Katherine LeMasters
Biographic Data
| ID | 6170048 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Katherine LeMasters |
| GIVEN NAMES | Katherine |
| FAMILY NAME | LeMasters |
| SIGNATURE | LEMASTERS K |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-1754-1730 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 27 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 1 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 27 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2019 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
The Impacts of the Sars-CoV-2 Pandemic on Incarceration Dynamics and Racial Disparities in North Carolina Jails
Does a state mandate translate into jail policy? Evidence from a policy surveillance study of opioid use disorder care in Colorado jails
BACKGROUND: People with opioid use disorder (OUD) are disproportionately represented in US jails, yet access to evidence-based treatment remains limited. In May 2022, Colorado enacted House Bill 22-1326, which mandated that all county jails provide medications of OUD (MOUD). This study sought to describe Colorado jail policies for OUD treatment after the 2022 state mandate and explore differences by county characteristics. METHODS: We conducted a…
Health consequences of paternal incarceration using a future-treated control group
Longitudinal pathways between maternal depression, parenting behaviors, and early childhood development
Maternal depression is a global public health concern with far-reaching impacts on child development, yet our understanding of mechanisms remains incomplete. This study examined whether parenting mediates the association between maternal depression and child outcomes. Participants included 841 rural Pakistani mother–child dyads (50% female). Maternal depression was measured at 12 months postpartum, parenting behaviors (warmth, stimulation, and ha…
“You feel like you going to die
Purpose: Incarceration is increasingly harmful for health due to climate hazards and the lack of policies to protect people who are incarcerated from flooding, hurricanes, and extreme temperatures. Yet, these overlapping crises have received limited attention. We assessed the experience of being incarcerated during hurricanes in Houston, Texas, an area repeatedly impacted by climate events. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 18 individu…
“You can’t incarcerate yourself out of the drug problem in America
BACKGROUND: In response to the U.S. overdose crisis, many states have increased criminal penalties for drug possession, particularly fentanyl. This study sought to qualitatively explore diverse community perspectives on increasing criminal legal penalties in Colorado for fentanyl possession (House Bill 22-1326) and the broader role of the criminal legal system in addressing substance use and overdose prevention. We conducted 31 semi-structured in…
The use of solitary confinement and in-custody mortality in North Carolina State Prisons, 2021–2023
Solitary confinement is common in NC prisons and is associated with elevated death rates in custody. There is an urgent need to document the types and duration of solitary stays to ultimately end this punitive practice
Structural and healthcare predictors of substance use-related death following release from incarceration
Identifying structural risk factors for overdose following incarceration
New horizons in criminal legal data
While criminal legal involvement is a structural determinant of health, both administrative and national longitudinal cohort data are collected and made available in a way that prevents a full understanding of this relationship. Administrative data are both collected and overseen by the same entity and are incomplete, delayed, and/or uninterpretable. Cohort data often only ask these questions to the most vulnerable, and do not include all types o…
Perceived versus actual HIV risk among PrEP indicated persons with criminal legal involvement
Individuals involved with community supervision experience multi-level obstacles impacting health outcomes. This is a high-risk period for HIV acquisition due to potential reengagement in unprotected sex and/or unsafe injection drug practices. This study aimed to assess the congruence between actual and perceived HIV risk and the degree to which individual, social, and behavioral factors impact risk perception among individuals on community super…
Mass probation
High community incarceration rates are associated with worse community mental health. However, it remains unknown whether higher rates of probation, a form of criminal legal community supervision, are similarly associated with worse community mental health. Our objective was to evaluate temporal and geographic correlations of county-level probation and mental health rates separately and to assess the association between county-level probation and…
“Nothing but a rope to hang yourself
While incarceration has proven detrimental to mental well-being, it remains unknown if community supervision is better for mental well-being than incarceration. Our objective was to explore the individual- and community-level relationships between community supervision and mental well-being and to examine inequities by race. We conducted 20 in-depth interviews with individuals on community supervision (e.g., probation, parole) in North Carolina a…
Collateral consequences of Covid-19 for people on probation and parole
Maternal adverse childhood experiences on child growth and development in rural Pakistan
Maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have significant impacts on the next generation with links to negative birth outcomes, impaired cognitive development, and increased socioemotional problems in children. However, not all types or levels of adversity are similarly deleterious and research from diverse contexts is needed to better understand why and how intergenerational transmission of adversity occurs. We examined the role of maternal…
Context specific HIV risk
While Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is efficacious in preventing HIV, little is known about PrEP use among those on community supervision. The Southern Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Study (SPECS) investigates barriers and facilitators for PrEP initiation and use among adults on community supervision (e.g., probation, parole). Challenges to PrEP use in this setting are abundant. SPECS uses a mixed-methods sequential design, including a multi-site, pr…
The MI-PHOTOS Project
