Yeycy Donastorg

Biographic Data

ID	317998
NAME	Yeycy Donastorg
GIVEN NAMES	Yeycy
FAMILY NAME	Donastorg
SIGNATURE	DONASTORG Y
AFFILIATIONS	Instituto Dermatológico y Cirugía de Piel "Dr. Huberto Bogaert Díaz"
ORCID	0000-0002-0556-0133
VERIFIED	Yes
TOTAL WORKS	37
TOTAL CITATIONS	11
AUTHOR COUNT	37
EDITOR COUNT	0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR	2014
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR	2026
H-INDEX	2

“Now My Body Asks Me for Peace and Tranquility ”: Perspectives on Aging Among Transgender Women in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Open AccessClare Barrington, Gaby Sandor et al.ARTICLEResearch on Aging2026
There is limited understanding of aging experiences among transgender (trans) women in Latin America and the Caribbean. The purpose of this community-engaged, formative study was to explore lived experiences and perceptions of aging among trans women in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. From August to October 2024, we conducted in-depth interviews with trans women (n = 19) 45 years and older and analyzed data using narrative and thematic techniq…
The Role of Mobility in HIV Intervention Engagement and Community Mobilization among Female Sex Workers Living with HIV in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessMaria De Jesus, Eric R Schuler et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2026
Female sex workers (FSWs) are often a mobile population, but the role of mobility in influencing FSW social capital outcomes-defined here as engagement with HIV intervention activities and community mobilization-remains unclear. To date, the evidence is mixed, with mobility both facilitating and hindering community engagement, depending on the context. This study is the first to employ a mixed-methods approach to examine how mobility impacts thes…
Intersectional HIV stigma in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean: Insights and pathways forward – A scoping review
Open AccessN Malika, Laura M Bogart et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2025
Research has recently surged on intersectional HIV stigma, including how intersecting stigmatized identities and socio-structural conditions influence HIV prevention and treatment outcomes. However, most of this work has been concentrated in high-income settings. This scoping review aimed to provide an overview of research on intersectional HIV stigma in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. A search was conducted using five databa…
Longitudinal analysis of the role of mindfulness on HIV stigma, depression, substance use and HIV outcomes among female sex workers living with HIV in the Dominican Republic
Yan Wang, Carla J Berg et al.ARTICLEAIDS Care2025
Female sex workers (FSW) living with HIV experience greater depression and worse HIV outcomes than people living with HIV (PLHIV) overall. Mindfulness is related to lower depression and higher ART adherence in PLHIV. Few studies have assessed these relationships among FSW, especially longitudinally. This study assessed the temporal relationship between mindfulness, mental health and HIV outcomes among FSW from the Dominican Republic (DR). We anal…
Corona’ was bigger than Aids: Exploring how female sex workers with HIV navigated HIV care and treatment during the onset of Covid-19 in the Dominican Republic and Tanzania
Clare Barrington, Victoria Savage et al.ARTICLECulture Health & Sexuality2025References: 40
Initial efforts to control COVID-19 included restricting human movement, which caused heightened economic insecurity and challenges to the management of chronic health conditions such as HIV. The aims of this study were to: (1) explore how female sex workers living with HIV in the Dominican Republic and Tanzania, two different cultural and epidemic contexts, reacted to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and (2) assess how lockdown measures impac…
“You know that we travel a lot”: Mobility narratives among female sex workers living with HIV in Tanzania and the Dominican Republic
Open AccessZoé Mistrale Hendrickson, Maria De Jesus et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2024
Female sex workers (FSW) are highly mobile, which may result in reduced access to and use of health services and increased risk for poor health outcomes, particularly for those living with HIV. Mobility includes spatial, temporal, and social elements that are not fully captured by quantitative measures. We conducted two rounds of in-depth interviews with FSW living with HIV in Iringa, Tanzania (n = 20), and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (n = …
Exploring the dynamics of the quality of HIV care experienced by female sex workers living in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessTahilin Sanchez Karver, Clare Barrington et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2023
Despite increased attention and efforts to improve HIV care among female sex workers (FSWs), they continue to have suboptimal HIV outcomes. Exploring the socio-structural dynamics related to the quality of HIV care received by FSWs is critical to further strengthen interventions to improve their HIV care continuum outcomes. In this study, we conducted two rounds of qualitative in-depth interviews with 20 FSWs living with HIV in the Dominican Repu…
Beyond a deficit-based approach: Characterizing typologies of assets for cisgender and transgender female sex workers and their relationship with syndemic health outcomes
Open AccessBeth J Maclin, Yan Wang et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2023
Female sex workers (FSWs) live and work at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities that place them at greater risk for various negative health outcomes. Resilience theory asserts that an individual or community needs assets from which they can draw in response to stressors, such as chronic discrimination and abuse. This study characterizes and compares patterns of assets among cisgender and transgender FSWs living with HIV in the Dom…
Individual and Collective Forms of Stigma Resistance: Pathways Between HIV and Sex Work Stigma and Viral Suppression Among Female Sex Workers in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessDeanna Kerrigan, Clare Barrington et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2023
Stigma and HIV Treatment Outcomes Among Transgender Women Sex Workers in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessClare Barrington, Tamar Goldenberg et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2023
“She is the one who knows”: A qualitative exploration of oral and injectable PrEP as part of a community empowerment approach to HIV prevention among female sex workers in the Dominican Republic and T…
Open AccessAndrea Mantsios, Ohvia Muraleetharan et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2022
Despite documented interest among female sex workers (FSW), uptake of oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention has been low. Recent trials and regulatory approval of long-acting injectable (LAI) PrEP offer new hope for the potential of this biomedical intervention. We examined FSW’s PrEP-related interest and preferences regarding both oral and LAI PrEP situating these dynamics within their specific social and occupational realities…
