Sara E Baumann

Contributions to Public Health

• Pioneering Collaborative Filmmaking in Global Health: My early work established the methodological strengths of film/video in health research, including capturing emic perspectives, fostering comfort, and supporting advocacy (a). Building on this foundation, I developed Collaborative Filmmaking (b)—a participatory method where participants create, analyze, and screen films on stigmatized health issues. I have trained and supported teams in the U.S., Georgia, Madagascar, India, Nepal, and Cambodia to apply this method across topics such as mental health, palliative care, and reproductive health.
  • Baumann SE, Merante M,* Folb BL, Burke JG. Is Film as a Research Tool the Future of Public Health? A Review of Study Designs, Opportunities, and Challenges. Qual Health Res. 2020 Jan;30(2):250-257. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1049732319871251
  • Baumann SE, Lhaki P, Burke JG. Collaborative Filmmaking: A Participatory, Visual Research Method. Qual Health Res. 2020 Dec;30(14):2248-2264. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1049732320941826
• Generating Multilevel Evidence on Menstrual Health in Nepal: I lead ongoing research exploring how caste, ethnicity, religion, culture, and policy shape menstrual health across individual, community, and policy levels in Nepal. My studies have identified inequities in knowledge and practices (a), interpersonal and social drivers or menstrual restrictions (b), and the limited impact of Nepal's 2017 criminal code. This evidence now informs a 2023-28 community-partnered project to co-design participatory, context-specific interventions that reflect the diverse needs of caste, ethnic, and religious groups.
  • Baumann SE, Lhaki P, Burke JG. Assessing the Role of Caste/Ethnicity in Predicting Menstrual Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices in Nepal. Glob Public Health. 2019 Sep;14(9):1288-1301. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17441692.2019.1583267
  • Baumann SE, Lhaki P, Terry MA, Sommer M, Cutlip T, Merante MM, Burke JG. Beyond the Menstrual Shed: Exploring Caste/Ethnic and Religious Complexities of Menstrual Practices in Far-West Nepal. Women’s Reproductive Health. 2021 8:1, 1-28. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23293691.2020.1861413
• Exploring the Intersection of Mental Health and the Arts: My research examines how community art supports health, cohesion, and resilience in crisis contexts. Following Nepal’s 2015 earthquake, I found that community art fostered healing and communication (a). This informed a follow-on study on community art and mental health during COVID-19 in Pittsburgh (b). I also co-teach Can Art Heal?, an undergraduate course exploring the role of the arts in health and healing across cultural, historical, and social contexts.
  • Baumann SE, Merante MM,* Sylvain-Holmgren MA, Burke JG. Exploring Community Art and Its Role in Promoting Health, Social Cohesion, and Community Resilience in the Aftermath of the 2015 Nepal Earthquake. Health Promot Pract. 2021 May;22(1_suppl):111S-121S. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524839921996083
  • Kaselitz E, Baumann SE, Burke JG. Can Art Heal? Exploring the Relationship between the Arts and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic. International Visual Sociology Association Annual Conference. 2022 Sept, Oral Presentation
• Harnessing Human-Centered Design to Advance Global Health: I apply human-centered design (HCD) to strengthen intervention development, measurement, and evaluation in global health. In Madagascar with my programming collaborators, I used HCD tools to better understand comprehensive sexuality education (a). In Nepal, I partner with several scholars and organizations to integrate HCD with arts-based approaches to co-create menstrual health interventions (b). These participatory methods help surface local insights, center community voices, and ensure culturally resonant solutions that address health equity and promote sustainable change.
  • Baumann SE, Leeson L, Raonivololona M, & Burke J. Exploring the multi-level impacts of a youth-led comprehensive sexuality education model in Madagascar using Human-centered Design methods. PLOS ONE. 2024. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0297106  
  • Baumann SE, Rabin M,* Devkota B, Hawk M, Upadhaya K,* Shrestha GR, Joseph B,* & Burke J. Centering Communities in Global Health: Using Human-centered Design to Facilitate Collaboration and Design Interventions. Community Health Equity Research and Policy. (2024). https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39044545/
• Applying Concept Mapping to Advance Participatory Health Research: As co-director of the Concept Mapping Institute, I provide technical support to scholars using this participatory mixed-methods approach across topics such as epilepsy and post-incarceration care. In collaboration with Dr. Burke, I have led multiple studies applying concept mapping for scale development in global contexts, helping to generate community-informed constructs and culturally grounded measures to guide intervention design and evaluation.
  • Burke, J., Baumann, S., Jones, J., Joshi, N.*, & Lhaki, P. (2024). Empowerment among adolescent girls in Nepal: A Concept Mapping Exploratory Study. Global Health: Science and Practice. https://doi.org/10.9745/GHSP-D-23-00010   
  • Burke J, Baumann SE, Shensa A, Jones J, Joshi N*, & Lhaki P. Introducing the Power in Nepali Girls (PING) Empowerment Scale. Global Public Health. (2023). https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17441692.2023.2276866