Despite the persistent health inequities faced by rural women in the United States, few researchers have partnered with women in rural communities to co-create sustainable change. To fill this gap, Mothers Improving Pregnancy and Postpartum Health Outcomes Through stOry Sharing (MI-PHOTOS) employed a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach by partnering with mothers, community leaders, and community-based organizations in Robeson C…
Overlapping Crises
Climate-related disasters are becoming more frequent all over the world; however, there is significant variability in the impact of disasters, including which specific communities are the most vulnerable. The objective of this descriptive study was to examine how climate disaster susceptibility is related to the density of incarceration at the county level in the United States. Percent of the population incarcerated in the 2010 census and the Exp…
Incarcerated workers
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that incarcerated people be prioritized for vaccination primarily due to the risk present in congregate style prison and jail facilities. Furthermore, our review found that many incarcerated people perform labor that should be considered "essential", which provides another reason why they should have been among the first in line for COVID-19 vaccine allocation. These findings also highlig…
Men’s social networks, social norms, & family planning in Benin
To address low family planning (FP) use and high unmet need in West Africa, attention has been paid to addressing FP-related social networks and norms. Most work focuses on women. This analysis assesses men's FP-related social networks and norms and their relation to FP use in Benin using data from baseline surveys from the Tékponon Jikuagou intervention. We descriptively analysed men's egocentric FP-related social networks and norms at the villa…
Adverse childhood experiences and depression among women in rural Pakistan
NCT02111915 . Registered 11 April 2014. NCT02658994 . Registered 22 January 2016. Both trials were prospectively registered
Using Participatory Methods to Assess PrEP Interest and Uptake Among Young People Living in the Southeastern US
Longitudinal effects of perinatal social support on maternal depression
BACKGROUND: Depression in the perinatal period, during pregnancy or within 1 year of childbirth, imposes a high burden on women with rippling effects through her and her child's life course. Social support may be an important protective factor, but the complex bidirectional relationship with depression, alongside a paucity of longitudinal explorations, leaves much unknown about critical windows of social support exposure across the perinatal peri…
Covid-19 cases and testing in 53 prison systems
The contribution of grandmother involvement to child growth and development
INTRODUCTION: Early childhood interventions primarily focus on the mother-child relationship, but grandmothers are often critical in childcare in low-resource settings. Prior research is mixed on how grandmother involvement influences child outcomes and there is a paucity of research on grandmother caregiving in low-income and middle-income countries. We examined the role of grandmother involvement on child growth and development in the first 2 y…
Longitudinal effects of perinatal social support on maternal depression
BACKGROUND: Depression in the perinatal period, during pregnancy or within 1 year of childbirth, imposes a high burden on women with rippling effects through her and her child's life course. Social support may be an important protective factor, but the complex bidirectional relationship with depression, alongside a paucity of longitudinal explorations, leaves much unknown about critical windows of social support exposure across the perinatal peri…
Pregnancy experiences of women in rural Romania
Women in rural Romania face significant health disadvantages. This qualitative pilot study describes the structural disadvantage experienced during pregnancy by women in rural Romania, focusing on the lived experiences of Roma women. We explore how women in rural communities experience pregnancy, their interactions with the healthcare system, and the role that ethnic and social factors play in pregnancy and childbearing. We conducted 42 semi-stru…
Covid-19 cases and testing in 53 prison systems
The contribution of grandmother involvement to child growth and development
INTRODUCTION: Early childhood interventions primarily focus on the mother-child relationship, but grandmothers are often critical in childcare in low-resource settings. Prior research is mixed on how grandmother involvement influences child outcomes and there is a paucity of research on grandmother caregiving in low-income and middle-income countries. We examined the role of grandmother involvement on child growth and development in the first 2 y…
Maternal depression in rural Pakistan
NCT02111915. Registered 18 September 2015. NCT02658994. Registered 22 January 2016. Both trials were prospectively registered
Men’s social networks, social norms, & family planning in Benin
To address low family planning (FP) use and high unmet need in West Africa, attention has been paid to addressing FP-related social networks and norms. Most work focuses on women. This analysis assesses men's FP-related social networks and norms and their relation to FP use in Benin using data from baseline surveys from the Tékponon Jikuagou intervention. We descriptively analysed men's egocentric FP-related social networks and norms at the villa…
Adverse childhood experiences and depression among women in rural Pakistan
NCT02111915 . Registered 11 April 2014. NCT02658994 . Registered 22 January 2016. Both trials were prospectively registered
Using Participatory Methods to Assess PrEP Interest and Uptake Among Young People Living in the Southeastern US
Longitudinal effects of perinatal social support on maternal depression
BACKGROUND: Depression in the perinatal period, during pregnancy or within 1 year of childbirth, imposes a high burden on women with rippling effects through her and her child's life course. Social support may be an important protective factor, but the complex bidirectional relationship with depression, alongside a paucity of longitudinal explorations, leaves much unknown about critical windows of social support exposure across the perinatal peri…
The MI-PHOTOS Project
Despite the persistent health inequities faced by rural women in the United States, few researchers have partnered with women in rural communities to co-create sustainable change. To fill this gap, Mothers Improving Pregnancy and Postpartum Health Outcomes Through stOry Sharing (MI-PHOTOS) employed a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach by partnering with mothers, community leaders, and community-based organizations in Robeson C…
