Ricky N Bluthenthal

Biographic Data

ID190673
NAMERicky N Bluthenthal
GIVEN NAMESRicky N
FAMILY NAMEBluthenthal
SIGNATUREBLUTHENTHAL R N
AFFILIATIONSUniversity of Southern California
ORCID0000-0003-3491-1702
VERIFIEDYes
TOTAL WORKS107
TOTAL CITATIONS196
AUTHOR COUNT107
EDITOR COUNT0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR1997
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR2026
H-INDEX8

  • Expanding power and opportunity in public health education

    Open AccessJonathan E Cohen, Karina Dominguez Gonzalez et al.ARTICLEFrontiers in Public Health2026

    Introduction There is growing student demand in graduate public health education for addressing racism as a determinant of health and educational opportunity. Antiracist pedagogy provides a framework for understanding power and opportunity in public health education and strengthening leadership capacity among faculty and staff. Methods We created a 15-week fellowship program for public health faculty and staff to learn about antiracist frameworks…

  • “I would protest if they ever stopped coming out here”

    Open AccessPresleigh Beshirs, Sid S Ganesh et al.ARTICLESSM - Qualitative Research in…2026

    Street medicine promotes ontological security for unhoused patients • Ontological security fosters healthcare routine and adherence for unhoused patients • Street medicine’s relational model helps reduce structural violence in mainstream care

  • HIV-Stigmatizing Beliefs and Attitudes as a Barrier to Early PrEP Care Continuum Engagement Among People Who Inject Drugs

    Open AccessSuzan M Walter, Suzan M Walters et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2026

    HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a highly effective prevention strategy, yet awareness, knowledge, and willingness to use it among people who inject drugs (PWID) remains inadequate despite widespread eligibility. Stigma, particularly HIV-stigmatizing beliefs and attitudes, may be a key barrier to engagement at early stages of the PrEP care continuum. We examine how HIV-stigmatizing beliefs and attitudes affect PrEP awareness, knowledge, and…

  • Passport to Wellness Intervention

    Open AccessNina T Harawa, Emerald Dang et al.ARTICLEJournal of Homosexuality2026

    We designed Passport to Wellness (PtW) to promote HIV/STI testing and prevention while addressing social determinants of health among Black sexual minority men (SMM). Over the course of a pilot study and small randomized controlled trial of PtW, we recruited and trained 10 Black SMM who implemented the intervention's Peer Mentor component. We describe here the Mentors training and supervision, and how they articulated their strategies for partici…

  • Healthcare disparities and stress-driven substance use

    Brittany Blevins, Siddhi S Ganesh et al.ARTICLEJournal of Social Work Practice…2026

  • Housing and displacement as risk factors for negative health outcomes among people who inject drugs in Los Angeles, CA, and Denver, CO, USA

    Open AccessJesse L Goldshear, Karen F Corsi et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2026

    The United States is currently experiencing a housing and homelessness crisis. In response, many cities have adopted policies of displacement that move unhoused people from place to place. Recent research indicates that these policies may have negative health impacts on unhoused people who use drugs. We sought to examine health risks associated with forced displacement among unhoused people who inject drugs (PWID). We interviewed a community-recr…

  • Development and Validation of a Provider-Specific Anticipated Stigma Scale for People Who Inject Drugs

    Open AccessRoman Ivasiy, Valerie A Earnshaw et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2026

    Stigma in healthcare settings is a critical barrier to HIV prevention and treatment among people who inject drugs (PWID). While previous tools have measured anticipated stigma, few account for the intersectional and provider-specific experiences of PWID-particularly from syringe service programs (SSPs). We developed and validated the Substance Use Anticipated Provider Stigma Scale (SU-APSS), a multidimensional instrument assessing anticipated sti…

  • Breaking barriers

    Open AccessAshleigh Herrera, Bradley T Conner et al.ARTICLEInternational Journal of Drug…2026

    The opioid epidemic continues to claim lives at alarming rates, disproportionately affecting marginalized communities, with structural barriers preventing equitable access to lifesaving interventions such as naloxone. Harm reduction vending machines (HRVMs) offer a promising solution to this issue, providing low-barrier access to naloxone and other harm reduction supplies. This study examines the impact of different HRVM access models on product …

