Hansen, 1 of 5
Barbara E. Hansen, M.A.
Department of Sociology Permanent Address
1720 2nd Ave South 2030 11th Ave S, #2CD
Birmingham, AL 35294 Birmingham, AL 35205
(615) 397-6224
Current Position
August 2014 – Research Assistant, University of Alabama at Birmingham
present Cannabidiol/Epilepsy Study, Mentor: Magdalena Szaflarski, Ph.D.
Education
2014 – Ph.D. Graduate Student
presentUniversity of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
Medical Sociology Program – degree anticipatedSpring 2017
CIRTL Associate Certificate earned – August 4, 2015
2014M.A.,Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN
Field of Study: Sociology
Master’s Thesis: Weight Loss Surgery: A Study in Stigma and Deviance
1989B.S., Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN Field of Study: Psychology (minors in Sociology, Modern European Studies)
Research Interests
Epilepsy and Marijuana – Social Determinants of Health
Pre-doctoral research interests include:
- Social Determinants of Health (SDH), caregiver burden
- Social support networks of study patients and/or caregivers
- Theoretical focus: The intersection of the SDH and Caregiver Burden in Intractable Epilepsy in the Alabama CBD study
- Methodology focus: quantitative
Post-doctoral research interests will include:
- Stigma associated with weight loss methods and subsequent (or consequential)
perceived loss of social support.
- Sociology of obesity
- Sociology of medical marijuana
- Theoretical focus: Stigma, fundamental cause, SDH, habitus and fields
Scholarship
Publications
*Last name changed from Pennington to Hansen in 2014
2015Szaflarski, Jerzy, Magdalena Szaflarski, and Barbara Hansen. 2015. “1. Epidemiology of Nonepileptic Seizures.”Gates and Rowan’s Nonepileptic Seizures, 4th EditionCambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK (Under contract, Summer 2015)
2010 Pennington, Barbara. 2010, November 20. “Every Child Deserves a Loving, Stable Family.” The Tennessean p.13A.
Works in Progress
Hansen, Barbara. “Weight Loss Surgery Stigma”
Hansen, Barbara, Magdalena Szaflarski, and Jerzy P. Szaflarski. “Psychogenic Non-epileptic Seizures: Do Social Variables Matter?”
Awards
2015 CIRTL Associate Certificate earned (Center for Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning through National Science Foundation). Scholarship awarded through UAB Graduate Studies department. Currently completing requirements for certificate for CIRTL Practitioner.Scholarship awarded.
Professional Activities
Conference Presentations
2015“Socioeconomic Characteristics of Patients in the Alabama Study of Cannabidiol (CBD) Use to Treat Epilepsy” with Magdalena Szaflarski, Jerzy P. Szaflarski, and Martina Bebin (scheduled for 12/6/2015)
American Epilepsy Society National Conference, Philadelphia, PA
2015“How Vulnerability Impacts Health”
Introduction to Health Disparities for Medical Students Conference
UAB School of Medicine, Birmingham, AL
2015“Epilepsy, Cannabis, and the Social Determinants of Health” with Magdalena Szaflarski, Jerzy P. Szaflarski, and Martina Bebin.
Southern Sociological Society Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA
2015“PNES: Do Social Variables Matter?” with Magdalena Szaflarski and Jerzy P. Szaflarski.
Minority Health Disparities Conference, Birmingham, AL
2014“Weight Loss Surgery: A Study in Stigma and Deviance”
Southern Sociological Society Annual Conference, Charlotte, NC
2013“Obesity and SES: An Inverse Relationship”
Middle Tennessee State Social Symposium, Murfreesboro, TN
Session Organizer/Discussant
2015Vulnerable Populations
Presenter and Panel Moderator
Introduction to Health Disparities for Medical Students Conference
UAB School of Medicine, Birmingham, AL
2015Current Topics in Mental Health
Presider and Session Organizer(with Magdalena Szaflarski)
Southern Sociology Society, Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA
2015Sociology of Mental Health –
Presider and Session Organizer(with Magdalena Szaflarski)
Southern Sociology Society, Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA
Research Experience
August 2014 -Research Assistant
PresentCannabidiol/Epilepsy Study, UAB Department of Neurology
Assisting with data collection and analysis for CBD/Epilepsy study,quantitative face-to-face interviews of adults and children, database management, assisted in creation of survey protocols, database design (SPSS)
Teaching Experience
2012-2014Graduate Teaching Assistant, MTSU, Murfreesboro, TN
Social Problems
Social Statistics
Criminology
Introduction to Sociology
Violence in the Family
Sociological Theory
2000 - 2007Instructor, Tennessee Department of Children’s Services
Parents as Tender Healers (PATH)
Effective Parenting
Violence in the Family
Child and Family Welfare
Lifebook
1989 - 1991Instructor, Yamanashi English School, Kofu, Yamanashi, Japan
English as a Second Language
Professional Service and Affiliations
Current Memberships:
- Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society
- Alpha Kappa Delta International Sociology Honor Society
- American Sociological Association
- International Sociological Association
- Southern Sociological Society
- Mid-South Sociological Association
Prior Work Experience
2007-2014Program Manager – Adoptions
Centerstone of Tennessee, Nashville, TN
This position was with the therapeutic foster care program. Duties included: recruiting adoptive families for children in foster care whose parental rights have been terminated, working with the child and family with issues surrounding the blending of their new family, finalization of adoption, post-adoption services, preparation of legal documents, attorney contact, and court proceedings. I also performed a program evaluation of the adoption portion assessing strengths, needs, and outcomes. I functioned as liaison with the Department of Children’s Services.
2000-2007Adoption Specialist
TN Department of Children’s Services, Mid-Cumberland, TN
The position began as a Case Manager at the Center for Adoption, which was a partnership with Family and Children’s Services, meeting the specific needs of adoptive children in state guardianship. I was trained in adoption specific recruitment and child welfare case management in how it related to permanency. My responsibilities included all phases of case management, Lifebook work, recruitment, PATH training for potential families and follow up counseling with the family culminating in the adoption finalization and the child’s exit from custody. I left because of an opportunity with Centerstone where I could design an adoptions program that met the therapeutic needs as well as permanency for children in custody with special needs.
1997-1998QA Liaison and Elder Education
Health 123 Platinum, Nashville, TN
My responsibilities included preparing and giving presentations to senior citizens regarding Health 123 Platinum, Tennessee’s first Medicare HMO. Duties included: booking location, presentations, and follow-up with clients. I also became QI liaison to Vanderbilt Health Plan (VHP) ensuring quality of our operations and adherence to policy and disclosure. I left because the contract ended and was not renewed.
1993-1997PASARR Coordinator
First Mental Health, Nashville, TN
This position required my managing the North Carolina contract for Pre-Admission Screenings and Annual Resident Reviews (PASARR) of people entering or living in nursing facilities in my contracted state. Everyone entering a NF is screened for mental illness and/or intellectual disability. Those identified as needing services received an on-site evaluation with our contracted providers. I trained the providers in our documentation and reporting requirements, managed the data gathering, and supervised the people working with my contract. Contract ended when NC began performing their own PASAAR duties in-state.
1989-1991English as a Second Language Teacher
Yamanashi English Service, Kofu, Japan
I worked at this English language school after graduating with a B.S. degree. Responsibilities included: one-on-one lessons and group lessons with companies and individuals (ages ranging from 4-80 years old), English conversation and grammar, and curriculum development. This job ended when my work visas were exhausted and I returned to the U.S.