About

Charles Cleland, PhD, is a professor in the Department of Population Health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. He is a quantitative psychologist and biostatistician who collaborates on public health and health services research. His major substantive areas include the HIV care continuum, development of multicomponent interventions to support vulnerable populations in diagnosis, care engagement, medication adherence, and sustained viral suppression. His collaborative work also encompasses interventions to reduce or manage substance use and its consequences, as well as individual differences in the psychosocial consequences of childhood sexual abuse.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Political Science
• Demography
• Environmental health
• Family medicine
• Sociology
• Gerontology
• Internal medicine
• Psychiatry
• Nursing
• Pediatrics
• Surgery
• Geography
• Social psychology
• Psychology
• Clinical psychology

Selected publications

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

  AIDS and Behavior · 2026-03-14

  articleOpen access

  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 stigma from four provider types: healthcare workers, substance use treatment staff, pharmacists, and SSP personnel. Data were drawn from a cross-sectional survey of 264 PWID who were 18 or older, HIV-negative, had injected drugs and used opioids within the past 30 days, and showed visible signs of recent injection. We conducted confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) on responses from 218 participants to evaluate structural validity and used Cronbach's alpha to assess internal consistency. The CFA supported a four-factor structure with strong model fit indices (CFI = 0.97, RMSEA = 0.09 [0.07, 0.11], SRMR = 0.04). All items significantly loaded onto their respective factors (loadings: 0.62-1.06). Internal consistency was high across all subscales (α = 0.85-0.96) and for the overall scale (α = 0.87). Attribution analysis revealed drug use, physical appearance, and income level as the most common perceived reasons for anticipated stigma. The SU-APSS offers a practical tool for identifying provider-specific stigma, informing stigma-reduction interventions, and evaluating implementation strategies to improve HIV prevention and care engagement among PWID.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Selecting optimized behavioral interventions from an optimization randomized controlled trial on increasing COVID-19 testing for African American/Black and Latino frontline essential workers not up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccination

  Annals of Behavioral Medicine · 2026-01-01

  articleOpen access

  Abstract Background African American/Black and Latino (AABL) persons suffer higher COVID-19 infection rates and adverse consequences (hospitalization, death) compared to White persons, especially among frontline essential workers who are not up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccination. Regular COVID-19 testing plays an essential role in mitigating such disparities. Purpose The New York Community Action Project (NCAP), conducted in New York City between July 2022 and February 2024, was motivated by the goal of developing an effective and implementable behavioral intervention to promote COVID-19 testing among AABL frontline essential workers. In the present study, we selected an optimized intervention, based on data from the NCAP optimization randomized controlled trial (“optimization RCT”), which was guided by the multiphase optimization strategy (MOST) framework. Methods The NCAP optimization RCT (N = 438) used a full 24 factorial design, testing the following candidate intervention components: motivational interviewing counseling (MIC; off vs. on); text messaging grounded in behavioral economics (behavioral economics intervention [BEI; off vs. on]); peer education (PE; off vs. on); and access to COVID-19 testing via either a navigation meeting [NM] or self-test kits [SK]). We applied Decision Analysis for Intervention Value Efficiency (DAIVE) to identify the optimized intervention (ie, the optimized combination of the four intervention components) that is effective at promoting the COVID-19 testing rate while remaining implementable. To estimate expected outcomes on the primary outcome (binary; self-reported COVID-19 testing at two follow-up assessments), we applied three alternative strategies for handling missing data and investigated decision-making robustness. Results The three missing data strategies did not differ in ways that would shape optimization decision-making, suggesting robustness across strategies. The optimized intervention that strategically balances effectiveness and implementability contained motivational interviewing counseling (MIC), the behavioral economics intervention (BEI), and self-test kits (SK). Conclusions The optimized intervention we identified based on empirical data from the NCAP optimization RCT shows potential to effectively increase the COVID-19 testing rate among AABL frontline essential workers who are not up to date on COVID-19 vaccination. Our demonstration of missing data strategies under the DAIVE framework offers meaningful practical guidance for behavioral medicine researchers.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Effectiveness of behavioural tobacco cessation interventions with and without pharmacotherapy among people living with HIV in Viet Nam: a three-arm pragmatic randomised controlled trial