  • Understanding the Impact of Structural Racism and Violence Across the Lifespan on Overdose Vulnerability Among Black San Franciscans Experiencing Homelessness

    Open AccessMarie Gourdet, Sedona L Koender et al.ARTICLEJournal of Psychoactive Drugs2026

    Overdose in California is highly racialized, with Black Californians experiencing excessive mortality. People experiencing homelessness (PEH) report high rates of fentanyl-stimulant co-use and drug-related harm. There is limited research examining structural racism and intersectional violence of policing, homelessness, and overdose throughout the lifespan of Black people. POLY HOME is a qualitative study among PEH who fentanyl and stimulants in S…

  • Transforming academic public health mentorship

    Open AccessGoleen Samari, Daniel Soto et al.ARTICLEFrontiers in Public Health2025

    Persistent systemic inequities disproportionately impact BIPOC, first-generation, and international students in graduate public health education. Despite institutional diversity, equity, and inclusion commitments, these students frequently encounter structural barriers such as limited mentorship, inadequate faculty representation, marginalization, and restricted access to academic resources. The Mentoring of Students and Igniting Community (MOSAI…

  • “It’s Not Just One Decision, It’s a Whole Lifestyle Change”

    Ariel Ford, Siddhi S Ganesh et al.ARTICLESubstance Use & Misuse2025

    Background: Understanding socio-cultural factors associated with motivation to seek treatment is critical to addressing persistent mortality related to injection and opioid drug use. Objective: Using mixed methods, we examined factors associated with readiness to change substance use among structurally vulnerable people who inject drugs (PWID), recruited from Los Angeles and Denver (n = 472) between 2021 and 2022. Results: Readiness was categoriz…

  • Psychiatric Medication Treatment, Concurrent Substance Use, and Subsistence Difficulty Among People Who Inject Drugs with Diagnosed Mental Health Disorders in Los Angeles and Denver

    Open AccessThinh Toan Vu, Ricky N Bluthenthal et al.ARTICLESubstance Use & Misuse2025

    BACKGROUND: Limited literature exists on how concurrent substance use and difficulty meeting basic needs impact recent psychiatric treatment among people who inject drugs (PWID) with diagnosed mental health disorders in the U.S. This study assessed the prevalence of taking current psychiatric medication treatment, and its association with concurrent substance use and subsistence difficulty. METHOD: Baseline data from a prospective cohort study in…

  • Material hardship, forced displacement, and negative health outcomes among unhoused people who use drugs in Los Angeles, California and Denver, Colorado

    Open AccessJesse L Goldshear, Siddhi S Ganesh et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2025

    This LCA indicates that among PWUD experiencing homelessness there exist distinct differences in resource access and material hardship, and that these differences are linked with political, social, substance use, and other health outcomes. We add to the literature on the relationship between poverty and health among PWUD. Policies which increase difficulty accessing necessary material resources may negatively impact health in this population

  • Heroin injection to fentanyl smoking

    Open AccessSiddhi S Ganesh, Rebecca Smeltzer et al.ARTICLEInternational Journal of Drug…2025

  • Methodological Lessons Learned From a Longitudinal Study of Overdose Vulnerability Among People Experiencing Homelessness Who Co-use Fentanyl and Stimulants in San Francisco, CA, USA

    Open AccessSedona L Koender, Zena K Coronado et al.ARTICLEInternational Journal of…2025References: 43

    The U.S. overdose crisis is now driven by polysubstance use involving fentanyl and stimulants. We received funding through the National Institutes on Drug Abuse’s Helping to End Addiction Long-Term (HEAL) initiative to conduct longitudinal qualitative research on polysubstance use among people experiencing homelessness (PEH) in San Francisco, California. An Intersectional Risk Environment Framework was used to examine the interaction between soci…

  • Characterizing Opioid Withdrawal Experiences and Consequences Among a Community Sample of People Who Use Opioids

    Open AccessKelsey A Simpson, Maria Bolshakova et al.ARTICLESubstance Use & Misuse2024

