;28(3):359-73. doi: 10.1007/s10823-013-9200-y.
  • Afable-Munsuz A, Mayeda ER, Perez-Stable EJ, Haan MN. Immigrant Generation and Diabetes Risk among Mexican Americans: The Sacramento Area Latino Study on Aging. Am J Public Health. 2014 Apr;104 Suppl 2:S234-50. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2012.300969r.
  • Afable AYeh MCTrivedi TAndrews EWylie-Rosett J.  Duration of US Residence and Obesity Risk in NYC Chinese Immigrants. J Immigr Minor Health. 2016 Jun;18(3):624-35. doi: 10.1007/s10903-015-0216-y.
  • Afable AUrsua RWyatt LCAguilar DKwon SCIslam NSTrinh-Shevrin C.  Duration of US Residence Is Associated With Overweight Risk in Filipino Immigrants Living in New York Metro Area.  Fam Community Health. 2016 Jan-Mar;39(1):13-23. doi: 10.1097/FCH.0000000000000086.
  • Afable A, Karingula NS. Evidence based review of type 2 diabetes prevention and management in low and middle income countries. World J Diabetes. 2016 May 25; 7(10): 209–229.
Media Links Complete list of NCBI publications