  The Lancet Global Health · 2026-02-16 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: People living with HIV are two to three times more likely to smoke than the general population, resulting in higher risk for tobacco-related morbidity and mortality. Despite this growing burden of disease, there is little evidence for the long-term effectiveness of tobacco cessation interventions among people living with HIV, particularly in low-income and middle-income countries. We aimed to compare the effectiveness of three tobacco cessation interventions among people living with HIV. METHODS: We conducted an open-label, three-arm pragmatic randomised controlled trial in 13 outpatient HIV clinics (OPCs) in Hanoi, Viet Nam. Adults who smoked at least one cigarette a day, lived in Hanoi, had a clinic visit in the past 12 months, and had daily access to a mobile telephone that could receive text messages were allocated (1:1:1) to either: proactive referral to Viet Nam's national smokers' Quitline counselling programme (Quitline group); six-session tailored counselling delivered by trained OPC nurses plus text messages (Counselling + SMS group); or Counselling + SMS plus 6 weeks of nicotine replacement therapy (ie, 2 mg nicotine gum; Counselling + SMS+ gum group). Randomisation was by stratified permuted block randomisation with block sizes of three and six. Neither study participants, OPC health-care workers, nor study staff were masked to group assignment. All patients received advice to quit and brief cessation counselling during their physician visit. The primary outcome was 7-day point-prevalence smoking abstinence confirmed at 6 months by exhaled carbon monoxide concentration of less than 8 ppm, assessed with an intention-to-treat analysis. The trial was registered on Dec 17, 2021, at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05162911). FINDINGS: Between Nov 30, 2021 and Sept 27, 2023, 672 patients were randomly allocated to the three test groups (221 to the Quitline group, 225 to the Counselling + SMS group, and 226 to the Counselling + SMS + gum group). 338 (50%) patients reported dual waterpipe and cigarette use. At 6 months, 109 (16%) patients had confirmed abstinence (28 [13%] for Quitline, 40 [18%] for Counselling + SMS, and 41 [18%] for Counselling + SMS + gum). There were no significant differences between intervention groups: Counselling + SMS versus Quitline (odds ratio 1·48, 95% CI 0·78-2·81; p=0·33), Counselling + SMS+ gum versus Quitline (1·64, 0·86-3·11; p=0·17), and Counselling + SMS + gum versus Counselling +SMS (1·11, 0·61-2·00; p=0·91). There were no serious adverse events linked to the study interventions throughout the trial duration. INTERPRETATION: Integrating nurse-delivered cessation treatment and proactive referral to a national Quitline was feasible within the context of HIV care. In the absence of evidence that tailored interventions provide additional benefit, our findings suggest that national Quitlines, available in 42 low-income and middle-income countries, might serve as a resource for integrating tobacco treatment into HIV care systems. FUNDING: US National Cancer Institute.

  PublisherDOI

• Perspectives on COVID-19 Vaccination Among Unvaccinated and Under-Vaccinated African American/Black and Latine Frontline Essential Workers: A Qualitative Exploration

  UNC Libraries · 2026-04-11

  articleOpen access
  PublisherDOI

• Detection of Party Drugs on Mobile Phones in Relation to Self-Reported Use and Oral Fluid Detection Among NYC Nightclub Attendees

  Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs · 2026-03-19

  articleOpen access

  OBJECTIVES: Self-report and biospecimen testing to assess drug exposure have limitations. Surface testing of personal objects (e.g., mobile phones) may provide complementary information about drug exposure, particularly when there is discordance between biospecimen results and self-report. We examined whether mobile phone swab testing, alongside self-report and oral fluid data, could provide information regarding drug exposure among nightlife attendees-a population with high prevalence of party drug use. We also examined whether detection could inform situations in which a drug is detected in oral fluid but not reportedly used. METHODS: In 2025, we assessed self-reported drug use and analyzed oral fluid and swabs of mobile phones from 127 adults attending nightclubs in New York City. We compared the prevalence of detection of cocaine, ketamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), and 4-methylmethcathinone (4-MMC) across the three modes of collection. RESULTS: Cocaine was detected on 26.8% of phones, followed by ketamine (22.0%), 4-MMC (3.1%), and MDMA (2.4%). When classifying phone detection, reported past-48-hour use and oral fluid detection of cocaine and ketamine demonstrated high specificity (0.85-0.91), but lower sensitivity (0.37-0.73). Among participants with oral fluid positivity after not reporting use, 33.3% and 17.1% of these discordant cases had ketamine and cocaine detected on their phones, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Phone swab results often align with self-reported use and, less consistently with biologically confirmed exposure. However, drugs detected on phones may reflect less recent use or unintentional environmental sources contributing to oral fluid detection, supporting the role of phone swabbing as a complementary tool for detecting possible drug exposure.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Staff views on overdose prevention in permanent supportive housing

