1.    Drug Users' Access to and Use of Treatment
        Services: Ethnographic Research
This research project will provide the New Mexico (NM) Department of Health, which is funding the project, with ethnographic research that will examine the treatment-seeking behavior of illicit drug users in Rio Arriba County, NM. This will lead to in-depth description, analysis and policy recommendations to optimize drug users' access to, and use of, treatment services. The ethnographic research includes in-depth, semi-structured interviews with key informants and observations in the field. The Primary Investigator is Cathleen E. Willging, Ph.D. with the University of New Mexico Medical School, Division of Community Health.
There are two other important aspect to this research: 1) Rio Arriba County is reported to have the highest per capita rate of heroin overdoses of anywhere in the United States, and 2) Rio Arriba County is also reported to have, current and active, inter-generational heroin addiction amongst male family members. This appears to be a phenomenon unique to this area.
 

2.    Epidemiological Contradiction in Latinas' Mental
        and Physical Health Outcomes
I am attempting to prove, or disprove, conclusively that the Epidemiological Paradox (EP) exist. The basic premise is that Latinas' are at similar, or greater, risk of poor mental and physical health outcomes as are other minority women in the United States, but Latinas appear to exhibit mental and physical health outcomes similar to, and in some cases such as depression and cancer, better than EuroAmerican women. In particularly, Latinas should evidence the same, or similar, outcomes as Afro-American women because Latinas have similar or lower socioeconomic status as Afro-American women, and both tend to be co-location and share similar settlement patterns. There is a great deal of literature for and against the existence of EP of Latina health outcomes.
I am also exploring a newly created hypotheses based on historical materialism and collective medicine methodologies. This new hypothesis looks at the collective meaning of community status amongst Latinas vis a vis the EP, particularly in ethnic enclaves and unacculturated life situations. Viewed from the Latinas' communal status perspective the EP may be a moot point.
        I have generated two papers on the topic: one has been accepted for publication in this years Sociology Graduate Student Association's "Southwest Working Paper Series." The second paper is being edited for submission to a medical journal such as Lancet or JAMA. The research is currently unfunded.
 

3.    Diversity Institute
This New Mexico Not-for-profit corporation was created as a research institute which will concentrate on Community oriented Action Research methodologies. Our first project was research to assist homeless women in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It is our belief that, given the opportunity and appropriate tools, homeless women will design interventions that will assist them in permanently escaping the cycle of poverty. The specific research aims are to guide homeless women in a self-directed approach facilitate by women for women. The current project is based on extensive research done by the Chair of the Department of Sociology at the University of New Mexico, Susan Tiano, Ph.D.