Exploring antiretroviral therapy adherence, competing needs, and viral suppression among people living with HIV and food insecurity in the Dominican Republic
Kathryn P Derose, Bing Han et al.ARTICLEAIDS Care2022
Understanding factors related to suboptimal adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and detectable viral load (VL), especially among vulnerable populations, is needed to improve HIV outcomes. The Caribbean is highly impacted by HIV and socioeconomic inequalities, but few studies have been conducted there to explore food insecurity among people with HIV and factors associated with viral suppression in this vulnerable population. Using baseline d…
Preliminary Effects of an Urban Gardens and Peer Nutritional Counseling Intervention on HIV Treatment Adherence and Detectable Viral Load Among People with HIV and Food Insecurity: Evidence from a Pil…
Open AccessKathryn P Derose, Amarilis Then-Paulino et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2022
Substance Use and Depression Impede ART Adherence Among Female Sex Workers Living with HIV in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessYan Wang, Tahilin Sanchez Karver et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2022
Assessing the Relationship Between HIV Quality of Care and Treatment Literacy on ART Adherence and Viral Suppression Among Female Sex Workers Living in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessTahilin Sanchez Karver, Yeycy Donastorg et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2022
Relationships Between Stigma and Intimate Partner Violence Among Female Sex Workers Living With HIV: Social and Economic Exclusion
Open AccessAmelia Rock, H Luz Mcnaughton Reyes et al.ARTICLEViolence Against Women2022References: 19
Violence against female sex workers (FSWs) perpetrated by their intimate (i.e., non-commercial) partners, particularly against FSWs living with HIV, is understudied. Stigma can deplete the economic resources, social relationships, and mental well-being of stigmatized people, which may increase their intimate partner violence (IPV) risk. We quantitatively assessed relationships between HIV stigma and sex work stigma and IPV victimization among FSW…
Stigma, social cohesion, and mental health among transgender women sex workers living with HIV in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessTamar Goldenberg, Deanna Kerrigan et al.ARTICLEStigma and Health2021
Globally, transgender (trans) women experience pervasive stigma, which contributes to health inequities across multiple mental health outcomes. While trans stigma has been associated with increased mental health challenges, less is known about how stigma related to sex work and HIV affect mental health. Social cohesion may ameliorate the negative health consequences of stigma, but little is known about how social cohesion is associated with menta…
Acceptability and perceptions of HIV oral self-testing across settings: A comparative qualitative study among Dominican and Tanzanian female sex workers
Open AccessS Wilson Beckham, Tahilin Sanchez Karver et al.ARTICLEGlobal Public Health2021
Rapid oral HIV self-tests (HIVST) have potential to increase the proportion of people who know their HIV status, especially among stigmatised populations. This study was embedded in two cohorts of female sex workers (FSW) in the Dominican Republic (DR) and Tanzania. Qualitative interviews with 40 FSW were conducted to explore perceived acceptability of HIVST. Interviews were analysed using inductive and deductive thematic coding. Emergent themes …
Development of the Experiences of Sex Work Stigma Scale Using Item Response Theory: Implications for Research on the Social Determinants of HIV
Open AccessDeanna Kerrigan, Tahilin Sanchez Karver et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2021
While HIV stigma has received significant attention, limited work has been conducted on the measurement of intersecting stigmas. We developed the Experiences of Sex Work Stigma (ESWS) scale in the Dominican Republic (DR) and Tanzania. We conducted in-depth interviews with 20 female sex workers (FSW) per country to identify scale domains followed by cognitive debriefing interviews to assess content validity. Items were administered in a survey to …
Disrupting the Systems: Opportunities to Enhance Methodological Approaches to Address Socio-Structural Determinants of HIV and End the Epidemic Through Effective Community Engagement
Open AccessCarlos E Rodriguez-Diaz, Wendy Davis et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2021
A world without HIV is only possible by addressing the socio-structural determinants of health. Our understanding of socio-structural determinants is constantly changing, and parallel changes must occur with the methodologies used to explain the drivers of the HIV epidemic. We argue for the need to engage communities in the planning, implementation, and dissemination of research on the socio-structural determinants of HIV. Community engagement sh…
Mindfulness, Mental Health and HIV Outcomes Among Female Sex Workers in the Dominican Republic and Tanzania
Open AccessDeanna Kerrigan, Tahilin Sanchez Karver et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2021
Daily activity spaces and drug use among female sex workers living with HIV in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessErica Felker-Kantor, Caluz Polanco et al.ARTICLEHealth & Place2021References: 7
Todo se trata de a quién conoces”: Social Networks and Drug Use Among Female Sex Workers Living with HIV in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessErica Felker-Kantor, Caluz Polanco et al.ARTICLEAIDS and Behavior2020
Masculine gender norms, male circumcision, and men’s engagement with health care in the Dominican Republic
Open AccessJohn Mark Wiginton, Paul J Fleming et al.ARTICLEGlobal Public Health2019
Overall, adult men are less likely to seek and receive health care than women, but male circumcision for HIV prevention has been successful in engaging men in health services. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between masculine norms and health care-seeking among men participating in a voluntary male medical circumcision (VMMC) programme in the Dominican Republic (DR). We employed a mixed methods approach integrating survey…
Competition and Humiliation: How Masculine Norms Shape Men's Sexual and Violent Behaviors
Open AccessPaul J Fleming, Clare Barrington et al.ARTICLEMen and Masculinities2019Cited by: 5References: 19
We use data collected from in-depth interviews with men ( n = 30) in the Dominican Republic to explore how men's concern about being perceived as masculine influences their interactions with their social networks and how those interactions drive men's sexual behaviors and use of violence. Men's sexual and violent behaviors were shaped by the need to compete with other men for social status. This sense of competition also generated fear of humilia…