Doctoral Student Shows How Photography Can Improve Health Care for People with Chronic Illness

If you think research is all about statistics, just talk to Noelle Dimitri (MSW‘00, PhD‘21), who’s using photovoice to elevate the experiences of women with diabetes.

A licensed social worker and fourth-year Ph.D. candidate at BUSSW, Dimitri received a Graduate Arts Research Grant from the BU Arts Initiative and the Associate Provost for Graduate Affairs – Office of the Provost. The $3,000 research award will support her dissertation project, Exploring the Lived Experiences of Black Women Navigating Type-2 Diabetes.

“African American women experience gross inequities in diabetes morbidity and mortality,” says Dimitri, the result of “a complex set of factors driven by a legacy of racism and racialized policy.” 

Dimitri, who has dedicated her career to helping marginalized groups navigate chronic illness, will work with African American women with type-2 diabetes to record and elevate their experiences using photovoice. A qualitative method used in community-based participatory research, photovoice uses photography to communicate underrepresented perspectives around a common issue. Each participant will participate in several group sessions that will be voice-recorded and transcribed. Participants will receive a digital camera and gift card, acknowledging their time and efforts; funds will also be used to print digital photos, allowing participants to visually tell their stories.

“I see this dissertation project as an exciting fusion of my clinical and research interests,” says Dimitri, adding that her goal is to help improve interdisciplinary diabetes care for African American women and other marginalized groups.

Dimitri earned her MSW from BUSSW in 2000 and has since worked as a clinical social worker at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and an adjunct professor at Salem State University School of Social Work, where she co-authored numerous publications and presented widely on topics related to organ transplantation and health disparities. Dimitri enrolled in BUSSW’s PhD in Social Work program in 2016 and continues to teach clinical courses as both an instructor and online facilitator.

Article by Lily Rothman, BU School of Social Work