  Harm Reduction Journal · 2025-04-18 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  BACKGROUND: Permanent supportive housing (PSH) is the gold standard intervention for chronic homelessness, but PSH tenants face high risk for overdose due to a combination of individual and environmental risk factors. Little research has examined overdose prevention in PSH. METHODS: We conducted baseline surveys with staff from 20 New York PSH buildings participating in an overdose prevention technical assistance intervention study. PSH staff from participating buildings were invited via email to complete a brief online survey about their knowledge of overdose and perspectives on implementing overdose prevention practices in PSH. RESULTS: Surveys were completed by 178 staff of 286 invitations sent (response rate 62.2%). Average score on the Brief Opioid Overdose Knowledge (BOOK) questionnaire was 8.62 (SD 2.64) out of 12 points. Staff felt very positively (91.6-97.2% agreed or completely agreed) regarding the appropriateness and acceptability of implementing overdose prevention practices in PSH, but less certain about the feasibility of implementing these practices (62.4-65.5% agreed or completely agreed). Most (77.3%) felt it was mostly or definitely true that overdose prevention was a top priority in their building. Most PSH staff (median = 85.0%) but fewer tenants (median = 22.5%) had received a naloxone kit and training in overdose response. CONCLUSION: Staff feel positively about the acceptability and appropriateness of implementing overdose response practices in PSH, but somewhat more uncertain about the feasibility of implementing these practices. This study's results help hone targets for interventions to help PSH buildings take steps to reduce tenant overdose risk.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Advancing person-centered care: Protocol for quality measurement and management (QM2) in the New York State system for opioid use disorder treatment

  PLoS ONE · 2025-09-29

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  INTRODUCTION: The United States is facing an opioid use disorder (OUD) epidemic, marked by unprecedented overdose death rates. In New York State, synthetic opioids significantly contribute to the increasing overdose deaths, disproportionately impacting Black and Latinx communities. There is an urgent need to address issues related to equitable access to and the quality of care provided by substance use disorder (SUD) treatment programs. In light of this, the Quality Measurement and Management Research Center (QM2-RC) brought together an academic-government partnership to develop a person-centered quality measurement system and to assess its impact on a statewide treatment system that serves approximately 180,000 individuals per year. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The QM2-RC encompasses three interconnected projects (Project 1, 2, and 3) aimed at developing a quality management strategy and evaluating its impact on system performance across New York State. This report specifically focuses on Project 3, which involves a stepped-wedge trial with 35 clinics receiving a quality management intervention that includes performance coaching. This intervention will be compared to a treatment-as-usual (TAU) condition for clinics not participating in the trial. Administrative data will be utilized to monitor outcomes over four years. The coaching intervention, guided by the Integrated Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services (i-PARIHS) model, emphasizes interpreting quality measures and applying insights to enhance care. Coaches will provide support on data utilization, patient-centered care, harm reduction strategies, and the use of patient monitoring tools. The trial aims to evaluate clinic staff and leadership attitudes, experiences, and behaviors through surveys, semi-structured interviews, and external facilitator notes. Primary clinic outcomes will be assessed through adverse events, decreased clinic rates of substance use related emergency department visits and hospitalizations as well as mortality among patients within the first 12 months after admission to treatment after adjusting for individual and community level characteristics. This study is being developed over a multi-year period and will be informed by a mixed-methods approach incorporating multiple data sources, qualitative interviews, patient and clinic surveys. The study is being conducted in partnership with New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) and will be informed by input from patient, providers, health insurers, family members and local governing units. DISCUSSION: Project 3 of the QM2 study specifically targets key barriers in measuring the quality of SUD treatment, including technological limitations, unvalidated measures, workforce data literacy, and concerns about fairness in assessing clinical complexity. Through the implementation of a stepped-wedge trial involving 35 clinics, the project aims to develop new quality measures, offer performance feedback, and engage clinic leadership and staff in efforts to improve practices. The ultimate goal of Project 3 is to overcome these barriers, promote person-centered care, and improve SUD treatment practices across New York State.