    BACKGROUND: Opioid withdrawal symptoms are a highly salient and consequential health condition experienced by people who use opioids (PWUO). This study utilized qualitative interviews to explore opioid withdrawal experiences and consequences among PWUO in Los Angeles County, USA. METHODS: Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with 22 PWUO (aged 27-63 years) between May 2021 and May 2022. Participants self-reported opioid and injec…

  • Opioid use, prescribing and fatal overdose patterns among racial/ethnic minorities in the United States

    Open AccessJ M Ezell, Mai T Pho et al.ARTICLEDrug and Alcohol Review2024

  • Financial barriers, facilitators, and strategies among syringe services programs in the U.S., and their impact on implementation and health outcomes

    Open AccessChris F Akiba, Jessica Smith et al.ARTICLESSM - Qualitative Research in…2024

    Syringe Services Programs (SSPs) provide evidence-based services like drug use equipment to prevent infectious disease, overdose prevention education, and naloxone distribution to people who use drugs (PWUD). However, inadequate funding threatens provision of these interventions. This study aimed to document how the current funding landscape impacted determinants of SSP implementation, particularly describing financial and staffing barriers, faci…

  • How Should Harm Reduction Be Included in Care Continua for Patients With Opioid Use Disorder

    Open AccessElizabeth Salisbury‐Afshar, Catherine J Livingston et al.ARTICLEThe AMA Journal of Ethic2024

    Practices and interventions that aim to slow progression or reduce negative consequences of substance use are harm reduction strategies. Often described as a form of tertiary prevention, harm reduction is key to caring well for people who use drugs. Evidence-based harm reduction interventions include naloxone and syringe service programs. Improving equitable outcomes for those with opioid use disorder (OUD) requires access to the continuum of evi…

  • Updates on syringe coverage and service uptake among needle and syringe programs in the United States, 2019–2020

    Open AccessHansel E Tookes, Hansel Tookes et al.ARTICLEInternational Journal of Drug…2024

    Both governmental investment in harm reduction programming and needs-based distribution of syringes increased service uptake and thus should be expanded and sustained to reduce harms associated with injection drug use

  • Sleep Health among Community-Recruited Opioid-Using People Who Inject Drugs in Los Angeles, CA and Denver, CO

    Open AccessAvaion Ruth, Siddhi S Ganesh et al.ARTICLEJournal of Urban Health2024References: 1

    Chronic insufficient and poor-quality sleep are linked to hypertension, diabetes, depression, heart attack, and stroke. While studies on substance use and sleep typically focus on people in or entering treatment, there is a lack of research on sleep health among community-recruited people who inject drugs (PWID). To address this literature gap, we examined factors associated with insufficient and poor-quality sleep among community-recruited PWID.…

  • Characterizing prescription opioid, heroin, and fentanyl initiation trajectories

    Open AccessTheda Perdue, Tasha Perdue et al.ARTICLESocial Science & Medicine2024References: 60

  • A National Portrait of Public Attitudes toward Opioid Use in the US

    Open AccessSuzan M Walter, Weiwei Liu et al.ARTICLEInternational Journal of…2023

    Public health policies are most effective in addressing OUD. We suggest targeting interventions toward the "High Stigma/Mixed Public Health and Punitive Policy" group since this group already displays some support for public health policies. Broader interventions, such as eliminating stigmatizing messaging in the media and redacting punitive policies, could reduce OUD stigma among all groups

  • New evidence’ for Syringe Services Programs? A call for rigor and skepticism

    Open AccessBarrot H Lambdin, Ricky N Bluthenthal et al.ARTICLEInternational Journal of Drug…2023

  • Abolition and harm reduction in the struggle for “Care, Not Cages”

    Open AccessJeremy Levenson, Lauren Textor et al.ARTICLEInternational Journal of Drug…2023

    Care that is organized around the principles of harm reduction and the movement for police and prison abolition has the potential to uproot and transform structural causes of harm and violence, in the interconnected crises of drug-related harm, policing, and punishment. The United States' crisis of overdose and drug-related harm and its system of policing and punishment are historically and empirically linked phenomena. The abandonment of people …