Cristina Rodriguez-Hart, PhD, MPH is HIV Epidemiology Liaison within the HIV Surveillance Unit of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Cristina is an Afro-Cuban/White researcher and data ambassador to the community. Dr. Rodriguez-Hart is passionate about improving the wellbeing of populations facing an inequitable burden of HIV/STIs and advocating for social justice principles, public health innovation, and high-quality research within public health institutions. Originally from Los Angeles, CA, Cristina received her MPH from UCLA and her PhD from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She has done research with adult film performers in Los Angeles, sex workers in Nepal, and she implemented new processes to deliver STI test results via text message in Florida. Her PhD dissertation highlighted mechanisms in the pathway from stigma to increased HIV and STIs among sexual and gender minorities in Nigeria. For the past five years, she served as the HIV Epidemiology Liaison within the HIV Surveillance Unit at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. She analyzed data on trends in the HIV epidemic and presented these data out in the community in order to assist providers and community members with HIV planning. She was PI of a study to assess the improvement of viral suppression among transgender Medicaid beneficiaries after obtaining gender-affirming surgery and she serves as a subject matter expert on stigma for the Bureau of HIV. Cristina was recently the Implementing Partner of a NIH-funded implementation science grant focused on mapping multi-level stigma reduction activities at HIV organizations and then developing an implementation science framework to assist organizations to improve the rigor and systematic planning and evaluation of stigma reduction within their facilities. She is currently transitioning to a Senior Community Planner role where she will lead the integration of implementation science into the Ryan White Part A-funded portfolio in NY.