  PublisherDOI

• Understanding overdose risk and response in permanent supportive housing: results of focus groups with tenants, staff, and leaders

  Addiction Science & Clinical Practice · 2025-11-28

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Permanent supportive housing (PSH) is an evidence-based intervention for people experiencing homelessness which integrates permanent housing with voluntary support services. PSH tenants are at high risk for overdose death, yet little research to date has examined overdose in PSH. We sought to examine overdose risk and existing responses in PSH, which can shed light on opportunities for future overdose prevention efforts. METHODS: We conducted focus groups with PSH tenants, staff, and leaders in New York City and New York's Capital Region. Focus groups were recorded and professionally transcribed. Two investigators independently completed rapid turnaround qualitative analysis, completing templated summaries of each focus group and compiling key content in an analysis matrix, which a third investigator reviewed; discrepancies were resolved by consensus. RESULTS: From October to December 2022, we held 8 focus group sessions with PSH tenants (3 focus groups, n = 10 total participants), staff (3 focus groups, n = 13), and leaders (2 focus groups, n = 11) grouped by role and region. Participants were diverse in age (26-67 years), gender (18 women, 16 men), race (3 Asian, 12 Black, 11 White, 5 multiracial, 3 other), and ethnicity (5 Latinx, 29 not Latinx). Analysis revealed four main themes: (1) Overdose was a large concern in PSH and created significant trauma for tenants and staff; (2) Environmental factors in PSH contributed to overdose risk; (3) There was heterogeneity in PSH buildings' current overdose prevention efforts and adoption of harm reduction principles; and (4) Multifactorial barriers resulted in limited tenant use of opioid agonist treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Overdose is a major concern for PSH tenants, staff, and leaders. Our findings shed new light on overdose in PSH settings, providing insight into risk factors, existing responses, and barriers and facilitators to future overdose prevention efforts. These findings can inform future overdose prevention interventions within PSH. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05786222, registered 27 March 2023.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Estimating the Influence of Incarceration on Subsequent Experience With Violence Among Black Men Who Have Sex With Men in the HPTN061 Study

  UNC Libraries · 2025-06-21

  articleOpen access

  Black men who have sex with men (BMSM) are disproportionately incarcerated in the United States. Incarceration is a barrier to health equity and may be a risk factor for experiences of interpersonal violence. However, the effect of incarceration on experienced violence among BMSM is understudied. We examined associations between recent incarceration on subsequent experiences of race- or sexuality-based violence, intimate partner violence, or community violence. We analyzed data from the HPTN 061 study. Analysis includes data on 1,169 BMSM recruited from 6 U.S. cities who were present at baseline as well as 6- and 12-month follow-up interview. We tested if self-reported incarceration between baseline and 6 months was associated with self-reported outcomes between 6 and 12 months using logistic regression with inverse probability of treatment weighting and multiple imputation methods. Experienced outcomes included violence due to race or sexuality, intimate partner violence and aggression, and community violence (i.e., gang violence, robbery, shooting). Approximately 14% reported incarceration between baseline and 6 months and 90% reported experiencing violence between 6 and 12 months. In adjusted analyses, incarceration was associated with subsequent race- or sexuality-based violence [a<em>OR</em> (adjusted odds ratio) range: 1.25-1.41, 95% CI (confidence interval) range: 1.00-1.74], experiences of physical abuse and aggression from intimate partners (a<em>OR</em>: 2.35; 95% CI: 1.50, 3.70) and community violence (<em>OR</em> 1.82; 95% CI: 1.23, 2.72). Recent incarceration experience increased risk of exposure to future violence in this population. Mixed methods research examining mediating paths between and downstream effects of incarceration and violence on the wellbeing and health of BMSM is needed. We implore researchers to study violence and incarceration among BMSM. Practitione should implement strategies such as trauma-informed interventions, and policies strengthening the social and economic support needs of Black populations.

  PublisherDOI

• Effects of behavioral intervention components to increase COVID-19 testing for African American/Black and Latine frontline essential workers not up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccination: Results of an optimization randomized controlled trial

  Journal of Behavioral Medicine · 2025-04-16 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Marya Gwadz

  New York University

  88 shared

• Joseph J. Palamar

  University School

  86 shared

• Noelle R. Leonard

  New York University

  55 shared

• Donna Shelley

  New York University

  42 shared

• Maria R. Khan

  Nishtar Medical College and Hospital

  40 shared

• Amanda S. Ritchie

  New York University

  37 shared

• Kenneth H. Mayer

  Fenway Health

  36 shared

• Ann-Margaret Dunn Navarra

  Stony Brook University

  30 shared

Labs

• Health Tech HubPI

Education

• PhD, Psychology

  New School University

  1998