Overlapping Crises
Climate-related disasters are becoming more frequent all over the world; however, there is significant variability in the impact of disasters, including which specific communities are the most vulnerable. The objective of this descriptive study was to examine how climate disaster susceptibility is related to the density of incarceration at the county level in the United States. Percent of the population incarcerated in the 2010 census and the Exp…
Incarcerated workers
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that incarcerated people be prioritized for vaccination primarily due to the risk present in congregate style prison and jail facilities. Furthermore, our review found that many incarcerated people perform labor that should be considered "essential", which provides another reason why they should have been among the first in line for COVID-19 vaccine allocation. These findings also highlig…
Mass probation
High community incarceration rates are associated with worse community mental health. However, it remains unknown whether higher rates of probation, a form of criminal legal community supervision, are similarly associated with worse community mental health. Our objective was to evaluate temporal and geographic correlations of county-level probation and mental health rates separately and to assess the association between county-level probation and…
“Nothing but a rope to hang yourself
While incarceration has proven detrimental to mental well-being, it remains unknown if community supervision is better for mental well-being than incarceration. Our objective was to explore the individual- and community-level relationships between community supervision and mental well-being and to examine inequities by race. We conducted 20 in-depth interviews with individuals on community supervision (e.g., probation, parole) in North Carolina a…
Collateral consequences of Covid-19 for people on probation and parole
Maternal adverse childhood experiences on child growth and development in rural Pakistan
Maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have significant impacts on the next generation with links to negative birth outcomes, impaired cognitive development, and increased socioemotional problems in children. However, not all types or levels of adversity are similarly deleterious and research from diverse contexts is needed to better understand why and how intergenerational transmission of adversity occurs. We examined the role of maternal…
Context specific HIV risk
While Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is efficacious in preventing HIV, little is known about PrEP use among those on community supervision. The Southern Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Study (SPECS) investigates barriers and facilitators for PrEP initiation and use among adults on community supervision (e.g., probation, parole). Challenges to PrEP use in this setting are abundant. SPECS uses a mixed-methods sequential design, including a multi-site, pr…
Identifying structural risk factors for overdose following incarceration
New horizons in criminal legal data
While criminal legal involvement is a structural determinant of health, both administrative and national longitudinal cohort data are collected and made available in a way that prevents a full understanding of this relationship. Administrative data are both collected and overseen by the same entity and are incomplete, delayed, and/or uninterpretable. Cohort data often only ask these questions to the most vulnerable, and do not include all types o…
Perceived versus actual HIV risk among PrEP indicated persons with criminal legal involvement
Individuals involved with community supervision experience multi-level obstacles impacting health outcomes. This is a high-risk period for HIV acquisition due to potential reengagement in unprotected sex and/or unsafe injection drug practices. This study aimed to assess the congruence between actual and perceived HIV risk and the degree to which individual, social, and behavioral factors impact risk perception among individuals on community super…
Longitudinal pathways between maternal depression, parenting behaviors, and early childhood development
Maternal depression is a global public health concern with far-reaching impacts on child development, yet our understanding of mechanisms remains incomplete. This study examined whether parenting mediates the association between maternal depression and child outcomes. Participants included 841 rural Pakistani mother–child dyads (50% female). Maternal depression was measured at 12 months postpartum, parenting behaviors (warmth, stimulation, and ha…
“You feel like you going to die
Purpose: Incarceration is increasingly harmful for health due to climate hazards and the lack of policies to protect people who are incarcerated from flooding, hurricanes, and extreme temperatures. Yet, these overlapping crises have received limited attention. We assessed the experience of being incarcerated during hurricanes in Houston, Texas, an area repeatedly impacted by climate events. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 18 individu…
“You can’t incarcerate yourself out of the drug problem in America
BACKGROUND: In response to the U.S. overdose crisis, many states have increased criminal penalties for drug possession, particularly fentanyl. This study sought to qualitatively explore diverse community perspectives on increasing criminal legal penalties in Colorado for fentanyl possession (House Bill 22-1326) and the broader role of the criminal legal system in addressing substance use and overdose prevention. We conducted 31 semi-structured in…
The use of solitary confinement and in-custody mortality in North Carolina State Prisons, 2021–2023
Solitary confinement is common in NC prisons and is associated with elevated death rates in custody. There is an urgent need to document the types and duration of solitary stays to ultimately end this punitive practice
Structural and healthcare predictors of substance use-related death following release from incarceration
The Impacts of the Sars-CoV-2 Pandemic on Incarceration Dynamics and Racial Disparities in North Carolina Jails
Medicine (22 works) · Psychology (17 works) · Environmental health (13 works) · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis (12 works) · Public health (12 works) · Sociology (12 works) · Nursing (9 works) · Political science (9 works) · Population (9 works) · Psychiatry (9 works)