Chenglin Hong is a first-year PhD student in Social Welfare at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs. He earned his MSW and MPH from the School of Social  Work and Department of Global Health at the University of Washington, Seattle (UW).  

Chenglin’s research focuses on addressing HIV/STD-related disparities among  sexual and gender minorities (SGM), especially among communities of color. His current work aims to explore how human-centered design and engineering  (HCDE), social media, and new technologies can be utilized for health promotion  and disease prevention. He is particularly interested in examining factors  associated with HIV/STI testing and the uptake of Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) and people  who use drugs. His long-term goal is to develop effective, evidence-based  interventions to decrease risk behaviors and health disparities among SGM by using online platforms and mobile apps.  

Chenglin is currently working on various research projects on HIV/STD treatment, care, and prevention in China, Uganda, Ukraine, and the Philippines with  researchers from the UW Department of Global Health/Psychology, Emory  University, and UCSF, etc. Before his graduate studies, he served as a clinical  social worker with people living with HIV in the Chinese Center for Disease Control  and Prevention (China CDC) and worked with US CDC, China CDC, and Gates Foundations to strengthen training and support for health care workers in the care  and treatment of people living with HIV in China.